Ernest Hayes "Herc" Alley (June 4, 1904 – August 24, 1971) was an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

player, track athlete, and coach. He served as head men's track coach at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

from 1949 to 1971. Alley was also the head football coach at Middle Tennessee State Teachers College—now known as

Middle Tennessee State University Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or MT) is a Public university, public research university in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Founded in 1911 as a normal school, the university consists of eight Undergraduate education, undergraduate colleges as ...

—in 1939 and at Vanderbilt in 1943, compiling a career college football head coaching record of 6–6–1. A native of

Tracy City, Tennessee Tracy City is a town in Grundy County, Tennessee, United States. Incorporated in 1915, the population was 1,481 at the 2010 census. Named after financier Samuel Franklin Tracy, the city developed out of railroad and mining interests after coal ...

, Alley attended the

Baylor School Baylor School, commonly called Baylor, is a private school, private, coeducational college-preparatory school in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1893, the school's current campus comprises 690 acres and enrolls students in grad ...

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located along the Tennessee River and borders Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the south. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, it is Tennessee ...

. After graduating from Baylor, he went to Tennessee Wesleyan College—now known as

Tennessee Wesleyan University Tennessee Wesleyan University (TWU) is a Private university, private United Methodist Church, Methodist university in Athens, Tennessee. It was founded in 1857 and is affiliated with the Holston :wikt:conference, Conference of the United Meth ...

—when it operated as a junior college. He captained the football team at Tennessee Wesleyan before moving on to the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

, where he played football as an

end End, END, Ending, or ENDS may refer to: End Mathematics *End (category theory) * End (topology) * End (graph theory) * End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) * End (endomorphism) Sports and games *End (gridiron football) *End, a division ...

from 1927 to 1928. Alley remained at Tennessee in the fall of 1929 as an assistant coach before being hired as the head coach at Itta Bena High school in

Itta Bena, Mississippi Itta Bena is a city in Leflore County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 2,049 at the 2010 census. The town's name is derived from the Choctaw phrase ''iti bina'', meaning "forest camp". Itta Bena is part of the Greenwood, Mississipp ...

. He also coached in

Philadelphia, Mississippi Philadelphia is a city in and the county seat of Neshoba County, Mississippi, Neshoba County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 7,118 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Philadelphia is municipal corporation, i ...

before a four-year stint coaching at Canton High School in

Canton, Mississippi The city of Canton is the county seat of Madison County, Mississippi, United States, and is situated in the northern part of the Jackson, Mississippi metropolitan area, metropolitan area surrounding the state capital, Jackson, Mississippi, Jackso ...

. In 1937, he was appointed head football coach at Greenville High School in

Greenville, Mississippi Greenville is the List of municipalities in Mississippi, ninth-most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi, and the largest city by population in the Mississippi Delta region. It is the county seat of Washington County, Mississippi, Was ...

. In nine years of coaching

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, Alley led his teams to a combined record of 77–17–6. He also earned a master's degree in physical education from

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

(LSU) before succeeding Johnny Floyd as coach at Middle Tennessee State Teachers in 1939. He returned to Vanderbilt as the track coach, a position he held from 1949 to 1971. Alley died of cancer, on August 24, 1971, at his home in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

Head coaching record

College football

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Alley, Ernest 1904 births 1971 deaths American football ends Auburn Tigers football coaches Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders baseball coaches Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football coaches Tennessee Volunteers football coaches Tennessee Volunteers football players Tennessee Volunteers men's track and field athletes Tennessee Wesleyan Bulldogs football players Vanderbilt Commodores football coaches Vanderbilt Commodores track and field coaches High school football coaches in Mississippi Baylor School alumni Louisiana State University alumni People from Tracy City, Tennessee Coaches of American football from Tennessee Players of American football from Tennessee Baseball coaches from Tennessee Track and field athletes from Tennessee