Robert Gilmour "Gloomy Gil" Dobie (January 21, 1878 – December 23, 1948) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wit ...

player and coach. Over a period of 33 years, he served as the head football coach at North Dakota Agricultural College (now

North Dakota State University North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota. It was founded as North ...

) (1906–1907), the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seat ...

(1908–1916), the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of ...

(1917–1919),

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to ...

(1920–1935), and

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifi ...

(1936–1938), compiling a career college football record of . Dobie's Cornell teams of 1921, 1922, and

1923 Events January–February * January 9 – Lithuania begins the Klaipėda Revolt to annex the Klaipėda Region (Memel Territory). * January 11 – Despite strong British protests, troops from France and Belgium occupy the Ruhr area, t ...

have been recognized as national champions. Dobie was also the head basketball coach at North Dakota Agricultural for two seasons from 1906 to 1908, tallying a mark of 17–5. He was inducted into the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were v ...

as a coach in 1951. Dobie reached 100 career wins in 108 games, which stood as the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...

record for the fewest games needed to reach 100 wins from 1921 to 2014.

Early life and playing career

Dobie was born in

Hastings, Minnesota Hastings is a city mostly in Dakota County, Minnesota, of which it is the county seat, with a portion in Washington County, Minnesota. It is near the confluence of the Mississippi, Vermillion, and St. Croix Rivers. Its population was 22,154 at ...

. He played football as an end and

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

Coaching career

Dobie achieved his greatest success at the

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

, where he had a During his tenure, Washington had a forty-game winning streak, which is the second longest in NCAA Division I-A/FBS history. His coaching career at Washington also comprised virtually all of Washington's 64-game unbeaten streak — still a college football record. Dobie then became the 16th head coach for the United States Naval Academy Midshipmen and held that position for three seasons, from 1917 to 1919. His coaching record at the Navy was This ranks him 14th at the Navy in total wins and first at Navy in winning percentage (.857), as of the end of the 2007 season. After coaching at Navy, Dobie won three

national championships A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, i ...

with

Cornell Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teac ...

, in 1921, 1922, and 1923 with Eddie Kaw and George Pfann. After his first season, he signed a five-year contract. During his first championship season at Cornell, he collected his 100th career win, doing so in 108 games—an NCAA record that stood until

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

, when Lance Leipold reached the mark in his 106th game at Division III Wisconsin–Whitewater. Dobie remains the fastest coach to 100 wins in major-college history. His career coaching record was 182 wins, 45 losses, and 15 ties, a .780 percentage. Of the 33 years he coached, he had 14 undefeated seasons. At Boston College at least, the best play of the Dobie system was a smash-through tackle. Dobie was inducted into the

in 1951 as a charter member. Dobie is buried at Lake View Cemetery in Ithaca, New York.

Head coaching record

Football

Dobie and player Edie Kaw in Navy, 1921

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dobie, Gil 1878 births 1948 deaths American football ends American football quarterbacks Basketball coaches from Minnesota Boston College Eagles football coaches Cornell Big Red football coaches Minnesota Golden Gophers football players Navy Midshipmen football coaches North Dakota State Bison football coaches North Dakota State Bison men's basketball coaches Washington Huskies football coaches College Football Hall of Fame inductees People from Hastings, Minnesota Sportspeople from the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area Coaches of American football from Minnesota Players of American football from Minnesota