Jake High
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Jake C. High 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 and coach. He played football at the fullback position for
Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...
. He was the head football coach at
Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the Methodi ...
in 1912 and has the distinction of having the highest career winning percentage (.778) in the 127-year history of the Wesleyan Cardinals football program. He was also the head football coach at
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
(NYU) in 1913 and holds the distinction of having the lowest career winning percentage (.000) in the history of the NYU Violets football program.


Football player at Brown

High played college football at
Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...
from 1908 to 1910 at the fullback position. He played on the 1910 Brown team that defeated football powerhouse
Yale Yale University is a private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and one of the nine colonial colleges ch ...
, 21–0, and stopped
Jim Thorpe James Francis Thorpe (; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete who won Olympic gold medals and played professional American football, football, baseball, and basketball. A citizen of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was ...
's Carlisle Indians, 15–6. The 1910 victory over Yale, with High and
College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...
inductee Earl Sprackling in the backfield, was the first ever for the Brown football program. High had the reputation for always running with his mouth wide open. In his 1916 book about college football, former
Princeton Princeton University is a private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the Unit ...
All-American Big Bill Edwards recounted an incident in which an opposing player made a high tackle and was "unfortunate enough to stick his finger in High's mouth." The opposing player "let out a yell" as High came down on the finger and asked, "What are you biting my finger for?" High replied, "What are you sticking it in my mouth for?" High graduated from Brown in 1911. In 2003, as part of the 125 anniversary of
Brown Bears football The Brown Bears football program is the intercollegiate American football team for Brown University located in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and are members of ...
, High was named to Brown's All-Decade team for the decade from 1910 to 1919.


Wesleyan

After graduating from Brown, High served as the head coach of the
Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the Methodi ...
football team in 1912. He led the Wesleyan Cardinals to a 7–2 record in 1912, including a 7–6 win over his alma mater, Brown. High's 1912 Wesleyan team also won acclaim for scoring against Yale in a close 10–3 defeat to open the season. High's .778 winning percentage as Wesleyan's head football coach ranks first in the 127-year history of Wesleyan football.


NYU

High, who was a resident of
Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...
, chose not to return as Wesleyan's head coach in 1913 after having "salary difficulties with the athletic management of the school." He instead took the head football coaching job at
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
for the 1913 season. High's 1913 NYU football team went through the entire season without a win and without scoring a point. In his single season as the head coach at NYU, his team was outscored by 241 points to zero. The team lost to Muhlenberg by a score of 54–0 and to both
Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...
and
Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...
by identical scores of 48–0. High's 0–8 record at NYU gives him a .000 winning percentage, the worst in NYU football history. Despite the poor showing in 1913, NYU students expressed confidence that High had put the team on the right track as reflected in the following newspaper story from January 1914: "Speaking of supreme confidence, New York university students are fighting to keep Jake High, the football coach who piloted the team throughout a whole season without scoring a single point." Also, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' reported that High's work at NYU "was generally commended" and that "it is generally conceded that no criticism can be expressed in regard to High's work, which is admitted to have been first class in view of the material with which he had to do."


Later years

In 1914, High joined the coaching staff at Brown University. He later engaged in business in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
.


Head coaching record


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:High, Jake Year of birth missing Year of death missing American football fullbacks Brown Bears football coaches Brown Bears football players NYU Violets football coaches Wesleyan Cardinals football coaches Wesleyan University faculty