Jesse Terrill Hill (January 20, 1907 – August 31, 1993) was an American athlete, coach, and college athletics administrator who was best known for his tenure as a coach and

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches a ...

at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

(USC). His career spanned six decades. He played as an

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

from 1935 to 1937, coached two

national championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, 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 be ...

teams in

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

, and went on to become the first person to both play for and coach

Rose Bowl Rose Bowl or Rosebowl may refer to: * Rose Bowl Game, an annual American college football game * Rose Bowl (stadium), Pasadena, California, site of the football game, and the home stadium of the UCLA Football team * Rose Bowl (cricket ground), West ...

champions.

Early life and collegiate athletic career

Hill was born in

Yates, Missouri Yates is an unincorporated community in Randolph County, in the U.S. state of Missouri. History A variant name was "Yatesville". A post office called Yatesville was established in 1879, the name was changed to Yates in 1882, and the post office ...

and moved with his family to

Corona, California Corona (Spanish language, Spanish for "Crown") is a city in northwestern Riverside County, California, United States, directly bordering Orange County, California, Orange and San Bernardino County, California, San Bernardino counties. Its curre ...

as a boy, attending

Corona High School Corona Senior High School (CHS) is a California Distinguished School high school in the city of Corona, California, United States, a growing city in the Inland Empire of Southern California. CHS is one of eight high schools in the Corona-Norco ...

and Riverside Junior College—now known as

Riverside City College Riverside City College (RCC) is a public community college in Riverside, California. The college is part of the Riverside Community College District, as well as the larger California Community Colleges System. History RCC first opened in 1916 at ...

. After transferring to USC, he earned

letters Letter, letters, or literature may refer to: Characters typeface * Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech or none in the case of a silent letter; any of the symbols of an alphabet * Letterform, the g ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

, track, and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

. He played as a fullback for the 1928 USC football team, which won a

, and was a senior on the 1929 team that won the

1930 Rose Bowl The 1930 Rose Bowl was the 16th Rose Bowl game, an American post-season college football game that was played on New Year's Day 1930 in Pasadena, California. It featured the Pittsburgh Panthers against the USC Trojans.Pacific Coast Conference The Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) was a collegiate athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pac-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, with eight of the ten PCC members (includin ...

with an average of 8.2 yards per carry. As a junior, he won the national title in the

broad jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...

at the

IC4A IC4A Championships (Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America) is an annual men's competition held at different colleges every year. Association was established in 1875, the competition (started in 1876) served as the top level coll ...

meet on June 1, 1929 at

Franklin Field Franklin Field is a sports stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at the eastern edge of the University of Pennsylvania's campus. Named after Penn's founder, Benjamin Franklin, it is the home stadium for the Penn Relays, and the university's ve ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, with a jump of 25 feet 7/8 inch, breaking the intercollegiate record by 2½ inches. He also won a baseball conference batting championship with a .389 average as a senior in 1930. He was a member of Sigma Nu Fraternity.

Career as a professional athlete

After graduation, Hill signed a baseball contract with the

Hollywood Stars The Hollywood Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League during the early- and mid-20th century. They were the arch-rivals of the other Los Angeles–based PCL team, the Los Angeles Angels. Hollywood Stars ( ...

of the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

, and hit a

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

against the crosstown

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...

in his first professional

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, ...

. His contract was sold to the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

in January 1932, and he reached the major leagues as a

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

in , batting .293 in 107 games. On September 22 of his rookie year, he barely lost to Ben Chapman in a 75-yard promotional race held before a game with the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

. In January 1936 he was traded to the Washington Senators, and he hit .305 in a reserve role. After beginning with a .217 average in 33 games, and switching to

center field A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the cen ...

, he was sent to the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, they became the Oakland ...

, and hit .293 over the rest of the year. Afterwards he was sent to the

Oakland Oaks Oakland Oaks may refer to one of the following sport teams, listed chronologically: *Oakland Oaks (PCL), a minor league baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 to 1955 *Oakland Oaks (ice hockey), a professional ice hockey te ...

of the PCL, where he played two more years. Over his major league career, Hill batted .289 with 6 home runs, 175 runs, 108

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

, 277

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

and 43

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base unaided by other actions and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or out ...

Coaching career

Hill began his coaching career at California high schools and colleges during baseball off-seasons. He was the co-head football coach with

Jess Mortensen Jesse Philo Mortensen (April 16, 1907 — February 19, 1962) was an NCAA champion track athlete and coach. Mortensen is one of only three men to win Division I Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship team titles as both an athlete and coach. ...

at Riverside Junior College from 1930 to 1933. From 1934 to 1939, he was the head football coach at Corona High School. In 1940, he was hired as the head football and track coach at Long Beach Junior College—now known as

Long Beach City College Long Beach City College (LBCC) is a public community college in Long Beach, California, United States. It was established in 1927 and is divided into two campuses, the Liberal Arts Campus (LAC) in Lakewood Village and the Trades, Technology, an ...

(LBCC)–in

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

, for an annual salary of $2,400. Hill left Long Beach in early 1942 when he was appointed as a

lieutenant (junior grade) Lieutenant junior grade is a junior commissioned officer rank used in a number of navies. United States Lieutenant (junior grade), commonly abbreviated as LTJG or, historically, Lt. (j.g.) (as well as variants of both abbreviations), i ...

in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he worked with USC athletic director Willis O. Hunter in the Navy's V-5 (aviation cadet) program, and Hunter hired him in 1946 to coach freshman football and track. Hill was an assistant coach on USC's 1947 Rose Bowl team. Hill became USC's head track coach in 1949 and 1950, succeeding

Dean Cromwell Dean Bartlett Cromwell (September 20, 1879 – August 3, 1962), nicknamed "Maker of Champions", was an American athletic coach in multiple sports, principally at the University of Southern California (USC). He was the head coach of the USC track ...

, and won national titles in both years. He returned for one season as track coach in 1962 after the sudden death of Jess Mortensen. Hill served as USC's head football coach from 1951 to 1956, with his teams posting a record of 45–17–1, including Rose Bowl appearances after the 1952 and 1954 seasons. His 1952 squad finished the year ranked fifth in the nation with a 10–1 record, outscoring their opponents 254–47 and leading the nation in scoring defense at 4.7 points per game; the only loss was a 9–0 contest at Notre Dame, which ended the regular season. In the

1953 Rose Bowl The 1953 Rose Bowl was the 39th edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, on Thursday, January 1, at the end of the 1952 college football season. The fifth-ranked USC Trojans of the Pacific Coast ...

, USC defeated

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

9–0; it was the only time between 1947 and 1959 that the

Pacific Coast Conference The Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) was a collegiate athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pac-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, with eight of the ten PCC members (includin ...

(PCC) champion beat the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

champion. Hill's 1954 team lost the

1955 Rose Bowl The 1955 Rose Bowl was the 41st edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, on Saturday, January 1. The top-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes of the Big Ten Conference defeated the USC Trojans ...

Ohio State The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...

, 20–7. During his tenure, Hill's players included

Frank Gifford Francis Newton Gifford (August 16, 1930 – August 9, 2015) was an American professional football player, actor, and television sports commentator. After a 12-year playing career as a halfback, flanker and safety for the New York Giants of ...

Rudy Bukich Rudolph Andrew Bukich (September 15, 1930 – February 29, 2016) was an American professional football player, a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) from 1953 to 1968. Known as "Rudy the Rifle" for his uncommon arm strength, he tied ...

Jim Sears James Herbert "Jimmy" Sears (March 20, 1931January 4, 2002) was an American professional football player who was a defensive back and halfback in the National Football League (NFL) and the American Football League (AFL). He played college foot ...

and

Jon Arnett Jon Dwane "Jaguar Jon" Arnett (April 20, 1935 – January 16, 2021) was an American professional football player. He was a first-team All-American out of USC and was chosen in the first round, second pick overall, of the 1957 NFL draft by the L ...

. For the 1956 season opener at

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, Hill made the decision to change hotels after discovering that USC's integrated team could not stay at the segregated

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

hotel that had been booked; USC went on to win the game, 44–20, as fullback C. R. Roberts, an

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, ran for a school-record 251 yards. USC ended the year with wins over

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

and Notre Dame, the only time in his six years that they won both games.

Athletic director

Hill stepped down from his football post to become USC's athletic director from 1957 to 1972, during which period the university won 29 team national championships: eight

tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

titles (1958, 1962–64, 1966–69) under coach George Toley; six

College World Series The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is a baseball tournament held each June in Omaha, Nebraska. It is the culmination of the NCAA Division I baseball tournament—featuring 64 teams in the ...

titles (1958, 1961, 1963, 1968, 1970–71) under coach

Rod Dedeaux Raoul Martial "Rod" Dedeaux (February 17, 1914 – January 5, 2006) was an American college baseball coach who compiled what is widely recognized as among the greatest records of any coach in the sport's amateur history. Dedeaux was the head ba ...

; six track titles (1958, 1961, 1963, 1965, 1967–68) under coaches Jess Mortensen and Vern Wolfe; five

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, such as saltwater or freshwater environments, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Swimmers achieve locomotion by coordinating limb and body movements to achieve hydrody ...

titles (1960, 1963–66) under coach

Peter Daland Peter Daland (April 12, 1921 – October 20, 2014) was an International Swimming Hall of Fame U.S. Olympic and collegiate swim coach from the United States, best-known for coaching the University of Southern California Trojans swim team to nine N ...

; two football titles (1962, 1967) under coach John McKay; one

indoor track Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

title (1967) under coach Vern Wolfe; and one

gymnastics Gymnastics is a group of sport that includes physical exercises requiring Balance (ability), balance, Strength training, strength, Flexibility (anatomy), flexibility, agility, Motor coordination, coordination, artistry and endurance. The movem ...

title (1962) under coach Jack Beckner. Hill then became commissioner of the

Pacific Coast Athletic Association The Big West Conference (BWC) is an American collegiate athletic conference whose member institutions participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. The conference was originally formed on July 1, 1969, as the Pacific ...

, retiring in 1978.

Death, family, and honors

Hill died at age 86 in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...

, of complications of

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

and buried at the Sunnyslope Cemetery in Corona. He had one daughter and one son, and grandchildren. Hill was inducted into the USC Athletic Hall of Fame in its second class in 1995.

Head coaching record

College football

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Jess 1907 births 1993 deaths American football fullbacks American football halfbacks American male long jumpers American men's basketball players American track and field coaches Major League Baseball outfielders Forest City Owls players New York Yankees players Philadelphia Athletics players Long Beach City Vikings football coaches Riverside City Tigers baseball coaches Riverside City Tigers baseball players Riverside City Tigers football coaches Riverside City Tigers football players Riverside City Tigers men's basketball players Saint Mary's Pre-Flight Air Devils football coaches USC Trojans athletic directors USC Trojans baseball players USC Trojans football coaches USC Trojans football players USC Trojans track and field coaches Washington Senators (1901–1960) players High school football coaches in California Junior college track and field coaches in the United States United States Navy officers United States Navy personnel of World War II People from Randolph County, Missouri Sportspeople from Corona, California Players of American football from Riverside County, California Baseball players from Riverside County, California Basketball players from Riverside County, California Coaches of American football from California Track and field athletes from California Military personnel from California Deaths from Alzheimer's disease in California 20th-century American sportsmen USC Trojans men's track and field athletes