Jim Garrett
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James William Garrett Jr. (June 19, 1930 – February 9, 2018) was an
American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...
player, coach, and scout. He played
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 ...
at
Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public university, public land grant colleges, land-grant research university with its main campus in Logan, Utah, United States. Founded in 1888 under the Morrill Land-Grant Acts as Utah's federal ...
. He served as football head football coach at Susquehanna University from 1960 to 1965 and
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
in 1985, compiling a career college football head coaching record of 39–21–1.


Early years

Garrett attended Rutherford High School, where he played as a halfback and
linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...
. He was an All-county and All-state selection in 1946 and 1947. He also received All-state honors in baseball as a senior. He accepted a football scholarship from
Saint Mary's College of California Saint Mary's College of California is a Private college, private Catholic college in Moraga, California, United States. Established in 1863, it is administered by the De La Salle Brothers. The college offers undergraduate and graduate programs w ...
. He transferred after his sophomore season to
Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public university, public land grant colleges, land-grant research university with its main campus in Logan, Utah, United States. Founded in 1888 under the Morrill Land-Grant Acts as Utah's federal ...
and had to sit out for one year. He was an All-Skyline Conference fullback as a junior in 1950. He also led the baseball team in batting with a .429 average as a senior, while playing catcher. After graduating in 1951, he went into the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
and served for two years at Fort Lee, where he was twice named All-Army and set a rushing record for the Fort in 1953.


Playing career

On January 25, 1954, he signed a contract with the
Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...
. He played in 5 exhibition games, but suffered a knee injury and was waived on September 7. He signed a baseball contract with the
Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...
organization and attended their spring training following his NFL rookie season. On March 3, 1955, he signed with the
BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions playe ...
of the
Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...
, where he was a starter. He played in seven games, registering 5 carries for 33 yards. In July 1956, he signed with the
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
, but broke his leg in six places during spring drills and was placed on the
injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in t ...
. On June 21, 1957, he signed with the Ottawa Roughriders of the
Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...
. He was released on August 14.


Coaching career

Garrett began his coaching career in the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
, serving as athletic director at Quartermaster Center and School at Fort Lee, from 1952 until his discharge in May 1954. He was named the football head coach at Pawling High School on September 8, 1955. In 1957, he began coaching football at the
United States Coast Guard Academy The United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA), located in New London, Connecticut, is the United States service academies, U.S. service academy specifically for the United States Coast Guard. Founded in 1876, the academy provides education t ...
, where he also was an assistant director of athletics, while helping with the basketball and baseball coaching. In June 1959, he was hired as an assistant football coach at
Lehigh University Lehigh University (LU), in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, United States, is a private university, private research university. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer. Lehigh University's undergraduate programs have been mixed ...
. In July 1960, he was named the athletic director and head football coach at Susquehanna University. He also coached the baseball team from 1962 to 1965 and guided the track and field team in 1961. He led the football team to a 39–11–1 record, which included undefeated seasons in 1961 and 1962. He was fired during the seventh game of the 1965 season for assaulting a player. Gustave Weber replaced Garrett as head coach and led Susquehanna to two losses, both against non-conference opponents, the team finished the season 0–9 overall. In 1968, he assumed the head coach position for the
Orlando Panthers The Orlando Panthers were a professional American football team based in Orlando, Florida. Founded in 1958 as the Franklin Miners, the team spent its first four years in the Eastern Football Conference, then three further years in the Atlantic Co ...
of the
Continental Football League The Continental Football League (COFL) was a professional American football Minor league football (gridiron), minor league that operated in North America from 1965 through 1969. It was established following the collapse of the original United Fo ...
. He spent most of the next 40 years in the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
as an assistant coach with the
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
(1970–1973), the
New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...
(1976–1977), and the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...
(1978–1984). He was named vice president and head coach of the
Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team plays its home games at N ...
of the fledgling
World Football League The World Football League (WFL) was an American football league that played one full season in 1974 in sports, 1974 and most of its second in 1975 in sports, 1975. Although the league's proclaimed ambition was to bring American football onto a w ...
, from April 1974 until the team's collapse and location move during the month of October. On May 14, 1975, he was named the football head coach at Millburn High School in New Jersey, where he had a brief stint. On December 27, 1984, he was named the head coach at
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
, taking over a program that had won only five of its last 63 contests and had one winning season since 1963. His time in the school was fraught with controversy, and was forced to resign as the team went 0–10, among accusations of verbal and physical abuse. After the season, his sons
John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...
,
Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece is featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Med ...
and Judd, who were enrolled at Columbia, transferred to
Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...
.


Scouting career

Garrett served from 1966 to 1967 as a talent scout for the Blesto 9 scouting service. He scouted for the
Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...
during three periods of time: 1968–1969, 1974–1975 and 1987–2003. As a college scout for the Cowboys, he wrote the original scouting report on
quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
Troy Aikman and famously pushed for the team to draft
wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...
Randy Moss. In 1986, he scouted for the
Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...
.


Personal life

Garrett and his wife Jane (née Lentz) were the parents of eight children. His sons
John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...
,
Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece is featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Med ...
and Judd coached in the NFL. Jason previously played and coached for the
Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...
, John is the head coach at
Lafayette College Lafayette College is a private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 18 ...
, Judd is a front office executive with the Cowboys, and Jim III teaches high school English at
University School University School, commonly referred to as US, is an all-boys, private, Junior Kindergarten–12 school with two campus locations in the Greater Cleveland area of Ohio. The campus located in Shaker Heights serves junior kindergarten through ...
. Garrett owned a beach house in New Jersey where he set up a makeshift practice field in his backyard, which he would use as an opportunity to teach the sport to his family members and other players in the nearby area. There have been reports in the media that there would be upwards of 20 people at a given time being mentored by him. Some of these individuals included NFL players Sam Mills, Miles Austin, Harry Flaherty Sr., Dino Hall, Bill Hill, Ethan Brooks and Darian Barnes. Garrett ran 2.5 miles every single day for 25 years without missing a day, until suffering a serious stroke in September 2012. He died at the age of 87 on February 9, 2018.


Legacy

Garrett was inducted into the Susquehanna University Sports Hall of Fame in 1981. He was part of the inaugural class inducted into the Rutherford High School's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1996.RHS Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Dinner , rutherfordschools.org, April 19, 1996; accessed February 19, 2020. In 2001, Susquehanna University named their athletic complex building in his honor as the James W. Garrett Sports Complex. In 2018, he was inducted posthumously into the Middle Atlantic Conference Sports Hall of Fame.


Head coaching record


References


External links


Celebrating The Incredible Life Of Former Cowboys Scout Jim Garrett

Longtime Cowboys Scout & Former Coach Jim Garrett Passes Away
{{DEFAULTSORT:Garrett, Jim 1930 births 2018 deaths BC Lions players Buffalo Bills scouts Cleveland Browns coaches Coast Guard Bears football coaches Columbia Lions football coaches Continental Football League coaches Dallas Cowboys scouts High school football coaches in New Jersey Houston Texans (WFL) coaches Lehigh Mountain Hawks football coaches New Orleans Saints coaches New York Giants coaches New York Giants players Sportspeople from Rutherford, New Jersey Rutherford High School (New Jersey) alumni Saint Mary's Gaels football players Players of American football from Bergen County, New Jersey Susquehanna River Hawks athletic directors Susquehanna River Hawks baseball coaches Susquehanna River Hawks football coaches Utah State Aggies baseball players Utah State Aggies football players