Robert S. Harris (December 6, 1886 – July 11, 1964) 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 ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player and

coach. He played college football and basketball at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

. He was the head coach of the 1908–09 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team.

Early years

Harris was born in 1886. He attended Hyde Park High School in Chicago where he played football as a center. He attended the

, where he was a member of

Amos Alonzo Stagg Amos Alonzo Stagg (August 16, 1862 – March 17, 1965) was an American athlete and college coach in multiple sports, primarily American football. He served as the head football coach at the International YMCA Training School (now called Springfie ...

's football teams that won consecutive Western Conference championships in

1907 Events January * January 14 – 1907 Kingston earthquake: A 6.5 Moment magnitude scale, Mw earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica, kills between 800 and 1,000. February * February 9 – The "Mud March (suffragists), Mud March", the ...

and

1908 This is the longest year in either the Julian or Gregorian calendars, having a duration of 31622401.38 seconds of Terrestrial Time (or ephemeris time), measured according to the definition of mean solar time. Events January * January ...

. He also played basketball at Chicago and was a member of the 1906–07 and

1907–08 Chicago Maroons men's basketball team The 1907–08 Chicago Maroons men's basketball team represented the University of Chicago in college basketball, intercollegiate basketball during the 1907–08 season. The team finished the season with a 23–2 record and were named national ch ...

s that compiled a combined 44–4 record and were recognized by the

Helms Athletic Foundation The Helms Athletic Foundation, founded in 1936, was a Los Angeles-based organization dedicated to the promotion of athletics and sportsmanship. Paul H. Helms was the organization's founder and benefactor, funding the foundation via his owner ...

as national champion for both years.

Indiana University

Harris was the head coach of the 1908–09 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team. The team compiled a 5–9 record.

Military service and later years

During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Harris served overseas in the U.S. Army's

Rainbow Division The 42nd Infantry Division (42ID) ("Rainbow") is a division of the United States Army National Guard. It was nicknamed the Rainbow Division because, during rapid mobilization for service in WWI, it was formed from 27 National Guard units from ac ...

under the command of

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American general who served as a top commander during World War II and the Korean War, achieving the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. He served with dis ...

. He later served 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 ...

as commander of military training schools at Princeton University, Western Reserve University, University of Virginia, and University of Chicago. He reached the rank of colonel in the Army. For 50 years, Harris worked as a certified life insurance underwriter for Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company in Chicago. He married Sylvia Morrison; they had two daughters, Ruth M. Harris and Roberta Tugenberg. In 1964, Harris died in Chicago at the Veterans Administration Research Hospital at age 77.

References

External links

Robert Harris
at College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com * Indiana University Basketball Encyclopedia, a
pages 138-139
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Robert 1886 births 1964 deaths American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Illinois Basketball players from Chicago Chicago Maroons football players Chicago Maroons men's basketball players Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball coaches