Wallace Joe "Chief" Newman (c. 1901 – November 6, 1985) was an American football and baseball player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Whittier College in Whittier, California from 1929 to 1950, compiling a record of 102–66–14. Newman also coached basketball and baseball at Whittier and was the school's athletic director.
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1901 |
| Died | November 6, 1985 (aged 84) |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1922–1924 | USC |
| Baseball | |
| 1923–1925 | USC |
| Position(s) | Guard (football) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1925–1928 | Covina HS (CA) |
| 1929–1950 | Whittier |
| Baseball | |
| 1930–1943 | Whittier |
| 1958–1964 | Whittier |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 102–66–14 (college football) |
| Bowls | 1–0 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| Football 8 SCC/SCIAC (1932, 1934–1935, 1939, 1941–1942, 1949–1950) | |
Newman played football and baseball at the University of Southern California (USC). He played the 1923 Rose Bowl, the first bowl game appearance for the USC Trojans. Newman coached at Covina High School in Covina, California for four years before he was hired at Whittier.[1][2] Newman was Native American and an enrolled member of the La Jolla Band of Luiseno Indians and the Mission Creek Band of Mission Indians which he led as president from 1957 until shortly before termination.[3] In the early 1930s, he coached Richard Nixon, who was a reserve player for Whittier and went on to become president of the United States.[4] Newman was briefly considered for the post of Commissioner of Indian Affairs by Nixon during his presidency.[5]
Newman died on November 6, 1985, at the age of 84.[6]
Head coaching record
editCollege football
edit| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whittier Poets (Southern California Conference / Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) (1929–1950) | |||||||||
| 1929 | Whittier | 4–4–1 | 3–2–1 | 3rd | |||||
| 1930 | Whittier | 5–3–1 | 4–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1931 | Whittier | 6–3 | 4–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1932 | Whittier | 10–1 | 5–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1933 | Whittier | 4–4–2 | 3–1–2 | 2nd | |||||
| 1934 | Whittier | 7–2–1 | 5–0 | 1st | |||||
| 1935 | Whittier | 5–5 | 4–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1936 | Whittier | 5–5 | 3–2 | 3rd | |||||
| 1937 | Whittier | 2–6–2 | 2–2–1 | 4th | |||||
| 1938 | Whittier | 7–1–2 | 2–0–2 | 2nd | |||||
| 1939 | Whittier | 8–2–1 | 3–0–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1940 | Whittier | 2–6–1 | 1–2–1 | 4th | |||||
| 1941 | Whittier | 4–3–1 | 3–0–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1942 | Whittier | 5–4 | 2–1 | T–1st | |||||
| 1943 | No team—World War II | ||||||||
| 1944 | No team—World War II | ||||||||
| 1945 | No team—World War II | ||||||||
| 1946 | Whittier | 3–5–1 | 2–1–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1947 | Whittier | 2–6–1 | 1–2–1 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1948 | Whittier | 6–4 | 2–2 | 3rd | |||||
| 1949 | Whittier | 8–1 | 4–0 | 1st | |||||
| 1950 | Whittier | 9–1 | 3–1 | T–1st | W Aztec Bowl | ||||
| Whittier: | 102–66–14 | 56–20–11 | |||||||
| Total: | 102–66–14 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
References
edit- ^ "Coach Newman Accepts Call to Whittier". Progress Bulletin. Pomona, California. March 2, 1929. p. 5. Retrieved December 1, 2020 – via Newspapers.com
.
- ^ "Wallace Newman Whittier Coach for 22 Years Reigns". The Colton Courier. Colton, California. June 19, 1951. p. 4. Retrieved December 1, 2020 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ Stamates, Nicholas (May 15, 2019). Nixon and the Chief: Quakers, the Return of Blue Lake and Nixon's Indian Mentor Wallace J. Newman. Retrieved December 10, 2020, from https://dc.uwm.edu/rsso/2019/panel2B/1/
- ^ Beschloss, Michael (November 14, 2014). "The President Who Never Earned His Varsity Letter". The New York Times. New York, New York. p. 16. Retrieved December 1, 2020 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ Stamates, Nicholas., & Nadolski, Emily (2024). Nixon and the Chief: Wallace “Chief” Newman’s impact on the modern Tribal Sovereignty. Independently published. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CTQP76NB 9798877913080
- ^ "Names In the News". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 13, 1985. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
