Walter E. Marks (February 16, 1905 – November 24, 1992) was an American football, basketball, and baseball player, coach, college athletics administrator, sports official, and university instructor. Marks played football, basketball, and baseball at the University of Chicago. Between 1927 and 1955 he served as the head football, basketball, baseball, and golf coach at Indiana State University, with hiatuses from 1930 to 1931, when he earned a master's degree at Indiana University, and from 1942 to 1945, when he served in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. Marks was best known for his football and baseball coaching career(s); though his tenure as basketball coach was highlighted by the Sycamores' run to the semifinals of the 1936 U.S. Olympic Trials.
 | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 16, 1905 Ottumwa, Iowa, U.S. |
| Died | November 24, 1992 (aged 87) Terre Haute, Indiana, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1924–1927 | Chicago |
| Position(s) | Fullback, halfback (football) Guard (basketball) Pitcher, outfielder (baseball) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1927–1930 | Indiana State |
| 1930–1932 | Indiana (assistant) |
| 1933–1941 | Indiana State |
| 1945 | Personnel Distribution Command |
| 1946–1948 | Indiana State |
| Basketball | |
| 1927–1931 | Indiana State |
| 1933–1938 | Indiana State |
| Baseball | |
| 1929–1931 | Indiana State |
| 1934–1937 | Indiana State |
| 1942 | Indiana State |
| 1946–1947 | Indiana State |
| 1949–1955 | Indiana State |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1948 | Indiana State (interim AD) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 68–58–8 (football) 90–58 (basketball) 108–81–1 (baseball) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| Baseball 4 IIC (1930, 1946–1947, 1949) | |
Marks also served as the Indiana State's athletic director. In total, Marks spent 44 years at Indiana State rising from instructor to the Dean of the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, now known as the College of Nursing, Health, and Human Services. He held two degrees from the University of Chicago, a BA and a PhD, and three from Indiana University, an MA, a doctorate in physical education, and a doctorate of education. At his retirement in 1971, Indiana State's home track and field venue was dedicated in his honor. Marks reached the rank of major in the United States Army Air Forces and spent 44 months in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations.
Playing career
editAt the University of Chicago, Marks was an outstanding athlete. A three-sport performer, he earned a total of eight varsity letters in football, basketball, and baseball, was an ROTC Cadet Major, and held membership in several honorary fraternities. He played varsity football for three years under the Maroons' coach, Amos Alonzo Stagg. As a sophomore, he played fullback for Chicago's last Big Ten Conference football championship team in 1924. He was a regular halfback on the 1925 and 1926 Maroon teams and captained the 1926 team. For two years, he was a regular starting guard on the Maroons' basketball team. As a pitcher and an outfielder, he played on Chicago's baseball team for three years and had a .399 batting average as a sophomore. Marks also played professional baseball. While pitching for Terre Haute of the Three-I League, he defeated Carl Hubbell of Decatur in a 17-inning masterpiece.[1]
Coaching career
editFootball
editMarked finished his career as the leader in wins (he currently stands at #2). His 1933 team finished at 7–1 record. This record still ranks as the second best in the school's history; trailing Coach Jerry Huntsman's 1968 team (9–1). His homecoming record was 8–5.
Basketball
editHe finished his career as the leader in wins (he currently stands at #7). Led the Sycamores to a semifinal finish in the 1936 U.S. Olympic Trials. His 1929–30 team finished at 16–2; it still ranks among the finest season performances of any ISU team with its .888 winning percentage.
Baseball
editHe finished his career as the leader in wins (he currently stands at #4). He led the Sycamores to Indiana Intercollegiate Conference titles in 1930, 1946, 1947 and 1949.
Golf
editHe coached the Indiana State Men's golf team for nine seasons (1957-1965); his final club, the 1965 team won the Indiana Collegiate Conference title.
Officiating and military athletics instruction
editMarks was a Big Ten Conference official for 20 years with tenures of eight years in basketball and 16 years in football. He officiated the 1960 Rose Bowl and retired at the close of the 1964 football season. In 1954, and again in 1960, he was named by the Big Ten and the United States Department of Defense as a member of an instructional staff presenting football officiating clinics for United States military personnel in Germany.
Honors
edit- Indiana Football Hall of Fame (1974)
- Indiana State University Hall of Fame (1982)[2]
Head coaching record
editFootball
edit| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana State Sycamores (Independent) (1927–1930) | |||||||||
| 1927 | Indiana State | 4–2–1 | |||||||
| 1928 | Indiana State | 4–3 | |||||||
| 1929 | Indiana State | 5–2–1 | |||||||
| 1930 | Indiana State | 5–3–1 | |||||||
| Indiana State Sycamores (Independent) (1933) | |||||||||
| 1933 | Indiana State | 7–1 | |||||||
| Indiana State Sycamores (Indiana Intercollegiate Conference) (1934–1941) | |||||||||
| 1934 | Indiana State | 3–5 | 3–3 | ||||||
| 1935 | Indiana State | 5–3 | 4–1 | 4th | |||||
| 1936 | Indiana State | 2–3–2 | 2–0–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1937 | Indiana State | 1–7 | 1–4 | T–12th | |||||
| 1938 | Indiana State | 1–7 | 1–4 | 11th | |||||
| 1939 | Indiana State | 2–6 | 0–3 | 14th | |||||
| 1940 | Indiana State | 5–1–2 | 2–1 | T–6th | |||||
| 1941 | Indiana State | 5–2–1 | 2–1–1 | T–7th | |||||
| Personnel Distribution Command Comets (Army Air Forces League) (1945) | |||||||||
| 1945 | Personnel Distribution Command | 6–2[n 1] | 2–2[n 1] | 6th[n 1] | |||||
| Personnel Distribution Command: | 6–2 | 2–2 | |||||||
| Indiana State Sycamores (Indiana Intercollegiate Conference) (1946–1947) | |||||||||
| 1946 | Indiana State | 4–4 | 2–4 | T–10th | |||||
| 1947 | Indiana State | 5–3 | 2–1 | ||||||
| Indiana State Sycamores (Independent) (1946–1948) | |||||||||
| 1948 | Indiana State | 4–4 | |||||||
| Indiana State: | 62–56–8 | 19–22–1 | |||||||
| Total: | 68–58–8 | ||||||||
Basketball
edit| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana State Sycamores (Indiana Intercollegiate Conference) (1927–1938) | |||||||||
| 1927–28 | Indiana State | 12–5 | |||||||
| 1928–29 | Indiana State | 15–4 | |||||||
| 1929–30 | Indiana State | 16–2 | 8–2 | 1st | |||||
| 1930–31 | Indiana State | 7–8 | |||||||
| 1933–34 | Indiana State | 8–9 | |||||||
| 1934–35 | Indiana State | 13–4 | |||||||
| 1935–36 | Indiana State | 12–4 | U.S. Olympic Trials | ||||||
| 1936–37 | Indiana State | 7–6 | |||||||
| 1937–38 | Indiana State | 1–17 | 1–9 | ||||||
| Indiana State: | 90–58 (.608) | ||||||||
| Total: | 90–58 (.608) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
Baseball
edit| Overall | Conference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | School | W | L | T | Pct | W | L | T | Pct | Postseason |
| 1929 | Indiana State | 5 | 4 | 1 | .550 | |||||
| 1930 | Indiana State | 7 | 1 | 0 | .875 | Indiana Intercollegiate Conference Champions | ||||
| 1931 | Indiana State | 6 | 2 | 0 | .750 | |||||
| 1934 | Indiana State | 5 | 3 | 0 | .625 | |||||
| 1935 | Indiana State | 5 | 5 | 0 | .500 | |||||
| 1936 | Indiana State | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | |||||
| 1937 | Indiana State | 1 | 7 | 0 | .125 | |||||
| 1942 | Indiana State | 5 | 3 | 0 | .625 | |||||
| 1946 | Indiana State | 7 | 3 | 0 | .700 | Indiana Intercollegiate Conference Champions | ||||
| 1947 | Indiana State | 11 | 2 | 0 | .846 | Indiana Intercollegiate Conference Champions | ||||
| 1949 | Indiana State | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | Indiana Intercollegiate Conference Champions | ||||
| 1950 | Indiana State | 10 | 5 | 0 | .667 | |||||
| 1951 | Indiana State | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | |||||
| 1952 | Indiana State | 8 | 5 | 0 | .615 | |||||
| 1953 | Indiana State | 3 | 9 | 0 | .250 | |||||
| 1954 | Indiana State | 6 | 10 | 0 | .600 | |||||
| 1955 | Indiana State | 5 | 6 | 0 | .455 | |||||
| Overall Totals | 108 | 81 | 2 | .571 | ||||||
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ a b c Ted Shipkey served as head coach of the Personnel Distribution Command Comets for the first three games of the 1945 season, until his discharge from the military. He was succeeded by Marks, who led the team for the remainder of the year. The Comets finished the season with an overall record of 6–5 and a mark of 2–4 league play.[3][4]
References
edit- ^ "Wally Marks Minor Leagues Statistics & History".
- ^ "Indiana State University Athletics Hall of Fame Class List".
- ^ "Louisville AAF Coaches Shifted". The Evening News. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. October 5, 1945. p. 19. Retrieved March 27, 2023 – via Newspapers.com
.
- ^ Goodale, George (December 5, 1945). "Who's Kicking Who—Gremlins or Flyers". The Nashville Tennessean. Nashville, Tennessee. p. 15. Retrieved March 27, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
