The Chief Returns As Coach

In 1917, seven years before, Robert L. Myers had realized his long held dream of becoming the coach at his alma mater.

During his short tenure, he coached Centre College to an October 6 rout of hapless Kentucky Military Institute and a loss on October 20 to DePauw. After that defeat, the Chief decided that the school he loved so much could attain greater glory if he turned the program over to a more experienced and skilled coach, and Bob Myers stepped aside, still devoted to Centre and still helping guide the football program as Director of Athletics, never receiving, as was said at the meeting of the Southern Association of Colleges in Richmond, Virginia, "a farthing" for his efforts.

Now, the Chief had returned to Danville after learning about Uncle Charlie's resignation.

Chief Myers arrives in Danville to assist Centre in finding a new coach

He had come back to Danville in order to help Centre find a new coach, but after he returned, he realized that the players had gotten together and written up a proposal when it was realized that Bo was out of the picture for the coaching position.

The statement that they all signed was an agreement that they would return for the 1924 school year and football season and continue the proud traditions of Centre College, "if Chief Myers is appointed to be the head football coach."

Chief Myers' appointment was in response to the efforts of the returning players

The search committee and administration enthusiastically approved the players' request. The alumni and citizens of Danville and Kentucky were equally positive. Everybody loved Chief Myers.

It was official 

Everything seemed to return to normal on the campus. Uncle Charlie's resignation was slowly being accepted and the finalization of Chief Myers becoming the new head coach assured that the football program was going to have continuity and flourish as everyone had hoped.

However, an event occurred not long after the Chief took over the reins as the Colonels' coach which was very concerning.

Obviously, much of the success of the upcoming 1924 season was going to depend on Herb Covington returning and continuing his brilliant play which he had displayed starting during his freshman year, notably when he had so effectively subbed for the injured Army Armstrong in the second half of the 1921 Harvard game.

Covey, who had been a star on the baseball team in 1922 and 1923, found that he couldn't throw a baseball or raise his right arm above his head without severe pain when the baseball season began and decided to see a Danville doctor.

A story in the April 9, 1924, Danville "Messenger," clarified the problem which was bothering Centre's second baseman.

April 9, 1924- Danville "Messenger" 

"Covie," or more frequently, "Covey."

Dr. Barnett Owen, who performed Covey's surgery in Louisville, was the uncle of Owen Barnett Edelen, M.D., who was a year ahead of me at the University of Louisville School of Medicine. Owen, who later became an opthalmologist, and his wife, Anne, were Dawne's and my next door neighbors on Brownsboro Road while the two of us were students in medical school. Owen's father, Charles M. Edelen, M.D. and my father were classmates while at U.0f L. Medical School in the late 1920's. Small world, indeed.

Herb Covington had played the last 4 games of the 1923 season with a broken right collar bone which included wins over Sewanee, Auburn, W&L, and a tie with Georgia! How he had thrown passes so accurately during the last 4 games of the football season and played basketball after the football season ended almost defies medical understanding. 

Fortunately, for the Chief and the Centre team, the successful operation assured that Covey was going once again be able to dazzle with his outstanding talent on the gridiron during his senior year.

But, it was obvious that he was going to have to miss the spring 1924 baseball season!

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In the spring of 1924, my junior year, I finally earned my letter in baseball. Maybe it wasn't in football, but it had a gold "C" on it, and I cherished it so much that I later had the certificate on the wall in my office when I started practicing medicine in the early 1930's and have it to this day.

I was a catcher and even though I wasn't one of the 9 starters, Ben Cregor, who was our coach, got me in enough games that I qualified for my letter. Incidentally, Ben was later my broker when he was the manager at Goodbody & Company on 4th Street across from the Brown Hotel in Louisville. Whenever I'd go to Louisville in the 50's and 60's, I'd stay at the Brown and see Ben who always remained not only my financial advisor, but a good friend. 

Red Robertson, far left, front row with his catcher's mitt. You can tell the starting players by their uniforms as there were only 9 of the latest type. Ben Cregor is 2nd right on the back row with sweater. Dudley Doneghy, trainer, is in the front. The Japanese player, 3rd from right on the front row, is Ty Miyihara, who had largely lived in Honolulu. The April 24 Danville "Messenger," in those less sensitive days, in reviewing the team's prospects, said "the little Jap"....was "quick as a flash, is a clean fielder and a good hitter." How Ty ended up at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky is not known but would make an interesting story in itself. Herb Covington is not in the photo as he was recovering from his recent surgery. 

Red Robertson's coveted letter certificate earned during his junior year in spring, 1924, signed by Coach Ben Cregor

The author played on the same field in the spring of 1960 and 1961 as Red Robertson had nearly 4 decades previously, also lettering and hanging the certificate on the office wall of his home. 

1960 Colonels' baseball team, Rob Robertson, Jr., 1st row, 2nd from right with original Young Hall in background, the building where both Robertsons attended science classes decades apart. There were 13 members on the team and a "trainer" and manager, exactly the same number as in 1924. On the first row, far right, is John Oschner Gage, M.D., Robertson's roommate at Centre for 1 1/2 years, a far better person than player. Dr. Kern Alexander, 2nd right, top row, graduated in 1961. He has had a long career in education, serving as the president of both Western Kentucky and Murray State Universities and was presented a Distinguished Alumnus Award by Centre in 2011. He is presently Professor of Excellence at the Urbana-Champaign campus of the University of Illinois School of Excellence. 

The "season" was actually spring, 1960

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The return of the Chief set in motion one of the great chapters in the story of Centre's football greatness- the unbelievable season of 1924.

The first thing that the Chief did was to complete his coaching staff for 1924. While Uncle Charlie let it be known that he wouldn't imperil Centre's future by going after its players, he felt no such reluctance about hiring Ben Cregor to become one of his assistants. "Baldy" was going to Bucknell after the 1924 school year ended, and Jim Kendrick had resigned his position as freshman coach. Even before Uncle Charlie's resignation, Centre had lined up Red Roberts as coach of the first year men, and to replace Cregor, the Chief hired Harold Ofstie, a University of Wisconsin star in 1911-13, who had been in coaching since his graduation from the Madison school in 1914. Ofstie's last position had been as coach of the Great Lakes Naval Station where he led his team to the championship of the service league in 1923.

With Red and Ofstie on board, the Chief turned his attention to firming up the schedule and recruiting young men to come to Centre. It must be remembered that there were no scholarships for athletics, but all schools tried to entice graduating high school students not only to attend their institution, but to participate in sports if possible.

The 8-game 1924 schedule was announced and sent out to the media.

Oct   4                     Valparaiso                               Danville
Oct   11                   Carson-Newman                    Danville
Oct   18                   Transylvania                           Danville
Oct   25                   West Virginia                          New York
Nov   1                     Kentucky                                 Lexington
Nov   8                    Tennessee                               Knoxville
Nov   15                   Alabama                                  Birmingham
Nov   29                  Georgia                                    Danville

Toward the end of the 1924 season as it was being played, it was thought that a 9^th game would be played as negotiations were going on with Notre Dame for a contest in New York. However, Notre Dame was booked weekly from October 4 to November 29. Centre had an open date November 22, but Notre Dame was locked into a game with Northwestern on that date. The only possibility for the Irish and Colonels to meet would be on the first or second Saturday in December. An organization in New York City had been actively promoting a Centre-Notre Dame game and had announced to the press that a meeting between the schools was getting close to being settled. 

The Knights' invitation was eventually declined

However, both schools eventually decided they didn't want to extend their regular seasons into December, even though Notre Dame later went to the Rose Bowl on January 1, 1925, beating Stanford, 27-10. 

( Notre Dame didn't go to another post-season game until January 1, 1970, when the Irish lost to Texas in the Cotton Bowl. It wasn't because the school didn't have eligible, worthy teams, but because the university discouraged any such appearances.)

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The Chief sent out another one of his folksy letters on May 24, 1924.

It went out under the letterhead listing him as coach, and Harold F. Ofstie as assistant coach.

CENTRE COLLEGE OF KENTUCKY

ATHLETIC BOARD OF CONTROL

Robert. L. Myers, Head Coach                   Harold F. Ofstie, Assistant Coach