PART FIVE: Tragedy leads to triumph (1950-1952)
PART FOUR: A time for transition (1940-1949)
PART THREE: A changing landscape (1930-1939)
PART TWO: A search for identity (1920-1929)
PART ONE: The pre-varsity years (1916-1921)
By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
P.V. "Putty" Overall knew it was time for him to step down from the top spot on the Tennessee Tech football team. After all, 1952 was his 25th year as a head coach and he had just led the Golden Eagles to its first bowl game with the 1953 Tangerine Bowl and its first championship in the fledgling Ohio Valley Conference.
Yet "the grand old man of football" wasn't finished – he had one more season left in him. In 1953, his Golden Eagles were going to leave no doubt who the top team in the conference was.
The campaign started with four straight victories, defeating Florence State (now North Alabama), Murray State, Morehead State and Eastern Kentucky in succession. Against the Lions, Joe Mac Reeves – a freshman on the squad – pulled away for 96 yards on 19 carries, but Jack Van Hooser got Tech on the board as he scored on two quarterback keepers with Bobby Holloway extending his PAT streak.
The Golden Eagles blanked Murray 9-0 with a 32-yard field goal from Holloway, then Paul Anderson returned the opening kickoff of the second half for a 94-yard kickoff return. Tech pitched another shutout against Morehead State, taking a 27-0 victory and rushing for 334 yards as Sonny Allen rushed for two touchdowns, then Erwin Mitchell scored from four yards out and Paul Satterfield breaking loose for a 47-yard touchdown.
A third straight shutout gave Tech a 7-0 Homecoming victory over Eastern Kentucky, the winning score coming on Allen's sweep to the end and in for the touchdown. Holloway's PAT made it 41 in a row. The Golden Eagles had a chance for another score before the opening half ended, but Van Hooser's pass to Eddie Scott to the Colonel 1 was called back. Tech ran the clock out deep into its territory to blank EKU and outscore its opponents 57-7 in the first four contests.
Memphis State ended the streak on its home turf. Reeves scored Tech's lone touchdown on a two-yard rush and Holloway's PAT knotted the score at seven, where it stood at halftime. The Tigers scored the game-winner in the third quarter on a 59-yard pass.
Tech rebounded the following week in Bowling Green as Kenneth Broyles rushed for three touchdowns, including one on a fumble recovery as the Golden Eagles beat Western Kentucky 34-21. Holloway saw his PAT streak of 46 come to an end in the contest, a mark that stood until Zach Sharp hit 59 straight from 2011 to 2014, then Nick Madonia with 66 from 2016 to 2018.
A three-game slide saw Tech fall 21-13 to East Tennessee State, 44-6 to Miami (Ohio) and 14-7 to Arkansas State, but got back on the winning side of things as the Golden Eagles trounced Northeast Louisiana State College (now University of Louisiana Monroe) 42-20.
Overall's last game as Tennessee Tech's head coach was a classic for the Golden Eagles on Thanksgiving Day as Tech blasted Middle Tennessee 46-13, led by a 364-yard effort on the ground, including 129 for Broyles.
With an unblemished mark in the conference, the Golden Eagles once again were the champions in the Ohio Valley, but there were no co-champions this time. Overall was going out with his team the lone kings of the hill.
As he stepped down, Wilburn Tucker, a former Golden Eagle player and – at that time – the backfield coach, was appointed the team's new head coach by the athletic council.
Tucker's reign wouldn't be as long as Overall's – just a 14-year tenure compare to Putty's 26 – but was it ever fruitful. By the time he hung up the whistle, Tennessee Tech won five OVC championships and he finished with a 70-66-5 record. Two weeks after he passed away in 1980, the football stadium on campus was dedicated as Tucker Stadium in his honor – a fitting tribute as Overall's name adorned the field itself, especially since Tucker played for, coached with and followed after his mentor.
Tucker was also the baseball coach from 1948 to 1954, leading Tech to its first OVC diamond crown in 1949 and establishing a long line of baseball success in the league that continues to this day.
It was also in that same year that Jerry Daniels, a tackle for the Golden Eagles, became the first Tennessee Tech player to be drafted in the National Football League Draft, a 24th round pick at 287th overall.
Tucker's first year in 1954 saw a .500 record as the Golden Eagles went 4-4-2 overall, but it was a tough one in OVC play as the Golden Eagles went 1-3-1. Tech won one of its first six games with a 32-2 victory over Morehead State and a 25-25 tie against Memphis State preventing an 0-6 start. A three-game winning streak with victories over East Tennessee State, Austin Peay and Arkansas State salvaged a rough start, then the traditional rivalry game against Middle Tennessee ended in a 7-7 draw.
Tucker's 1955 staff brought in former Golden Eagle guard and fullback Bill Dupes as an assistant coach, who would later go on to become a legendary coach himself.
On Tech's second play of the opener against Florence State, quarterback Bill Robinson opted to keep the ball and ran for daylight, racking up 78 yards and the first touchdown of the season. Kenneth "Moe" Wright followed with a nine-yard keeper, then Alfred Cate scored twice – a nine-yard pitch to Harmon Jones and a 32-yard keeper in the fourth.
Wright, Jones and Don Crutcher picked up scores as Tech beat Murray State 20-7, then the Golden Eagles demolished Morehead State 55-0, scoring 27 of those points in the first 10 minutes. Wright scored on a 60-yard scramble on the first play, then Ted Schwanger returned a punt 30 yards for a score. Doug Caldwell came in to relieve Wright after his second score, only to get three touchdowns of his own.
In the Homecoming contest against Eastern Kentucky, the Golden Eagles were able to drive deep into Colonel territory, but turned the ball over on downs in the red zone. EKU fumbled the ball on its 2-yard line and was able to get across before the half. Cate then scored on a two-yard keeper to give Tech a 13-0 lead. EKU scored with eight minutes remaining and took to the air to no avail.
The four-game winning streak was snapped as Tech went to Memphis State, the Tigers taking a 20-0 lead at the intermission. The Golden Eagles rallied for two touchdowns, including a rushing score for Schwanger, but it wasn't enough to overtake the Memphis squad.
The final six games of the season went 3-3, trading losses and wins as the Golden Eagles beat Western Kentucky 19-7 as Schwanger, Johnny Clark and Joe Whitson picking up rushing scores. Following a 14-6 loss to East Tennessee State, Tech drilled Austin Peay 37-7 with Cate, Robinson and freshman quarterback Robert Brannen each throwing a touchdown strike in the contest, combining for 290 yards through the air – nearly unheard of for the time from the Tech offense. Arkansas State countered with a 27-20 defeat, but the Golden Eagles kept the Ohio Valley Conference slate clean as they wrapped up the season with a 55-14 victory over Middle Tennessee.
Wright scored on a four-yard dive, then Marshall Taylor recovered a muffed kick on the Blue Raider 14, then caught the touchdown pass from Cate. Whitson scored on a one-yard run. Tech stalled three Middle drives inside the Golden Eagle 15. Robinson threw touchdown strikes to Robert Elliott and Caldwell before Clark and Robinson (on a 59-yard option) scored on the ground.
1956 wasn't a bad year overall, posting a 5-4-1 mark. It looked promising with a 4-0-1 start, but a rough five-game run down the stretch ended any kind of repeat hopes as the Golden Eagles finished 2-3 in the OVC. With wins over Morehead State (26-19) and Western Kentucky (39-26) on Homecoming, Murray State (L, 34-7), East Tennessee State (L, 28-13) and Eastern Kentucky (L, 25-13) dashed any chance of taking the title.
Undeterred, Tech toppled Arkansas State 26-6, then came into the finale against Middle Tennessee. Schwanger was ruled ineligible for the contest, but his Golden Eagle teammates continued to fight, leading the game to a scoreless tie at the half. In the second half, however, Robinson was intercepted three times – twice for touchdown returns – and lost a fumble.
Schwanger and Simonic both went on to be NFL Draft selections by the Baltimore Colts.
Despite going 2-3 in non-conference play in 1957 – with losses to Florence State, Memphis and Chattanooga – the Golden Eagles excelled in the league, topping Morehead State (14-6), Western Kentucky (34-14), Murray State (26-14) and Eastern Kentucky (34-14).
The OVC title came down to a muddy November day in Murfreesboro. Mistakes, for the second year in a row, were costly against Coach Charles "Bubber" Murphy and his Blue Raiders with fumbles and blocked kicks leading to a 22-0 defeat and giving Middle the league title.
However, the next four years would belong to the Golden Eagles.
Next: A period of dominance for Tech football.
