Bob Odell (American football) explained

Bob Odell
Birth Date:5 March 1922
Birth Place:Corning, Iowa, U.S.
Death Place:King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Alma Mater:University of Pennsylvania
Player Years1:1941–1943
Player Team1:Penn
Player Years2:1946
Player Team2:Card-Pitt
Player Positions:Halfback
Coach Years1:1946–1947
Coach Team1:Yale (AC)
Coach Years2:1948
Coach Team2:Temple (AC)
Coach Years3:1949–1957
Coach Team3:Wisconsin (Line)
Coach Years4:1958–1964
Coach Team4:Buckell
Coach Years5:1965–1970
Coach Team5:Penn
Coach Years6:1971–1986
Coach Team6:Williams
Overall Record:75–49–4
Championships:
Awards:
As a player
Cfbhof Year:1992
Cfbhof Id:1699

Robert Harper Odell (March 5, 1922 – December 15, 2012) was an American football player and coach. He played college football as a halfback for the Penn Quakers, where he won the Maxwell Award in 1943. He was selected in the second round (15th overall) of the 1944 NFL draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers, but served in the United States Navy from 1944 through 1946. The Steelers offered Odell $8,000 to play in the 1946 season, however, his doctor recommended that he give up football due to a knee injury suffered while playing basketball. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1992.

Head coaching career

He was the head football coach at the University of Pennsylvania from 1965 to 1970, and at Williams College from 1971 to 1986. With a record of 75–49–4 in 16 years as the head coach at Williams, Odell ranks third in career wins behind Dick Farley and Charlie Caldwell.

Death

He died of kidney disease in a nursing home in 2012.[1]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Frank Fitzpatrick . Bob Odell, 90; college football hall of famer starred at Penn . Philly.com . October 22, 2012 . December 24, 2012.