Ralph Sasse Explained

Ralph Sasse
Birth Date:19 July 1889
Birth Place:Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.
Death Place:Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, U.S.
Player Team1:Army
Coach Years1:1926–1929
Coach Team1:Army (line)
Coach Years2:1930–1932
Coach Team2:Army
Coach Years3:1935–1937
Coach Team3:Mississippi State
Admin Years1:1935–1936
Admin Team1:Mississippi State
Overall Record:45–15–4
Bowl Record:0–1

Ralph Irvine Sasse (July 19, 1889 – October 16, 1954) was an American college football player and coach, athletics administrator, and United States Army officer. He served as the head football coach at the United States Military Academy from 1930 to 1932 and at Mississippi State College, now Mississippi State University, from 1935 to 1937, compiling a career college football record of 45–15–4.

Biography

Born near Wilmington, Delaware, in 1889, Sasse attended the United States Military Academy, graduating in 1916. After graduating from West Point, Sasse was assigned to the cavalry, and while serving the United States in World War I, he rose to the rank of Major and commanded the 301st Tank Battalion.

After World War I, he returned to his alma mater in 1924 as a mathematics instructor and was appointed head coach in 1929. Later, in 1935, Sasse joined the Mississippi State College staff as a science instructor and head football coach of the State College Maroons. After leading Mississippi State College to a 20–10–2 record in three years and an appearance in the 1937 Orange Bowl, Sasse stunned the students and players by resigning from his head coach's duties, following a doctor's orders after a sudden nervous breakdown.[1] Upon leaving the coaching ranks, Sasse become the athletic director at Pennsylvania Military College, Chester in 1941.

Sasse died October 16, 1954, in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.[2] He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

He was inducted into the Delaware Sports Hall of Fame in 1981.[3]

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Sasse Confined to Home After Giving Up Post . . . November 11, 1937 . 2022-12-08 . Google News Archive.
  2. News: Ralph Sasse Dies, Ex-Coach at West Point . . . Rehoboth Beach, Delaware . October 17, 1954 . 2022-12-08 . Newspapers.com.
  3. Web site: Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame in Wilmington, Delaware - 1981. www.desports.org.