Wilburn Tucker Explained

Wilburn Tucker
Birth Date:10 August 1920
Birth Place:Rutherford County, Tennessee, U.S.
Death Place:Cookeville, Tennessee, U.S.
Player Sport1:Football
Player Years2:1940–1942
Player Team2:Tennessee Tech
Player Sport3:Baseball
Player Team4:Tennessee Tech
Coach Sport1:Football
Coach Years2:1946–1951
Coach Team2:Tennessee Tech (freshmen)
Coach Years3:1952–1953
Coach Team3:Tennessee Tech (backfield)
Coach Years4:1954–1967
Coach Team4:Tennessee Tech
Coach Sport5:Baseball
Coach Years6:1948–1954
Coach Team6:Tennessee Tech
Overall Record:70–66–5 (football)
70–39 (baseball)
Bowl Record:0–1
Championships:Football
5 OVC (1955, 1958–1961)
Awards:Ohio Valley Conference Hall of Fame (1987)

Wilburn Tucker (August 10, 1920 – October 6, 1980) was an American football and baseball player and coach. He was the head football coach at Tennessee Tech from 1954 to 1967, leading the team to five Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) championships. He was later inducted into both the Tennessee Tech and OVC Halls of Fame.

Early years

Tucker attended Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, now known as Tennessee Technological University, in the early 1940s. He played both baseball and football before graduating in 1943.[1] He then served in the United States Navy during World War II. After the war, Tucker received a master's degree from the University of Tennessee.[1]

Coaching career

Tucker returned to Tennessee Polytechnic as the freshman football coach, holding that position from 1946 to 1951. He next served as Tennessee Tech's backfield coach and scout during the 1952 and 1953 seasons.[1] He also served as the school's baseball coach from 1948 to 1954.[2] He compiled a 70–39 record as the school's baseball coach.[3]

In January 1954, Tucker was promoted to head football coach at Tennessee Polytechnic.[1] He held that position from 1954 to 1967, compiling a record of 70–66–5 as head coach and led the team to five Ohio Valley Conference championships: 1955, 1957, 1959, 1960, and 1961.[2] In December 1967, he was fired after his 1967 team posted a 3–7 record.[4]

Later years and honors

After his coaching career, Tucker operated a sporting goods store in Cookeville, Tennessee.[5]

Tucker was inducted into the Tennessee Tech Hall of Fame in 1977.[6] He died in October 1980 at age 59 at Cookeville General Hospital.[7]

Tucker was posthumously inducted into the Ohio Valley Conference Hall of Fame in 1987.[8] Tucker Stadium at Tennessee Tech is named after him.[9]

Head coaching record

Football

Notes and References

  1. News: Wilburn Tucker Succeeds Overall As Eagles' Coach. The Nashville Banner. Mary Barbour. January 2, 1954. 11.
  2. Web site: Wilburn Tucker. Tennessee Tech. February 10, 2023.
  3. News: untitled. Johnson City Press-Chronicle. October 14, 1980. Sports 1.
  4. News: Tucker Is Fired by Tennessee Tech. The Knoxville News-Sentinel. December 7, 1967. 46. Newspapers.com.
  5. News: Friends Salute Tucker In Cookeville Saturday. The Tennessean. Mike Morrow. March 27, 1980. 58. Newspapers.com.
  6. News: TTU Inducts 5 Into 'Hall'. The Knoxville News-Sentinel. October 22, 1977. 7. Newspapers.com.
  7. News: Services For Tucker Scheduled Tomorrow. The Tennessean. October 8, 1980. 23. Newspapers.com.
  8. Web site: Wilburn Tucker. Ohio Valley Conference. February 10, 2023.
  9. News: The History of Tucker Stadium. Avery Nettles. September 8, 2021. Tennessee Tech Oracle.