Frank Faulkinberry

Faulkinberry was born on November 27, 1887, in Lincoln County, Tennessee, to Christopher Columbus Faulkinberry and Sarah Ellen Caple.

Faulkinberry was a tackle on the Sewanee Tigers, thrice selected All-Southern.[1] His play was once called "a thing to marvel at."[2] He is a tackle on Sewanee's all-time second team.[3] He was nominated though not selected for an Associated Press All-Time Southeast 1869-1919 era team.[4] As a player, he stood some 6'4", 198 pounds. At Sewanee he was a member of Phi Delta Theta. Faulkinberry is a member of both the Sewanee Athletics Hall of Fame[5] and the Blue Raiders Hall of Fame, having coached for years the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders in both men and women's sports.[3] He was also a Latin professor. Faulkinberry Drive on the Middle Tennessee State campus is named in his honor. Faulkinberry was inducted into the Sewanee Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014.[6]

For a few years he was a catcher in Minor League Baseball.[7]

Faulkinberry began his coaching career at Morgan School, Butler School, and Brandon Training School before moving to Franklin Country High School in Decherd, Tennessee, where he coached football and baseball. In May 1926, he was hired as the athletic director and head coach at Middle Tennessee State Teachers College—now known as Middle Tennessee State University—in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.[8]

Faulkinberry was found shot to death in the garage of his home on May 13, 1933. It was a suspected suicide.[9][10]

• Frank Faulkinberry at Find a Grave