Joel Eaves

Joel Harry Eaves (June 3, 1914 – July 18, 1991) was an American college football and basketball player, coach, and athletic director. He is perhaps most known for coaching basketball at his alma mater, the Auburn Tigers of Auburn University.[1] He is the all-time winningest coach in Auburn basketball history. He was also once athletic director for the Georgia Bulldogs. Eaves was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1978.[2]

Joel Eaves
Eaves in the 1951 Glomerata
Biographical details
Born(1914-06-03)June 3, 1914
Copperhill, Tennessee, U.S.
DiedJuly 18, 1991(1991-07-18) (aged 77)
Athens, Georgia, U.S.
Playing career
Football
1934–1936Auburn
Basketball
1934–1937Auburn
Position(s)End (football)
Guard (basketball)
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Football
1957Auburn (assistant)
Basketball
1937Sewanee (assistant)
1938–1941Sewanee
1949–1963Auburn
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
1963–1979Georgia
Head coaching record
Overall217–143
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Basketball
SEC regular season (1960)
Awards
Football
All-SEC (1936)

Basketball
SEC Coach of the Year (1960)
Alabama Sports Hall of Fame

Early years

Eaves was born on the Georgia state line in Copperhill, Tennessee.[3][4] He grew up in Atlanta and attended Tech High School.[5]

Playing career

Eaves played on the Auburn Tigers basketball, football, and baseball teams

Basketball

Eaves was captain of the basketball team his senior year, an all-around guard.[6] He stood 6 feet 3 inches and weighed 190 pounds. The head coach of the basketball team was Ralph "Shug" Jordan.

Football

On coach Jack Meagher's football team, Eaves was an end, selected All-SEC by the Associated Press in 1936.[7] He was drafted in the eighth round of the 1937 NFL Draft by the Boston Redskins but never played in the National Football League (NFL).[8]

Baseball

He pitched on the baseball team.

Coaching career

Sewanee

Before coaching at Auburn, he coached the Sewanee Tigers basketball team.[9]

Auburn

Eaves coached the Auburn men's basketball program from 1949 to 1963. He guided Auburn to its first SEC championship in 1960, and was named SEC Coach of the Year that season. Eaves made famous the shuffle offense while at Auburn.[10] After 14 seasons at Auburn, Eaves finished with a record of 213–100 (.681), making him the winningest men's basketball coach in Auburn history.

Eaves also assisted with the football team while at Auburn, helping with the freshmen ends for two years before coaching varsity defensive ends, contributing to Auburn's 1957 national championship.[11]

Joel Eaves was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1978.[10] Auburn's Memorial Coliseum was renamed after Eaves to Joel H. Eaves Memorial Coliseum in 1987, and later to Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum in 1993.[12]

Administrative career

Eaves was the athletic director for the Georgia Bulldogs from 1963 to 1979. He hired Vince Dooley as football coach.[4]

Head coaching record
Statistics overview
Season Coach Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Sewanee (Southeastern Conference) (1938–1940)
1938–39 Sewanee 1–160–1313th
1939–40 Sewanee 2–130–913th
Sewanee (Independent) (1940–1941)
1940–41 Sewanee 1–14
Sewanee: 4–43 (.085)0–22 (.000)
Auburn (Southeastern Conference) (1949–1963)
1949–50 Auburn 17–712–63rd
1950–51 Auburn 12–106–85th
1951–52 Auburn 14–126–89th
1952–53 Auburn 13–86–75th
1953–54 Auburn 16–88–65th
1954–55 Auburn 11–96–88th
1955–56 Auburn 11–108–64th
1956–57 Auburn 13–88–66th
1957–58 Auburn 16–611–32nd
1958–59 Auburn 20–212–22nd
1959–60 Auburn 19–312–21st
1960–61 Auburn 15–78–65th
1961–62 Auburn 18–611–33rd
1962–63 Auburn 18–410–42nd
Auburn: 213–100 (.681)124–75 (.623)
Total:217–143 (.603)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

References
  1. "Joel Eaves".
  2. "Joel Harry Eaves".
  3. "Ex Tiger Coach Dies Of Heart Failure". Florence Times Daily. July 19, 1991.
  4. "Ex Tiger Coach Dies Of Heart Failure". Times Daily. July 19, 1991.
  5. "Former Georgia AD Eaves Dead At 77" (PDF). Savannah Morning News. July 19, 1991. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
  6. "Auburn University Original 1937 Basketball Photo".
  7. "Associated Press Names All-Southeastern Eleven". St. Petersburg Times. December 1, 1936.
  8. "1937 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  9. "Joel Eaves". Archived from the original on June 15, 2015.
  10. "Alabama Sports Hall of Fame and Museum – Birmingham, Alabama". ashof.org. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  11. "Joel Eaves, Georgia AD". Tuscaloosa News. October 15, 1978.
  12. "AUBURNTIGERS.COM :: Auburn University Official Athletic Site". www.auburntigers.com. Archived from the original on January 10, 2013. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
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