John A. Harts
John Alexander Harts (September 5, 1873 – August 31, 1947) was a student and teacher at the University of Oklahoma from Winfield, Kansas. He was also the first coach of the Oklahoma Sooners football team in 1895. At the university, he taught elocution.[1] He was the primary organizer of that first team made up of students and Norman, Oklahoma residents.[2] The team only played one game that year against a more experienced Oklahoma City town team. The upstart Sooners lost 34–0. Following that year, Harts left OU to prospect for gold in the Arctic.[1]
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 5, 1873 Hartsburg, Illinois |
| Died | August 31, 1947 (aged 73) Glendale, California |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1895 | Oklahoma |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 0–1 |
Harts is the only head football coach of record at Oklahoma to complete his tenure without a win.[3] In the one game that he coached, the Sooners failed to score a point or to make a first down.[1]
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Bowl/playoffs | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma Sooners (Independent) (1895) | |||||||||
| 1895 | Oklahoma | 0–1 | |||||||
| Oklahoma: | 0–1 | ||||||||
| Total: | 0–1 | ||||||||
References
- Burr, Carol (Fall 1998). "If you think football is just a kids' game, you didn't attend the University of Oklahoma" (PDF). Sooner Magazine. p. Inside front cover.
- Keith, Harold (September 1942). "Football Ups and Downs" (PDF). Sooner Magazine. pp. 12–13, 54.
- DeLassus, David. "Oklahoma Sooners (coaching records)". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on October 10, 2014. Retrieved November 11, 2014.