Ray Eddy

John Ray Eddy (April 13, 1911 – September 20, 1986) was an American college basketball coach and former player. He was the head men's basketball coach at Purdue University from 1950 to 1965. He grew up in Columbus, Indiana, where he starred on the Columbus High School basketball team. After high school, he attended Purdue University, where he played basketball under head coach Ward Lambert. As a 3-year starter, he won two undisputed Big Ten crowns, averaging 6.1 points per game over his career. In 1932 was the second leading scorer on the Helms National Collegiate championship team. In 1934, he was the captain and an All-Big Ten forward for the conference championship team.

Ray Eddy
Personal information
Born(1911-04-13)April 13, 1911[1]
Columbus, Indiana
DiedSeptember 20, 1986(1986-09-20) (aged 75)[2]
Lafayette, Indiana
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Listed weight180 lb (82 kg)
Career information
High schoolColumbus (Columbus, Indiana)
CollegePurdue (1932–1934)
PositionForward
Number12
Career history
As coach:
Madison High
1950–1965Purdue
As associate athletic director:
1965–1978Purdue
Career highlights and awards
As player:
  • Helms National Title (1932)

As coach:

  • 1× IHSAA State Title (1950)
  • 3× IHSAA Final Four berths (1950, 1949, 1941)

When he accepted the Purdue University head coaching position, Eddy became the last coach to jump directly from the high school ranks to the Big Ten.[3]

Coaching career

High school

Following his graduation, Eddy was hired as the head coach in Tell City, Indiana. Eddy spent 5 seasons in the Ohio River town, winning 3 Indiana High School Sectional titles. In 1939, Eddy moved to Madison, Indiana and became the head coach for the Madison Cubs. In his 11-year tenure, Eddy's teams won 10 Sectionals, 6 Regionals, 3 Semi-States & 1 State Championship (1950), his 1941 and 1949 teams finished as the State Runner-Up.

In sixteen seasons at the high school level, Eddy's teams won 13 Sectionals, 6 Regionals, 3 Semi-States & 1 State Championship. In addition, he coached 7 Indiana All-Stars; 9 of his players were later inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.

Eddy led three of his Madison Cubs teams (1940–41, 1948–49 and 1949–50) to the IHSAA State Finals. The third time proved the charm as the Cubs won the highly coveted Single-Class title in 1949-50; the first two trips, the Cubs were the State Runner-Up.

Purdue University

Eddy placed a great deal of emphasis on the academic success of his players. During his 15 years at Purdue, he was able to attract a number of talented players, including All-Americans Terry Dischinger and Dave Schellhase. While finishing as Big Ten runner-up on three different occasions, Purdue failed to win the title during Eddy's tenure, and never advanced to postseason play.

Eddy's 176 wins rank third all-time at Purdue, as do his 15 years on the bench. In addition, Eddy ranks 3rd all-time in Big Ten wins among Purdue coaches with 92. His 92 Big Ten wins currently rank 23rd in 100+ years of Big Ten history.

In addition to All-Americans Dischinger and Schellhase; Eddy also coached 2 college football All-Americans: ( Lamar Lundy, the future NFL great, Bob Griese, NFL Super Bowl Champion, Hall of Famer. )

Eddy also coached Pete Brewster, a 2x Pro Bowl TE for the Cleveland Browns and Joe Campbell, former PGA Tour player and Purdue golf coach.

Several of Eddy's players went into coaching at the collegiate as well as high school level; the most well-known include Schellhase {Indiana State, Moorhead (Minn) State}, Joe Sexson, (Butler) and Mel Garland, (iupui).

Head coaching record
Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Purdue Boilermakers (Big Ten Conference) (1950–1965)
1950–51 Purdue 8–144–108th
1951–52 Purdue 8–143–1110th
1952–53 Purdue 4–183–15T–9th
1953–54 Purdue 9–133–11T–9th
1954–55 Purdue 12–105–9T–6th
1955–56 Purdue 16–69–5T–3rd
1956–57 Purdue 15–78–6T–5th
1957–58 Purdue 14–89–5T–2nd
1958–59 Purdue 15–78–6T–2nd
1959–60 Purdue 11–126–8T–6th
1960–61 Purdue 16–710–4T–2nd
1961–62 Purdue 17–79–53rd
1962–63 Purdue 7–172–1210th
1963–64 Purdue 12–128–6T–4th
1964–65 Purdue 12–125–97th
Butler: 176–164 (.518)92–122 (.430)
Total:176–164 (.518)

Further reading
  • Mervin Hyman (February 6, 1961). "Basketball's Week". Sports Illustrated.
  • John Underwood (March 25, 1965). "Twelve Flew Out Of The Pressure Cooker". Sports Illustrated.

References
  1. "Social Security Death Inde". Retrieved 2 August 2013.
  2. "Ray Eddy, ex Madison Basketball Coach dies". The Madison Courier. September 22, 1986. Retrieved 2 August 2013.
  3. "The Golden Age of Indiana High School Basketball (Quarry Books): Greg Guffey, Greg L. Guffey: 9780253218186: Amazon.com: Books". amazon.com. Retrieved 2014-01-27.
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