Ellis Rainsberger
Ellis Rainsberger went 26–43–1 on the field as a head coach, 1962–1977, at Washburn, Southern Illinois and Kansas State; 27–42–1 officially, with 1977 (2–9) after forfeits. Share
Four seasons our game records don’t credit to him come from the coach’s Wikipedia article: 1962–64 at Washburn; 1966 at Southern Illinois. They’re marked in the table.
- Record
- 27–42–1 official; 26–43–1 on the field
- Seasons
- 7
- Schools
- 3
- Final AP top 10
- 0 seasons
- Best season
- 1975 3–8
Season by season
| Season | School | Record | Conference finish | Bowl | AP final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | Washburn * | 4–5 | T–4th | |||
| 1963 | Washburn * | 5–4 | 3rd | |||
| 1964 | Washburn * | 8–1 | 1st | |||
| 1965: not a college head coach | ||||||
| 1966 | Southern Illinois * | 4–5–1 | ||||
| 1967–74: not a college head coach | ||||||
| 1975 | Kansas State | 3–8 | 8th | |||
| 1976 | Kansas State | 1–10 | 8th | |||
| 1977 | Kansas State | 1–10 (2–9 official) | 8th | |||
Each season links to the team’s season page; bowls and playoff games link to the game. Conference finishes from the Wikipedia article’s record table. * A season our game records don’t credit to him; its record is the article’s.
Players he coached
Every player from his seasons with a Heisman top-five finish, a national award, consensus All-America honors or a first-round pick. Photos: Wikimedia Commons, free licenses; credits on each player’s page.
How his teams did
| Kind of game | Games | Record | Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Against ranked teams | 14 | 0–14 | 0% |
| Against top-10 teams | 8 | 0–8 | 0% |
| Against rivals | 18 | 0–18 | 0% |
| Conference games | 21 | 0–21 | 0% |
| Decided by 8 points or fewer | 10 | 3–7 | 30% |
| At home | 16 | 2–14 | 13% |
| On the road | 17 | 3–14 | 18% |
| As our Elo’s favorite | 4 | 2–2 | 50% |
| As our Elo’s underdog | 29 | 3–26 | 10% |
His own 33 games on file, 1975–1977, as played (vacated wins counted, ties as half a win). Ranks are the AP poll going into the game; rivals are the ones either program’s Wikipedia article names; favorite and underdog by our own Elo rating, which reads only scores.
Against other head coaches
| Coach | Record | Their schools | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Onofrio 1975–1977 | 0–3 | Missouri | 3 | |
| Barry Switzer 1975–1977 | 0–3 | Oklahoma | 3 | |
| Bill Mallory 1975–1977 | 0–3 | Colorado | 3 | |
| Bud Moore 1975–1977 | 0–3 | Kansas | 3 | |
| Earle Bruce 1975–1977 | 0–3 | Iowa State | 3 | |
| Jim Stanley 1975–1977 | 0–3 | Oklahoma State | 3 | |
| Tom Osborne 1975–1977 | 0–3 | Nebraska | 3 |
Ellis Rainsberger’s record against the head coaches he met three or more times, from the games on file, as played.
Most-faced opponents
| Opponent | Games | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Coloradoseries | 3 | 0–3 |
| Iowa Stateseries | 3 | 0–3 |
| Missouriseries | 3 | 0–3 |
| Nebraskaseries | 3 | 0–3 |
| Oklahoma Stateseries | 3 | 0–3 |
| Oklahomaseries | 3 | 0–3 |
| Kansasseries | 3 | 0–3 |
| Wichita Stateseries | 2 | 2–0 |
Career
| Years | Team | Job | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1959–61 | Drake | Assistant coach | |
| 1962–64 | Washburn | Head coach | |
| 1965 | Kansas | Assistant coach | |
| 1966 | Southern Illinois | Head coach | |
| 1967–72 | Illinois | Assistant coach | |
| 1973–74 | Wisconsin | Offensive coordinator | |
| 1975–77 | Kansas State | Head coach | |
| 1978–82 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers CFL | Assistant coach | |
| 1983 | Denver Gold USFL | Assistant coach | |
| 1984 | Pittsburgh Maulers USFL | Head coach | |
| 1986–88 | Toronto Argonauts CFL | Offensive line coach | |
| 1989–91 | Toledo | Assistant coach |
Every job as the infobox of his Wikipedia article lists it (CC BY-SA), assistant jobs included.
Coaching tree
Worked under
- Bernard MertesDrake
- Bus MertesDrake
- Jack MitchellKansas
- James ValekIllinois
- Bob BlackmanIllinois
- John JardineWisconsin
- Dan SimrellToledo
- Nick SabanToledo
- Gary PinkelToledo
Assistants who became head coaches
- Bob WeberArizona, Louisville, Trinidad, Ottawa Rough Riders
- Dick SelcerXavier
- Jim BatesSan Antonio Gunslingers
- Joe PendryPittsburgh Maulers
- Ron DickersonTemple, Alabama State, Lambuth
- Bobby ThompsonNorthwestern Oklahoma State
- Jim GilstrapOttawa Rough Riders
- Frank LauterburToledo, Iowa
Worked under (9)
| Head coach | Team | Years | His job | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bernard Mertes | Drake | 1960 | Assistant coach | |
| Bus Mertes | Drake | 1961 | Assistant coach | |
| Jack Mitchell | Kansas | 1965 | Assistant coach | |
| James Valek | Illinois | 1967–70 | Assistant coach | |
| Bob Blackman | Illinois | 1971–72 | Assistant coach | |
| John Jardine | Wisconsin | 1973–74 | Offensive coordinator | |
| Dan Simrell | Toledo | 1989 | Assistant coach | |
| Nick Saban | Toledo | 1990 | Assistant coach | |
| Gary Pinkel | Toledo | 1991 | Assistant coach |
Coached under him, later head coaches (8)
| Coach | With him | Head coach at | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Weber | Kansas State, 1975–76: offensive coordinator | Arizona, Louisville, Trinidad, Ottawa Rough Riders | |
| Dick Selcer | Kansas State, 1975–77: defensive coordinator | Xavier | |
| Jim Bates | Kansas State, 1975–76: linebackers coach | San Antonio Gunslingers | |
| Joe Pendry | Kansas State, 1975: offensive coordinator | Pittsburgh Maulers | |
| Ron Dickerson | Kansas State, 1975: cornerbacks coach | Temple, Alabama State, Lambuth | |
| Bobby Thompson | Kansas State, 1977: defensive backs coach and recruiting coordinator | Northwestern Oklahoma State | |
| Jim Gilstrap | Kansas State, 1977: offensive line coach | Ottawa Rough Riders | |
| Frank Lauterbur | Pittsburgh Maulers, 1984: defensive line coach | Toledo, Iowa |
From coaches’ Wikipedia infoboxes (CC BY-SA) and each season’s article for its coordinators: an assistant’s seasons at a school count under its head coach in our records; jobs in the NFL and elsewhere, under the head coach whose own article lists the job that year. Names without a page here link to their Wikipedia articles.