Tommy Prothro
Tommy Prothro went 104–55–5 as a head coach, 1955–1970, at Oregon State and UCLA. Share
- Record
- 104–55–5 career
- Seasons
- 16
- Schools
- 2
- Final AP top 10
- 4 seasons
- Hall of Fame
- 1991 inducted
- Best season
- 1965 8–2–1, No. 4
Season by season
| Season | School | Record | Conference finish | Bowl | AP final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | Oregon State | 6–3 | 2nd | |||
| 1956 | Oregon State | 7–3–1 | 1st | Rose Bowl L | 10 | |
| 1957 | Oregon State | 8–2 | T–1st | |||
| 1958 | Oregon State | 6–4 | 4th | |||
| 1959 | Oregon State | 3–7 | ||||
| 1960 | Oregon State | 6–3–1 | ||||
| 1961 | Oregon State | 5–5 | ||||
| 1962 | Oregon State | 9–2 | Liberty Bowl W | 16 | ||
| 1963 | Oregon State | 5–5 | ||||
| 1964 | Oregon State | 8–3 | T–1st | Rose Bowl L | 8 | |
| 1965 | UCLA | 8–2–1 | 1st | Rose Bowl W | 4 | |
| 1966 | UCLA | 9–1 | T–2nd | 5 | ||
| 1967 | UCLA | 7–2–1 | T–2nd | 10 | ||
| 1968 | UCLA | 3–7 | T–5th | |||
| 1969 | UCLA | 8–1–1 | T–2nd | 13 | ||
| 1970 | UCLA | 6–5 | T–2nd |
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.
Players he coached
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Gary Beban1967 Heisman
Vern BurkeConsensus All‑American, 1963- Don ManningConsensus All‑American, 1967
- Ted BatesConsensus All‑American, 1958
- John WitteConsensus All‑American, 1956
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 | 31 | 11–18–2 | 39% |
| Against top-10 teams | 21 | 7–14 | 33% |
| Against rivals | 28 | 17–8–3 | 66% |
| Conference games | 69 | 47–19–3 | 70% |
| Bowls and playoffs | 4 | 2–2 | 50% |
| Decided by 8 points or fewer | 71 | 44–22–5 | 65% |
| At home | 73 | 56–14–3 | 79% |
| On the road | 87 | 46–39–2 | 54% |
| At neutral sites | 4 | 2–2 | 50% |
| As our Elo’s favorite | 97 | 77–18–2 | 80% |
| As our Elo’s underdog | 67 | 27–37–3 | 43% |
His own 164 games on file, 1955–1970, 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Owens 1957–1970 | 6–8 | Washington | 14 | |
| Len Casanova 1955–1964 | 5–3–2 | Oregon | 10 | |
| Jim Sutherland 1956–1963 | 6–2 | Washington State | 8 | |
| John Ralston 1963–1970 | 5–2–1 | Stanford | 8 | |
| John McKay 1960–1970 | 4–4 | USC | 8 | |
| Skip Stahley 1955–1961 | 7–0 | Idaho | 7 | |
| Ben Schwartzwalder 1961–1968 | 3–4 | Syracuse | 7 | |
| Ray Willsey 1965–1970 | 5–1 | California | 6 | |
| Dee Andros 1962–1970 | 4–1–1 | Idaho, Oregon State | 6 | |
| Jack Curtice 1958–1962 | 3–2 | Stanford | 5 |
Tommy Prothro’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 |
|---|---|---|
| Stanfordseries | 16 | 11–4–1 |
| Washingtonseries | 16 | 8–8 |
| Washington Stateseries | 14 | 12–2 |
| Californiaseries | 12 | 10–2 |
| Oregonseries | 12 | 6–4–2 |
| USCseries | 12 | 5–7 |
| Idahoseries | 9 | 9–0 |
| Syracuseseries | 7 | 3–4 |
Also a player: Tommy Prothro’s playing career.
Career
| Years | Team | Job | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1942 | Western Kentucky | Assistant coach | |
| 1946–48 | Vanderbilt | Assistant coach | |
| 1949–54 | UCLA | Assistant coach | |
| 1955–64 | Oregon State | Head coach | |
| 1965–70 | UCLA | Head coach | |
| 1971–72 | Los Angeles Rams NFL | Head coach | |
| 1974–78 | San Diego Chargers NFL | Head coach |
Every job as the infobox of his Wikipedia article lists it (CC BY-SA), assistant jobs included.
Coaching tree
Worked under
- Red SandersVanderbilt, UCLA
Assistants who became head coaches
- Clay StapletonIowa State
- John CooperTulsa, Arizona State, Ohio State
- Rich BrooksOregon, Kentucky, Oregon State, St. Louis Rams
- John JardineWisconsin
- Pepper RodgersKansas, UCLA, Georgia Tech, Memphis Showboats, Memphis Mad Dogs
- Jim CollettoCal State Fullerton, Purdue
- Dick VermeilUCLA, Napa, Philadelphia Eagles, St. Louis Rams, Kansas City Chiefs
- Fred von AppenHawai’i
- Rudy FeldmanNew Mexico
- Dick CouryCal State Fullerton, Portland Storm, Boston / New Orleans / Portland Breakers
- Bill WalshStanford, San Francisco 49ers
- Ray PerkinsAlabama, Arkansas State, New York Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jones County
Worked under (1)
| Head coach | Team | Years | His job | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Sanders | Vanderbilt | 1946–48 | Assistant coach | |
| Red Sanders | UCLA | 1949–54 | Assistant coach |
Coached under him, later head coaches (12)
| Coach | With him | Head coach at | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clay Stapleton | Oregon State, 1955–57: assistant coach | Iowa State | |
| John Cooper | Oregon State, 1963–64: assistant coach; UCLA, 1965–66: assistant coach | Tulsa, Arizona State, Ohio State | |
| Rich Brooks | Oregon State, 1963: freshman coach; UCLA, 1970: linebackers coach; Los Angeles Rams, 1971–72: special teams coach | Oregon, Kentucky, Oregon State, St. Louis Rams | |
| John Jardine | UCLA, 1965–69: offensive line and tight ends coach | Wisconsin | |
| Pepper Rodgers | UCLA, 1965–66: backfield coach | Kansas, UCLA, Georgia Tech, Memphis Showboats, Memphis Mad Dogs | |
| Jim Colletto | UCLA, 1967–68: offensive line coach | Cal State Fullerton, Purdue | |
| Dick Vermeil | UCLA, 1970: offensive coordinator; Los Angeles Rams, 1971–72: quarterbacks coach | UCLA, Napa, Philadelphia Eagles, St. Louis Rams, Kansas City Chiefs | |
| Fred von Appen | UCLA, 1970: assistant coach | Hawai’i | |
| Rudy Feldman | San Diego Chargers, 1974–77: defensive line and linebackers coach | New Mexico | |
| Dick Coury | San Diego Chargers, 1975: linebackers coach | Cal State Fullerton, Portland Storm, Boston / New Orleans / Portland Breakers | |
| Bill Walsh | San Diego Chargers, 1976: offensive coordinator | Stanford, San Francisco 49ers | |
| Ray Perkins | San Diego Chargers, 1978: offensive coordinator | Alabama, Arkansas State, New York Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jones County |
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.