Early Football Career of Yost

Our Guest, Author Dr. John Behee joins us in the Pigpen to discuss the legendary football coach Fielding Yost and what early instances shaped the path to his success.

Our guest in the podcast above is Dr. John Behee and he is the author not one but two biographies on Coach Fielding Yost. His latest, after over 50 years of research is titled Coach Yost: Michigan's Tradition Maker. Dr. Behee achieved a degree in History and then furthered his education at the University of Michigan and even got to spend some time as a graduate assistant coach for the Wolverines during his stay there. This kindled his passion for the football program's history and traditions and when he looked into them, the name Fielding H. Yost jumped off the pages, and the campus. Behee wrote his dissertation for his PhD on Coach Yost. Some 50 years later after that original published work, he recollected his notes dug a bit deeper and found even more revelations about this amazing coach from the early 20th century.

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons of Photograph of the West Virginia football team, c 1895 or 1896

Fielding Yost's introduction to football

Yost grew up in West Virginia and his family had a store to sell equipment for the mining industry there. Yost participated in hard work as a youngster at the urging of his mother he attended Ohio Wesleyan to become a teacher. He taught school for about a year and then decided he needed a bit more out of a career to satisfy him so he returned to school at West Virginia University. It was there that he was introduced to playing football as his rugged build and strong stature made him a perfect candidate to play tackle in single platoon football of the era. He soaked it up lie a sponge and enjoyed the game.

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons of Photograph of Fielding Yost with teammate, probably at West Virginia, c 1895 or 1896

In one weekend his WVU team played Lafayette College three times in consecutive days. Lafayette won all three contests but their wiley coach, parke H Davis noticed Yost and ended up having communication with the opposing player. Davis suggested Yost take up his studies at Lafayette, and so he did. It just so happens that very soon afterwards, Lafayette, with Yost on the roster went up against the top team in the nation  of the Penn Quakers. Lafayette's Leopards with Yost playing tackle broke Penn's winning streak, and Yost soon after left to return to West Virginia.

Fielding had so much fun and success playing ball that he was soon invited to play for the nearby Allegheny Athletic Club near Pittsburgh. At the urging of his Fraternity brothers he was asked to return to Ohio Wesleyan and help coach their upstart team. Yost took his blossoming knowledge of the game and taught the players the game, and they won games. He even participated as a player for Weleyan when they failed to be able to have eleven on the field, with the permission of the opposition.

This success set Yost on adventure to coach more the next fall and he moved on through his network of friends and fraternity brothers to coach the University of Nebraska Bugeaters. They won all of their games in Yost's system including defeating rivals Kansas and Missouri. Kansas was so impressed that they hired him to coach their team the very next season and Yost had another successful football campaign there. Soon his longing to head West and prospect minerals guided him to a job coaching the Stanford University Cardinal football team in 1899. Again success followed Yost.

There are many more details in Dr Behee's book and I invite you to get a copy and take the pleasure in learning about coach Yost and this important era of football. Look back soon for part 2 of this series on Fielding Yost with Dr. Behee coming soon.

The picture in the banner above is from the Wikipedia Commons photo collection of the Public Domain of Photograph of University of Michigan football coach Fielding H. Yost circa 1905

Special thanks to Dr. John Behee, and his wonderful book  Coach Yost: Michigan's Tradition Maker.