1st Down and 10 A Man’s Story On and Off the Field
By:
Michael Reid
Author’s Page and Introduction
Peopling the nation – a project that has been looming over my head ever since walking through the exhibits in the library as a sixth grader. Now it is my turn to construct this challenging, yet
insanely rewarding project that has been a tradition of Jackson Middle School’s eighth graders for a long time.
I first heard about this project while eavesdropping on my mom and my older brother, who is now a senior in high school, talking about his project while I was outside the office door in my house. I immediately thought, “Oh boy.” But actually doing it now I have come to respect the qualities this project has and the information I have attained from it.
My project is on my great-great-grandfather, Benjamin Gilbert Owen, who was the sixth coach of the Oklahoma Sooner football team, as well as the athletic director, basketball coach, and the organizer of many on-campus memorials that are still there to this day. He has been a role model for many college students, as well as coaches.
I am honored to have this great opportunity to do this report on this incredible man because he has displayed so much leadership and has opened up so many doors for students on and off the field. He led by example and cared for so many others – especially the game of football. Thank you Bennie Owen for loving life and living it to the fullest – you are truly a hero. - Michael Reid
1st Down and 10 A Man’s Story On and Off the Field
“KA-BOOM!” The shotgun discharged sending dozens of metal pellets into the right arm of Bennie Owen. Who knew this peaceful day of hunting could turn into a sour afternoon with just one shot of a gun?
It was three days before the season’s first football game, on October 16, and Bennie Owen was quail hunting with his bird dogs. He was with his buddy John Barbour, south of Adkins Ford near where I - 35 South Canadian River Bridge exists today.[1] After a successful day of hunting, both men loaded up their shotguns for the ride home to Norman, Oklahoma in John’s horse drawn wagon. Sadly, the dog’s feet were full of burrs and caused them extreme pain, resulting in one of the dogs to start falling out of the side of the wagon. Bennie quickly reached for the dog but he bumped his gun causing it to fall down and discharge a heap of pellets into his right arm. In extreme pain, Bennie rushed to the hospital as fast as he could. Upon arrival, Bennie went to the back of the hospital because he didn’t want anyone to see him in this dreadful state.[2] Unfortunately, the ER doctor could not restore circulation, which lead to an amputation below the shoulder of his right arm.[3] His bedside visitors found him more worried about the upcoming game than his own arm. In a matter of days he was out coaching on the gridiron, and within a few weeks he was bird hunting again with one arm. He found great entertainment when wearing a long sleeve shirt by tying the right arm up and start whacking players with it who were slacking.[4] It just goes to show you how life consists not in holding good cards, but by playing those cards you hold well.
Bennie has always been a man to play his cards well ever since he was born on July 24th 1875 in Chicago, Illinois. He was the second of seven children from his father, George H. Owen, who was an emigrant from England, and his mother, Olivia Ann Ring, who was from New York. [5]
Growing up, Bennie lived for the game of baseball - all he thought about was baseball. Luckily for him, when he was twelve years old he moved to St. Louis which ironically hosted one of the nations best baseball teams – the St. Louis Browns. He delighted in seeing the Brown’s manager, Charlie Comiskey; take charge of his players in dealing out thrashings to the best teams in the country. Bennie would rarely ever miss a game.[6] This competition was that of a burning torch in Bennie’s sole - which would never be extinguished.
In 1891, Bennie graduated from St. Louis Clay High School. Soon after graduation, he accompanied his parents and siblings on another move to Sumner County, Kansas, which is about 12 miles west of Arkansas City, not far from the border of Oklahoma Territory. Bennie was immediately put to work on the family wheat farm working long hours on hot days. He somehow found time to attend classes at Hendershot Academy and apprentice to an old country doctor.[7] This small town is where Bennie first experienced the game of football. He was intrigued with the qualities the game had to offer; especially the ability to tackle someone as hard as you could to the ground.[8]
Since this sport was a matter of a few decades old, not many people knew what it was or even how to play it. In fact, football was invented in the early 19th century when a soccer player got
frustrated with having to maneuver the ball with his feet, so he picked it up and started running with it. From this simple act, the game of “Rugby” was born. Rugby found its way to America by the mid 1800s. The first organized match between two teams for this sport was between Harvard University and Yale University in New Brunswick, New York. Since both teams opted for an “egg-shaped” ball instead of a spherical ball, the name was changed from “Rugby” to “Football.” In the early days, each team was allowed twenty five players to be on the playing field for each team, by 1873 this number was reduced to twenty, in 1876 it was reduced again to fifteen, and in 1880 to the present day number of eleven. [10]
Walter Camp, who is considered by some historians to be the “father of football,” convinced the IFA (International Franchise Association) to change a series of rules to very similar of what they are today. Although there have been many rule changes in the history of football, the concept of kicking off at the beginning of each half, the establishment of the line of scrimmage, and the size of the playing field have stayed the same. [11]
Bennie grew fond of the game very fast, and soon enough, was invited to play on the Sumner County football team, led by Arthur St. Leger Mosse (the town’s iceman). [12]
When Bennie wasn’t working on the farm, doctoring, or playing football, he worked at the local Y.M.C.A as the wrestling and boxing instructor.[13] Bennie learned very quickly that it was more important to have small, agile, and fast athletes, rather then big, strong, and slow athletes.[14] Bennie very much fancied his jobs, but still had a major subject on his mind – college.
In the fall of 1897, Bennie enrolled at the University of Kansas. He was aiming to learn something about pharmacy and Latin, because these subjects would enable him to pursue his life long dream of having a medical career.
Although Bennie weighed a mere 126 pounds at this time, he was drawn to the football fields where he would broaden his understanding of the game over the next two years. Over the coarse of his three years at Kansas, he played quarterback for the offense although all his desires were to play defense.[15]
In the fall of 1899, Fielding “Hurry Up” Yost came to Kansas from Nebraska to become the new head football coach. Owen played quarterback for Yost on the undefeated 1899 University of Kansas Jayhawks football team. Fielding Yost was one of college football’s foremost early-day innovators. [16]
Unfortunately, in 1900 Bennie went to Paris, France to visit the Paris Expo, and spent all of his money, which restricted him from further pursuing his life-long dream of becoming a doctor.[17]
Luckily for him though, soon after he was offered a job as head football coach at Topeka’s Washburn College. Here, he coached and played quarterback for his team which won six of eight games. He coached at Washburn for one year.[18]
In 1901, Bennie was offered a coaching position at Michigan to be assistant coach under Fielding Yost. Owen graciously accepted and was once again reunited with his old coach and good friend. While at Michigan, Owen heard that Bethany College of Lindsborg, Kansas was looking for a head coach and so Bennie being the heart-driven person that he is, he pursued the position and was named the 1902-1904 head football coach. During his three-year time at Bethany, Owen freely experimented with different concepts of the game becoming one of the nation’s leading coaches in that aspect. He was also recognized for his leading sportsmanship on and off the field. His three-year record at Bethany was 22-2-2.[19]
Owen was a coach who had a reputation for clean tactics – no profanity, kneeing, fouling, slugging or dirty play by his players. He never shouted, never cussed, nor ever abused a player. Owen’s philosophy insisted that men on the first string would have to work to stay there – no loafing, no late shows to practice and no violating orders.[20]
“They would have to report on time, keep training rules and continue to show up better than the second-string men,” he said. This reputation earned Owen respect around the nation as one of the finest coaching prospects.
After declining in offer to coach at Pittsburgh, in 1905 Owen was offered the head coach job at Oklahoma where he accepted a $900 – three-month check and would start his long stretch of
accomplishments and achievements. Although he did spend his first two years driving back and forth between Norman, Oklahoma (location of university) and Arkansas City (home) because of severe financial budget cuts the university was facing, that didn’t slow him down.[21] Sometimes there would be students in his back seat because he bordered the less fortunate students who could not afford lodging or schooling. He even had to take an “IOU” as part of his salary in 1905.[22]
An example of one of his accomplishments is that he is well known for introducing the “forward pass” to the southern region of America. The “forward pass” usually known quite simply as a “pass,” is when an offensive player (usually the quarterback) throws the football downfield to a receiver of the same team in the direction of the opponents’ end line (end zone).[23] This critical aspect of the game is what allowed Owen to defeat much bigger, stronger, and faster teams that heavily outweighed Oklahoma in talent. He is also credited for introducing the “cross buck formation.” The cross buck consisted of many “boot leg” plays for the backfield running backs. The term “boot leg” is also known as a “sweep” or “trap.” This formation was accomplished with speed as Owen used smaller and faster players in an age of big, brutal men. [24]
Bennie was head football coach at the University of Oklahoma for 22 years, as well as men’s head basketball coach for 13 years, and in 1907 he was named the University’s athletic director for what would be a term of 27 years.[25]
The Sooner football team was undefeated in 1911, 1915, 1918, and 1920 under their courageous leader – Bennie Owen. Three of his Sooner teams won conference championships including the Southwest Conference in 1915 and 1918, as well as the Missouri Valley Conference in 1920. Oklahoma scored over 100 points in a game eight times, and 50 or more points thirty-one times during Owen’s tenure. [26]
For 22 years as a head football coach at the University, his combined record is 155 wins, 60 losses, and 19 ties (155-60-19). For 13 years as a head basketball coach, his combined record is 113 wins and 49 losses (113-49).[27] A few school record achievements were: most games coached – 192, and most years coached – 22.[28] Along with Bud Wilkinson, Barry Switzer and Bob Stoops, he is one of four coaches to win over 100 games at the University of Oklahoma. No other college has more than three coaches who have accomplished such a feat.[29] In 1951, Bennie was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame. There have been 1,099 total Oklahoma University games with 28,756 points being scored. Bennie has been credited for over 5,000 of them, and when there have been 22 coaches in school history – you do the math.[30]
But sometimes he just needed to get away from all the pressure of coaching and he just needed to relax. When times like these came, he would often go out and clean up his garden – he loved gardening. But what about when his garden was all clean? Simple – he’d load up a shotgun, get his bird dogs, and try to shoot down a few quail. What happened when he ran out of bullets and couldn’t make it to town?
Easy – he’d pick up his fly rod and go try to hook a few trout. Here is a funny story about the time he lost his fly rods:
It was during off-season while Bennie and his friend, who was a pilot, decided to go fishing with the Governor of Colorado, something they had previously been invited to do. So they loaded up their fly rods and flew to Denver from Oklahoma with no problems. They arrived, fished for a while, and soon it got to be time to start heading home. So they packed up their things and took off just realizing moments later how they forgot their fly rods on top of the wings, which had slid off during take off and now lay in the unknown - lost. When his wife found out, she banned him from purchasing another fly rod. What does Bennie do? He goes out, buys a rod, but now has to sneak it around his wife’s back whenever he goes fishing. I bet he’ll make sure to have his rod in eye site at all times now while traveling.
On May 22nd 1912, Bennie married a lovely woman of the name Nina Bessent. They had three beautiful daughters – Jane, Dorothy Ann, and Ruth. Jane, the oldest daughter, married one of the bordered students, Dee Haynes. They went on to have six children, one of which is my grandpa Joe (poppy Joe), who unfortunately past away last year of cancer. Poppy Joe had three marvelous daughters, Connie, Christy, and Jenny. Christy is my step mom, which makes me proudly say, “Bennie Owen is my great-great-grandfather.” [31]
Retirement (noun) – “the state of being retired from one's business or occupation.”[32] Retirement is a word that a lot of people cannot come to coincide with. Not of fear, but of the realization of being retired. Being retired does not mean to completing seclude yourself from activities, but to simply take a breather and realize that you have earned this genuine relaxation.
When Bennie Owen retired after the 1926 season, he was simply just warming up. He went on to orchestrate the fund raising and building of a new stadium, field house, swimming pool, baseball field, tennis courts, and a nine-hole university golf course. The new 30,000-seat stadium was named Memorial Stadium to honor Oklahomans who died in World War I. The stadium still stands today at the corner of Lindsey and Jenkins Streets. The playing surface, where a great tradition has preponderated for nearly all of the 20th Century, was named for him – Owen Field. [33]
Sadly, on February 26, 1970, Benjamin Gilbert Owen was announced dead at the age of 94.[34] As Arthur Rubinstein so profoundly said, “Love life and life will love you back. Love people and they will love you back.” I feel there is no greater example of a person to fit that quote, than my great-great-grandfather.
Bennie Owen, as you lay in the heavens above gleaming down on us with your bright heart and your courageous sole, I want to once again thank you for teaching us lessons through your humbling actions, and caring for so many others. You have conquered the unimaginable, tackled the impossible, and brought hope to the implausible. Although you have departed from earth, you are and will always be remembered as a person with perpetual love. God bless you, and rest in peace.
1. J. Brent Clark, Sooner Century (Kansas City, Coal Valley Quality Sports Publication), 1995
2. Christy Reid/Jim Haynes, “Interview of family members.” Feb. 17th 2009
3. J. Brent Clark, Sooner Century
4. Christy Reid/Jim Haynes interview
5. Christy Reid/Jim Haynes interview
6. J. Brent Clark, Sooner Century
7. Ray Dozier, Oklahoma Football Encyclopedia (Sports Publishing LLC, 2006) p.14
8. Christy Reid/Jim Haynes interview
9. World Book, Inc. “Football, “The World Book Encyclopedia, (2004) F, vol.22
10.Rule Changes.
12.Ray Dozier, Oklahoma Football Encyclopedia
13.J. Brent Clark, Sooner Century
14.Christy Reid/Jim Haynes interview
15.J. Brent Clark, Sooner Century
16.Ray Dozier, Oklahoma Football Encyclopedia
17.Christy Reid/Jim Haynes interview
18.J. Brent Clark, Sooner Century
19.Ray Dozier, Oklahoma Football Encyclopedia
20.J. Brent Clark, Sooner Century
21.Ray Dozier, Oklahoma Football Encyclopedia
22.Christy Reid/Jim Haynes interview
23.Forward Pass. Wikipedia. 19th December 2008.
24.Ray Dozier, Oklahoma Football Encyclopedia
25.Owen, Bennie. “Bennie Owen.” Nation Master. 6th June, 2006.
26.Ray Dozier, Oklahoma Football Encyclopedia
27.Owen, Bennie. “Bennie Owen.” Wikipedia. 17th November, 2008.
28.Sooner Football. Type40, Web design.
29.Owen, Bennie. Wikipedia
30.Sooner Football. Type40, Web design.
31.Christy Reid/Jim Haynes interview
32.Retirement. Dictionary.com
33.Ray Dozier, Sooner Football Encyclopedia
34.J. Brent Clark, Sooner Century
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