Greasy Neale
Neale as Washington & Jefferson football coach, c. 1922 | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 5, 1891 Parkersburg, West Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | November 2, 1973 (aged 81) Lake Worth, Florida, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| c. 1913 | West Virginia Wesleyan |
| 1917 | Canton Bulldogs |
| 1918 | Dayton Triangles |
| 1919 | Massillon Tigers |
| Position | End |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1915 | Muskingum |
| 1916–1917 | West Virginia Wesleyan |
| 1918 | Dayton Triangles |
| 1919–1920 | Marietta |
| 1921–1922 | Washington & Jefferson |
| 1923–1928 | Virginia |
| 1930 | Ironton Tanks |
| 1931–1933 | West Virginia |
| 1934–1940 | Yale (backs) |
| 1941–1950 | Philadelphia Eagles |
| Basketball | |
| 1919–1921 | Marietta |
| Baseball | |
| 1923–1928 | Virginia |
| 1927–1928 | Clarksburg Generals |
| 1929 | St. Louis Cardinals (3rd base) |
| 1929 | Rochester Red Wings (3rd base) |
| 1930 | Clarksburg Generals |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 82–54–11 (college football) 26–11 (college basketball) 80–73–2 (college baseball) 66–44–5 (NFL) |
| Tournaments | 3–1 (NFL playoffs) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 2 Ohio League (1917, 1918) 2 NFL (1948, 1949) | |
| Awards | |
| Pro Football Hall of Fame (1969) Philadelphia Eagles Hall of Fame (1987) | |
| College Football Hall of Fame Inducted in 1967 (profile) | |
|
Baseball career | |
| Outfielder | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 12, 1916, for the Cincinnati Reds | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| June 13, 1924, for the Cincinnati Reds | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .259 |
| Home runs | 8 |
| Runs batted in | 200 |
| Stolen bases | 139 |
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Alfred Earle "Greasy" Neale (November 5, 1891 – November 2, 1973) was an American football and baseball player and coach. Neale was an end for West Virginia Wesleyan in the 1910s before becoming involved in professional baseball and football as both player and coach. He served as the regular outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds from 1916 to 1920, which included leading the team in hits in the 1919 World Series, the first championship in team history. He also spent time playing in the Ohio League as an end, playing a season each for Canton, Dayton, and Massillon from 1917 to 1919. He stopped playing baseball and football by the 1920s to focus on coaching, coaching for five different teams from 1915 to 1922 (which included coaching Washington & Jefferson to the 1921 Rose Bowl) before settling with the University of Virginia, where he coached football and baseball from 1923 to 1928.
Neale jumped from job to job, coaching minor league baseball to independent professional ball. In sixteen seasons of coaching college football, he went 82–54–11. Neale served as the backs coach at Yale from 1934 to 1940 before being hired to coach the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League. They won just two games each in his first two seasons but steadily rose up the ranks, which culminated in 1947 with a division championship, the first one in team history. They lost in the 1947 NFL Championship Game but returned to the championship in 1948 and got revenge on Chicago to win their first NFL Championship. The 1949 campaign saw them go 11–1 (in addition to being a record for wins not broken for 30 years, it still ranks as the best season in winning percentage in team history). They defeated Los Angeles to win their second consecutive championship.
Neale concluded his tenure in 1950; in ten seasons as coach, he went 66–44–5. Neale retired from coaching and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1967 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1969 for his contributions to the sport.