Bob Williams (coach)

Bob Williams is unique in Clemson football history for being one of the few coaches in the country to have coached at two schools involved in a rivalry (two years at the University of South Carolina), as well as being the Tigers' only three-term coach. He lead the team in 1906, 1909, and from 1913 to 1915.

A 1902 graduate of Virginia, Williams served as the Gamecocks' mentor for two seasons, 1902-1903, achieving 6-1 and 8-2 records. In 1902, he oversaw one of Clemson's greatest upsets, when the Gamecocks handed the heavily-favored Tigers a 6-12 loss in a game coached by John Heisman. This was the only game lost by the Tigers that year.

After a year coaching at Davidson in 1905, Williams came to Clemson for a season. The Tigers went undefeated with a 4-0-3 record in 1906, with wins over Georgia, Auburn, Tennessee, and the John Heisman-coached Georgia Tech team. Clemson's first forward pass took place on November 29, 1906, during the game with Georgia Tech in Atlanta. Left End, Powell Lykes, dropped back to kick, but lobbed a 30-yard pass to George Warren instead. Clemson won, 10-0.

Williams returned to the head coaching job in 1909 after Frank Shaughnessy replaced him in 1907, followed by John Stone in 1908. The 1909 season was notable for the resumption of the Clemson-Carolina rivalry after a five-year gap, caused by the near riot in October 1903. The Tigers enjoyed a 6-3 season under Williams' guidance and defeated the Gamecocks, 6-0, in Columbia on November 4.

Williams was replaced by Frank Dobson in 1910 who had a three-year run at the school, the first coach to actually have a signed contract. With Dobson's departure after the 1912 season, Williams returned for the second time to the Clemson head coaching position. He, too, would serve for three years, 1913-1915.

The Tigers produced records of 4-4 in 1913, 5-3-1 in 1914, and 2-4-2 in 1915. In the 41 games that Williams coached in five seasons, he went 21-14-6, for a .585 winning percentage.

Between the years of 1915 and 1926, Williams practiced law in Roanoke, Virginia, and was the city's mayor.

Sources:
*Clemson Football media guide, 2001, page 275.
*Gaillard, Luther, "Clemson Handbook", The Wichita Eagle and Beacon Publishing Co., Wichita, Kansas, 1996, pages 9-10, ISBN 1-880652-84-6.
*Sahadi, Lou, "The Clemson Tigers - From 1896 to Glory", William Morrow and Company, Inc., New York, 1983, page 17, ISBN 0-688-02164-6.

External links

*http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/coaching/alltime_coach_year_by_year.php?coachid=3177