Cleve Abbott
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 9, 1894 Yankton, South Dakota, U.S. |
| Died | April 14, 1955 (aged 60) Tuskegee, Alabama, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| c. 1912–1915 | South Dakota State |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1923–1954 | Tuskegee |
| Basketball | |
| 1933–1936 | Tuskegee |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1923–1955 | Tuskegee |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 206–99–27 (football) 27–18 (basketball) |
| Bowls | 4–7 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| Football 6 black college national (1924–1927, 1929–1930) 11 SIAC (1924–1927, 1929–1933, 1936, 1943) | |
Cleveland Leigh "Cleve" Abbott (December 9, 1894 – April 14, 1955) was an American college football and college basketball coach, athletics administrator, and educator.[1] He was the head coach of the Tuskegee Golden Tigers football team from 1923 to 1954.
Early life, education, and military service
Abbott was born in Yankton, South Dakota in 1894, one of seven children to Albert B. (aka Elbert) Abbott (1862–1952) and Mollie Brown Abbott (1868–1909). He graduated from high school in Watertown, South Dakota. Abbott received his bachelor's degree in 1916 from South Dakota State College (SDSC)—now known as South Dakota State University—in Brookings, South Dakota. He was an outstanding, multi-sport athlete at Watertown High School (16 varsity sports letters) and South Dakota State (14 varsity letters).
Abbott joined the United States Army in 1917 at Camp Dodge, and served in Europe in World War I as an officer in the 366th Infantry Regiment
Coaching career
After being mustered out of military service in 1919, Abbott taught at the Kansas Vocational School in Topeka, Kansas. In 1923, Abbott accepted a position as Athletic Director, professor and coach at Tuskegee.[2] Abbott was the eighth head football coach for the Tuskegee University Golden Tigers located in Tuskegee, Alabama[3] and he held that position for 32 seasons, from 1923 until 1954. Abbott earned the respect of his peers through his team's performance and by participating in national committees for the selection of "all-American" players at the collegiate level.[4]
He was the first African-American member of USA Track and Field Board circa 1940 and the first African-American member of the US Olympic Committee in 1946. He coached the first African-American Olympic champion, Alice Coachman (1948 high jump), and the second, Mildred McDaniel (1956 high jump).
Personal life, death, and legacy
Abbott was married to Jessie Abbott (1897–1982), and had had a daughter, Jessie Ellen Abbott. He died on April 14, 1955, at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Tuskegee.[5][6]
Abbott was inducted into the South Dakota Hall of Fame in September 2018.[7]
Head coaching record
College
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuskegee Golden Tigers (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) (1923–1954) | |||||||||
| 1923 | Tuskegee | 7–1–1 | |||||||
| 1924 | Tuskegee | 9–0–1 | 1st | ||||||
| 1925 | Tuskegee | 8–0–1 | 1st | ||||||
| 1926 | Tuskegee | 10–0 | 8–0 | 1st | |||||
| 1927 | Tuskegee | 9–0–1 | 7–0–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1928 | Tuskegee | 6–1–4 | 5–1–2 | T–1st[n 1] | |||||
| 1929 | Tuskegee | 10–0 | 1st | ||||||
| 1930 | Tuskegee | 11–0–1 | 7–0 | 1st | W Prairie View | ||||
| 1931 | Tuskegee | 10–2 | 6–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1932 | Tuskegee | 6–1 | 1st | L Prairie View | |||||
| 1933 | Tuskegee | 9–1–2 | 1st | ||||||
| 1934 | Tuskegee | 6–5–1 | 3–2–1 | 2nd | W Prairie View | ||||
| 1935 | Tuskegee | 8–4 | 5–2 | 3rd | |||||
| 1936 | Tuskegee | 7–5 | 4–2 | 1st | W Prairie View | ||||
| 1937 | Tuskegee | 6–3–1 | 3–2–1 | 6th | |||||
| 1938 | Tuskegee | 1–7–2 | 1–4–2 | T–8th | L Prairie View | ||||
| 1939 | Tuskegee | 3–7 | 2–6 | 7th | |||||
| 1940 | Tuskegee | 5–4 | 4–3 | 5th | |||||
| 1941 | Tuskegee | 8–2 | 6–1 | 2nd | L Orange Blossom Classic | ||||
| 1942 | Tuskegee | 7–3 | 6–1 | 2nd | L Vulcan | ||||
| 1943 | Tuskegee | 9–2–1 | 4–1–1 | 1st | W Vulcan | ||||
| 1944 | Tuskegee | 6–4–1 | 5–1 | 2nd | L Vulcan | ||||
| 1945 | Tuskegee | 6–6–1 | 2–2–1 | 4th | L Prairie View | ||||
| 1946 | Tuskegee | 10–2 | 5–1 | 3rd | L Yam Bowl | ||||
| 1947 | Tuskegee | 6–4–1 | 3–2–1 | T–4th | |||||
| 1948 | Tuskegee | 4–4–1 | 3–2–1 | T–6th | |||||
| 1949 | Tuskegee | 4–6 | 4–3 | T–6th | |||||
| 1950 | Tuskegee | 2–5–2 | 2–5–2 | T–12th | |||||
| 1951 | Tuskegee | 6–3 | 5–3 | T–7th | |||||
| 1952 | Tuskegee | 2–6–2 | 1–6–2 | T–15th | |||||
| 1953 | Tuskegee | 2–6–2 | 1–5–2 | 14th | |||||
| 1954 | Tuskegee | 3–5–1 | 2–5–1 | 12th | |||||
| Tuskegee: | 206–99–27 | ||||||||
| Total: | 206–99–27 | ||||||||
See also
- List of college football career coaching wins leaders
Notes
- ^ No conference champion was recognized by the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) in 1928.[8]
References
- ^ The Afro American January 27, 1940 Archived January 30, 2021, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ The College on the Hill, a Sense of South Dakota State University History, Dunkle and Smith, 2003
- ^ The Fayetteville Observer "Negro Gridiron Circuit is Popular" October 25, 1939
- ^ Baltimore Afro-American "Looking 'em Over" November 2, 1946
- ^ "Cleve Abbott Succumbs Following Long Illness". Alabama Journal. Montgomery, Alabama. April 15, 1955. p. 5C. Retrieved April 6, 2026 – via Newspapers.com
.
- ^ "Cleve Abbott, Long-Time Institute Athletic Director, Dies Of Lengthy Illness". The Tuskegee Herald. Tuskegee, Alabama. April 19, 1955. pp. 1, 6. Retrieved April 6, 2026 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ "Legacy Cleveland "Cleve" Abbott". South Dakota Hall of Fame. South Dakota Hall of Fame. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
- ^ Abbott, Cleve (December 29, 1928). "Southeastern Season Is Reviewed By Cleve Abbott". The Chicago Defender. Chicago, Illinois. p. 9. Retrieved April 26, 2026 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ "NCAA Statistics; Coach; Cleveland L. Abbott; Football". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved April 6, 2026.