:George W. Dickerson

{{Short description|American football player and coach (1913–2002)}}

{{Infobox college coach

| name = George W. Dickerson

| image = George Dickerson at UCLA.jpg

| alt =

| caption = Dickerson at UCLA, c. 1958

| birth_date = {{Birth date|1913|1|27}}

| birth_place = Galion, Ohio, U.S.

| death_date = {{Death date and age|2002|1|22|1913|1|27}}

| death_place = Laguna Woods, California, U.S.

| alma_mater =

| player_years1 = 1934–1936

| player_team1 = UCLA

| player_positions = Tackle

| coach_years1 = 1947–1957

| coach_team1 = UCLA (assistant)

| coach_years2 = 1958

| coach_team2 = UCLA

| overall_record = 1–2

| bowl_record =

| tournament_record =

| championships =

| awards =

| coaching_records =

}}

George W. Dickerson (January 27, 1913 – January 22, 2002) was an American college football coach at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). An assistant coach with the Bruins from 1947 to 1957, he was the interim head coach for the first three games in 1958 after the unexpected death of Red Sanders in mid-August. Dickerson was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 1987.{{cite web|url=http://www.today.ucla.edu/2002/020212names.html |title=UCLA Today obituary for George W. Dickerson |access-date=December 2, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060901111041/http://www.today.ucla.edu/2002/020212names.html |archive-date=September 1, 2006 }}{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-jan-31-me-passings31.2-story.html|title=George Dickerson, 88; UCLA Coach and Hall of Fame Athlete|work=Los Angeles Times|date=January 31, 2002|access-date=April 5, 2019}}

Early life and education

Born in Galion, Ohio,{{cite news |author= |title=George W. Dickerson

|url=https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/latimes/obituary.aspx?n=george-w-dickerson&pid=209101 |work=The Los Angeles Times |date=January 31, 2002 |access-date=July 7, 2019 |via=Legacy.com }} Dickerson was raised in southern California and attended Fairfax High School in Los Angeles. At UCLA, he lettered in football for three years and rugby for four. He was also a boxer, and was captain of the 1936 football team.

Coaching career

Dickerson returned to UCLA to serve as an assistant coach for Red Sanders. When Sanders died of a heart attack in mid-August 1958, Dickerson was promoted to head coach several days later.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=BfZVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fuIDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6665%2C3133045 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |location=(Oregon) |agency=Associated Press |title=Assistant gets UCLA head coaching job |date=August 19, 1958 |page=3B}} Less than two weeks after, he was admitted to the UCLA Medical Center with nervous exhaustion.{{Cite news|last=Wolf|first=Al|title=Dickerson's Condition Improves|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=September 2, 1958|quote=George Dickerson, new head football coach at UCLA, was reported "progressing well" yesterday at UCLA Medical Center, after being admitted Saturday suffering from nervous exhaustion.}} Dickerson returned to coach the Bruins on September 11,{{Cite news|last=Wolf|first=Al|title=Optimistic Dickerson Back at Bruin Helm|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=September 12, 1958}} and led the team for the first three games as head coach. UCLA lost the opener to #21 Pittsburgh on September 20, won at Illinois, then were shut out 14–0 at Oregon State.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kPRVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cuIDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3992%2C660306 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |location=(Oregon) |last=Harvey |first=Paul III |title=Oregon State blanks UCLA by 14-0 |date=October 5, 1958 |page=1B}}

Bill Barnes was named acting head coach for the Friday night game against Florida on October 10 (and continued through the 1964) season). Dickerson had been re-admitted to the UCLA Medical Center late the previous evening, again suffering from nervous exhaustion.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lfRVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cuIDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3586%2C1794545 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |location=(Oregon) |agency=Associated Press |title=UCLA coach hospitalized |date=October 10, 1958 |page=2B}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lvRVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cuIDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4368%2C1882997 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |location=(Oregon) |agency=Associated Press |title=Florida downs UCLA by 21-14 |date=October 11, 1958 |page=6}}{{Cite news|last=Wolf|first=Al|title=UCLA'S DICKERSON ILL, OUT FOR YEAR. Barnes in Charge of Grid Team|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=October 10, 1958|quote=George Dickerson, UCLA head football coach, late yesterday' was readmitted to the UCLA Medical Center after suffering a "bad setback" from the nervous exhaustion which hospitalized him just before the season began.}}

Dickerson was one of three assistants from the national championship season of 1954 to later lead the Bruins as head coach, along with Barnes and Tommy Prothro.