:Leroy Mercer
{{Short description|American athlete and surgeon (1888–1957)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox college coach
| name = Leroy Mercer
| image = ELMErcer.png
| alt =
| caption = Mercer pictured in Halcyon 1918, Swarthmore yearbook
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1888|10|30}}
| birth_place = Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1957|7|3|1888|10|30}}{{Olympedia|78782}}
| death_place = Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, U.S.
| alma_mater =
| player_years1 = 1910–1912
| player_team1 = Penn
| player_positions = Fullback
| coach_years1 = 1917–1930
| coach_team1 = Swarthmore
| overall_record = 63–41–7
| bowl_record =
| tournament_record =
| championships =
| awards =
- 2× Consensus All-American (1910, 1912)
- Third-team All-American (1911)
- Penn Athletics Hall of Fame
| coaching_records =
| CFBHOF_year = 1955
| CFBHOF_id = 1321
}}
Eugene Leroy Mercer (October 30, 1888 – July 3, 1957) was a respected surgeon but was best known for his college football career while attending the University of Pennsylvania. In 1910, he led Penn to the eastern championship and served as the Quakers' captain for the next two seasons. During his time at Penn, Mercer helped the Quakers to a 23–10 football record and received All-American honors in 1910, 1911 and 1912.
In 1908, Mercer cleared {{convert|12|ft|m|adj=on}} in the pole vault, setting a record which he then broke in 1909. He is credited with becoming the only high school athlete to clear that height with a now-outdated spruce pole. Mercer was named to the United States Olympic team for the 1912 Olympic Games and placed fifth in the long jump and sixth in the decathlon. He also competed in baseball, which was a demonstration sport at those Games.[https://web.archive.org/web/20200418111421/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/me/roy-mercer-1.html Roy Mercer]. sports-reference.com Mercer then captained Penn's 1913 champion track team and received All-American honors for his long jump accomplishments, and he won the IC4A long jump titles in 1912 and 1913.
He received his Doctorate in Medicine in 1913 and launched a distinguished career as a physician and educator. He later worked at Swarthmore College as the school's athletic director and as a physical education professor. He also coached the school's lacrosse team in 1918 and 1919.
Mercer returned to Penn in 1930 to serve as the Director and Dean of the school's Physical Education Department. In 1955, he was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.
Head coaching record
{{CFB Yearly Record Start | type = coach | team = | conf = | bowl = | poll = no }}
{{CFB Yearly Record Subhead
| name = Swarthmore Quakers / Garnet Tide
| conf = Independent
| startyear = 1917
| endyear = 1930
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1917
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 6–2
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1918
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 4–2
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1919
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 7–1
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1920
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 4–3–1
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1921
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 4–2–2
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1922
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 3–5
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1923
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 5–2–1
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1924
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 4–3–1
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1925
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 4–3
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1926
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 5–3
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1927
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 4–3–1
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1928
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 6–2
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1929
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 6–3
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| year = 1930
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 1–7–1
| conference =
| confstanding =
| bowlname =
| bowloutcome =
| bcsbowl =
| ranking = no
| ranking2 = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Subtotal
| name = Swarthmore
| overall = 63–41–7
| confrecord =
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record End
| overall = 63–41–7
| bowls = no
| poll = no
| polltype =
| legend = no
}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- {{College Football HoF|1321}}
- {{sports links}}
- {{Find a Grave}}
{{Swarthmore Garnet Tide football coach navbox}}
{{Penn Quakers athletic director navbox}}
{{1910 College Football Consensus All-Americans}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mercer, Leroy}}
Category:People from Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
Category:Players of American football from Chester County, Pennsylvania
Category:Baseball players from Chester County, Pennsylvania
Category:Coaches of American football from Pennsylvania
Category:American football fullbacks
Category:American male decathletes
Category:American male long jumpers
Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1912 Summer Olympics
Category:Baseball players at the 1912 Summer Olympics
Category:College Football Hall of Fame inductees
Category:Olympic baseball players for the United States
Category:Olympic track and field athletes for the United States
Category:Penn Quakers athletic directors
Category:Penn Quakers football players
Category:Swarthmore Garnet athletic directors
Category:Swarthmore Garnet Tide football coaches
Category:Swarthmore Garnet men's lacrosse coaches
Category:20th-century American sportsmen
{{1910s-collegefootball-coach-stub}}
{{US-baseball-bio-stub}}
{{US-decathlon-athletics-bio-stub}}
{{US-longjump-athletics-bio-stub}}