Basil Stanley

{{Short description|American football player and sports coach (1896–1975)}}

{{Infobox college coach

| name = Basil Stanley

| image = Bill Stanley, circa 1920s.png

| alt =

| caption = Stanley pictured in The Yearling (1925), Joneseboro A&M yearbook

| birth_date = {{Birth date|1896|2|8}}

| birth_place = Montpelier, Ohio, U.S.

| death_date = {{Death date and age|1975|7|17|1896|2|8}}

| death_place = San Francisco, California, U.S.

| alma_mater =

| player_years1 = 1915

| player_team1 = Wabash

| player_years2 = 1917

| player_team2 = Notre Dame

| player_years3 = 1921–1922

| player_team3 = Saint Mary's

| player_years4 = 1924

| player_team4 = Rock Island Independents

| player_positions = Guard, tackle

| coach_sport1 = Football

| coach_years2 = 1923

| coach_team2 = Arizona (assistant)

| coach_years3 = 1924

| coach_team3 = Jonesboro Aggies

| coach_years4 = 1926

| coach_team4 = Notre Dame (freshmen)

| coach_years5 = 1927

| coach_team5 = River Falls State

| coach_years6 = 1934

| coach_team6 = Yreka HS (CA)

| coach_sport7 = Basketball

| coach_years8 = 1923–1924

| coach_team8 = Arizona

| coach_years9 = 1926–1927

| coach_team9 = Berrien Springs HS (MI)

| coach_years10 = 1927–1928

| coach_team10 = River Falls State

| admin_years1 = 1927–1928

| admin_team1 = River Falls State

| overall_record = 9–5–1 (college football)

| bowl_record =

| tournament_record =

| championships =

| awards =

| coaching_records =

}}

Basil Lavon Stanley (February 8, 1896 – July 17, 1975), nicknamed "Butch" and "Chick", was an American football player, coach of football and basketball, and college athletics administrator. He played college football at three different schools—Wabash College, the University of Notre Dame, and Saint Mary's College of California—and professionally for one season, in 1924, with the Rock Island Independents of the National Football League (NFL).{{cite web|url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/S/StanBa20.htm|title=Basil Stanley|publisher=Pro-Football-Reference|access-date=July 3, 2018}} Stanley served as the head football coach at the First District Agricultural School (now known as Arkansas State University) in 1924 and River Falls State Teachers College (now known as the University of Wisconsin–River Falls) in 1927. He was also the head basketball coach at the University of Arizona for one season, in 1923–24.

Early life and playing career

Stanley attended South Bend High School in South Bend, Indiana. In 1915, he entered Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana. A year later, he transferred to the University of Notre Dame, where he lettered in football.{{cite news |author= |title=Basil Stanley Will Coach In Wisconsin |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-south-bend-tribune/167173157/ |newspaper=South Bend Tribune |location=South Bend, Indiana |date=June 26, 1927 |page=14 |access-date=March 4, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }} Stanley broken his leg in game played on November 17, 1917, at Cartier Field, against Michigan Agricultural.{{cite news |author= |title=Benefit To Be Given For Basil Stanley |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-south-bend-tribune/167198509/ |newspaper=South Bend Tribune |location=South Bend, Indiana |date=December 7, 1917 |page=18 |access-date=March 4, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }} He also suffered a head injury that season. In February 1918, he was held in the St. Joseph County, Indiana jail pending an assessment of his psychological state.{{cite news |author= |title=Hurt In Football Sanity Doubted |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-capital-times/167198658/ |newspaper=The Capital Times |location=Madison, Wisconsin |date=February 16, 1918 |page=6 |access-date=March 4, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }} He judged to be insane, and committed to the Logancliff Hospital in Logansport, Indiana.{{cite news |author= |title=Stanley Found Insane |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-south-bend-tribune/167198977/ |newspaper=South Bend Tribune |location=South Bend, Indiana |date=February 15, 1928 |page=18 |access-date=March 4, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }}

Stanley played football at Saint Mary's College of California as a tackle in 1921 and 1922.{{cite news |author= |title=Fischer Given Grid Post |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-oakland-post-enquirer/167200036/ |newspaper=The Oakland Post-Enquirer |location=Oakland, California |date=July 23, 1934 |page=8 |access-date=March 4, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }}

Coaching career

In 1923, Stanley was hired as an assistant football coach at the University of Arizona under head coach Pop McKale.{{cite news |author= |title=Former Notre Dame Star Comes to Arizona "U" as Assistant Coach for Wildcats |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/arizona-daily-star/167172770/ |newspaper=Arizona Daily Star |location=Tucson, Arizona |date=September 5, 1923 |page=4 |access-date=March 3, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }} In 1924, he was appointed head football coach at the First District Agricultural School—now known as Arkansas State University—in Jonesboro, Arkansas, succeeding Tom Dandelet.{{cite news |author= |title=B. L. Stanley, Former Notre Dame Football Star, Accepts Coach Position For Aggies |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/jonesboro-weekly-sun/167172710/ |newspaper=Jonesboro Weekly Sun |location=Jonesboro, Arkansas |date=May 14, 1924 |page=1 |access-date=March 3, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }} He resigned from his post at Jonesboro in December 2024, and was replaced by Herbert Schwartz.{{cite news |author= |title=B. L. Stanley Resigns As Aggie Coach, Schwartz Will Coach Basketball |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/jonesboro-weekly-sun/167171591/ |newspaper=Jonesboro Weekly Sun |location=Jonesboro, Arkansas |date=May 14, 1924 |page=1 |access-date=March 3, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }} Stanley returned to his alma mater, Notre Dame, in 1926 to coach the freshmen football team under head varsity coach Knute Rockne.{{cite news |author= |title="Two Aces" Up his Sleeve And More Help Cheer Rockne |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/grand-forks-herald/167173103/ |newspaper=Grand Forks Herald |location=Grand Forks, North Dakota |date=October 12, 1926 |page=8 |access-date=March 4, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }} In the winter of 1926–27, he coached basketball at Berrien Springs High School in Berrien Springs, Michigan. He earned a master's degree from Notre Dame in 1927.{{cite news |author= |title=Coach Is Successful |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-south-bend-tribune/167173137/ |newspaper=South Bend Tribune |location=South Bend, Indiana |date=February 1, 1927 |page=12 |access-date=March 4, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }} In June of that year, Stanley was named athletic director and head coach of football, basketball, and track and field at River Falls State Teachers College—now known as the University of Wisconsin–River Falls. He stepped down from his post at River Falls State in January 1928 due to poor health, and was succeeded by Marshall Diebold.{{cite news |author= |title=Name Diebold As New Athletic Head |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/baraboo-news-republic/167173283/ |newspaper=Baraboo News Republic |location=Baraboo, Wisconsin |agency=United Press |date=January 13, 1928 |page=6 |access-date=March 4, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }}

In 1934, Stanley was named head football coach at Yreka High School in Yreka, California.

Death

Stanley died on July 17, 1975, in San Francisco.{{cite news |author= |title=Funerals; Stanley, Basil L. |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-francisco-examiner-obituary-for/167173025/ |newspaper=San Francisco Examiner |location=San Francisco, California |date=July 20, 1975 |page=B5 |access-date=March 3, 2025 |via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}} }}

Head coaching record

=College football=

{{CFB Yearly Record Start | type = coach | team = | conf = | bowl = | poll = no }}

{{CFB Yearly Record Subhead

| name = Jonesboro Aggies

| conf = Independent

| startyear = 1924

| endyear = single

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 1924{{#tag:ref|National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and Arkansas State records list "Bill Stanley", an apparent misspelling, as Arkansas State's head coach in 1924. Basil Stanley was often referred to as "B. L. Stanley", and contemporary newspaper converge confirms that he was the program's head coach in 1924.{{cite web |author= |title=NCAA Statistics; Coach; Bill Stanley |url=https://stats.ncaa.org/people/28981?sport_code=MFB |publisher=National Collegiate Athletic Association |access-date=March 4, 2025 }}{{cite web |author= |title=2024 Arkansas State Football Media Guide |url=https://astateredwolves.com/documents/2024/8/1/2024_Arkansas_State_Football_Guide.pdf |publisher=Arkansas State University Athletics |pages=163, 184, 238 |access-date=March 4, 2025 }}|group=n}}

| name = Jonesboro Aggies

| overall = 4–4

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Subtotal

| name = Jonesboro Aggies