Toby Greene (baseball)
Theodore Elwood "Toby" Greene (March 29, 1899 – October 2, 1967) was an American college baseball coach, most notable for leading the Oklahoma State Cowboys baseball team to the national championship in the 1959 College World Series.[1][2][3]
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 29, 1899 Humphrey, Missouri |
| Died | October 3, 1967 (aged 68) Stillwater, Oklahoma |
| Alma mater | Phillips (1924) |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| c. 1920 | Phillips |
| Baseball | |
| c. 1920 | Phillips |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1926 | Bartlesville HS (OK) (assistant) |
| 1927–1928 | Phillips (assistant) |
| 1929–1932 | Phillips |
| 1933–1934 | Oklahoma City (assistant) |
| 1935–1937 | Oklahoma City |
| 1939–? | Oklahoma State (assistant) |
| Basketball | |
| 1933–1936 | Oklahoma City |
| Baseball | |
| 1942–1964 | Oklahoma State |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 22–36–4 (college football) 318–132 (college baseball) |
Early life
Greene was born in 1899 at Humphrey, in Sullivan County, Missouri but moved with his parents to Thomas, Oklahoma in 1902. He enrolled at Phillips University in Enid, Oklahoma in 1918, where he enlisted in the Student Army Training Corps, a World War I program. Greene later became a multi-sport athlete, excelling in baseball and football for the Haymakers. He graduated from Phillips in 1924 after playing alongside future New York Giants coach Steve Owen.[2][4]
Coaching career
Greene began his coaching career in 1924 as a baseball coach at Sayre High School in Sayre, Oklahoma. He remained there for two years before moving to Bartlesville High School in Bartlesville, Oklahoma for one year. He then became all-sports coach at Phillips.[2][4]
He later coached at Oklahoma City University before becoming a football assistant at Oklahoma A&M in 1939. In 1942, he added head baseball coach to his duties. Greene coached the team for 22 seasons, only one of which saw a record below .500. Greene earned seven district championships and 8 conference titles to go with his national championship in 1959.[2]
Death
Greene died on October 3, 1967, at his home in Stillwater, Oklahoma.[5][6]
Head coaching record
College football
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phillips Haymakers (Big Four Conference) (1929–1932) | |||||||||
| 1929 | Phillips | 4–4–3 | 1–3–1 | 4th | |||||
| 1930 | Phillips | 6–3 | 1–2 | 3rd | |||||
| 1931 | Phillips | 1–5 | 0–3 | 4th | |||||
| 1932 | Phillips | 3–7 | 0–3 | 4th | |||||
| Phillips: | 14–19–3 | 2–11–1 | |||||||
| Oklahoma City Goldbugs (Independent) (1935–1937) | |||||||||
| 1935 | Oklahoma City | 3–4–1 | |||||||
| 1936 | Oklahoma City | 4–4 | |||||||
| 1937 | Oklahoma City | 1–9 | |||||||
| Oklahoma City: | 8–17–1 | ||||||||
| Total: | 22–36–4 | ||||||||
College baseball
The following table depicts Greene's record as a head coach.[7]
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma A&M Cowboys (Missouri Valley Conference) (1942–1956) | |||||||||
| 1942 | Oklahoma A&M | 6–5 | |||||||
| 1943 | Oklahoma A&M | 4–3 | |||||||
| 1946 | Oklahoma A&M | 15–2 | |||||||
| 1947 | Oklahoma A&M | 11–5 | 11–5 | 1st | District Playoffs | ||||
| 1948 | Oklahoma A&M | 20–6 | 20–6 | 1st | Western Playoff | ||||
| 1949 | Oklahoma A&M | 22–6 | 5–0 | 1st | Region C Playoff | ||||
| 1950 | Oklahoma A&M | 15–7 | 6–3 | 2nd | |||||
| 1951 | Oklahoma A&M | 9–8 | 2–4 | 5th | |||||
| 1952 | Oklahoma A&M | 15–5 | 5–2 | 2nd | |||||
| 1953 | Oklahoma A&M | 13–4 | 4–2 | T-2nd | |||||
| 1954 | Oklahoma A&M | 18–11 | 8–1 | 1st | CWS | ||||
| 1955 | Oklahoma A&M | 27–3 | 8–0 | 1st | CWS | ||||
| 1956 | Oklahoma A&M | 11–10 | 7–2 | 2nd | |||||
| Oklahoma A&M (MVC): | 186–75 | 76–25 | |||||||
| Oklahoma A&M/State Cowboys (Big Eight Conference) (1957–1964) | |||||||||
| 1957 | Oklahoma A&M | 12–3 | 7–2 | 2nd | |||||
| 1958 | Oklahoma State | 17–6 | 13–5 | 2nd | |||||
| 1959 | Oklahoma State | 27–5 | 17–3 | 1st | CWS Champions | ||||
| 1960 | Oklahoma State | 17–7 | 12–4 | 1st | CWS | ||||
| 1961 | Oklahoma State | 27–3 | 18–1 | 1st | CWS | ||||
| 1962 | Oklahoma State | 11–9 | 10–6 | 2nd | |||||
| 1963 | Oklahoma State | 15–10 | 12–9 | 5th | |||||
| 1964 | Oklahoma State | 6–14 | 4–12 | 7th | |||||
| Oklahoma State (Big 8): | 132–57 | 93–42 | |||||||
| Total: | 312–132 | ||||||||
| National champion Postseason invitational champion | |||||||||
References
- ^ Bill Platt. "National Champions". Oklahoma State Athletics. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
- ^ a b c d "Obituary". Genealogy.com. December 1, 2009. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
- ^ "Toby Greene, six others to be inducted into OSU Hall of Honor". Tulsa World. July 20, 2011. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
- ^ a b "Toby Greene". Sports Illustrated. January 18, 1960. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
- ^ Guymon, J. Carl (October 3, 1967). "Former O-State Baseball Coach Toby Greene Dies". The Daily Oklahoman. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. p. 13. Retrieved August 9, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ Guymon, J. Carl (October 3, 1967). "Toby Greene, Former O-State Coach, Dead (continued)". The Daily Oklahoman. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. p. 14. Retrieved August 9, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ 2013 Media Guide. Oklahoma State Cowboys. pp. 63-. Retrieved May 25, 2013.
External links
- Toby Greene at Find a Grave