Curry Hicks

Curry Starr Hicks (January 17, 1885 – February 28, 1964) was an American football coach, athletic director, and professor of physical education.

Curry Hicks
Curry Hicks as athletic director at UMass Amherst
Biographical details
Born(1885-01-17)January 17, 1885
Enfield, New York
DiedFebruary 28, 1964(1964-02-28) (aged 79)
Tucson, Arizona
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1910Michigan State Normal
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
1911–1948Massachusetts / Massachusetts State / UMass
Head coaching record
Overall0–5–1

Early years

Hicks was born in January 1885 at Enfield, New York. At the time of the 1900 U.S. Census, he was listed as a student, and as the son of Samuel Hicks and Fannie Hicks of Hamlin, Michigan.[1] He enrolled at Michigan Agricultural College (now known as Michigan State University) but left the school due to lack of money. He worked for a time as a math teacher and high school principal.[2]

Michigan State Normal School

Hicks later enrolled at Michigan State Normal College (now known as Eastern Michigan University) in Ypsilanti, Michigan.[3] He received a bachelor's degree in physical education from the school in 1909.[2] In 1909, he attended Amherst College on a Hitchcock Fellowship before returning to the Michigan State Normal School. He was the head college football coach for the Michigan State Normal Normalites (now called the Eastern Michigan University Eagles) for the 1910 season.[4] His coaching record at Eastern Michigan was 0 wins, 5 losses and 1 tie.[5] As of the conclusion of the 1910 season, this ranks him #37 at Eastern Michigan in total wins and #36 at the school in winning percentage (.083).[6]

Head coaching record
Year Team Overall ConferenceStanding Bowl/playoffs
Michigan State Normal (Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association) (1910)
1910 Michigan State Normal 0–5–10–2–1
Michigan State Normal: 0–5–10–2–1
Total:0–5–1

UMass Amherst
Curry S. Hicks from UMass Library Special Collections

In 1911, after receiving a degree from Michigan State Normal College,[7][8] Hicks was hired as the athletic director at Massachusetts Agricultural College (now known as University of Massachusetts Amherst) in Amherst, Massachusetts.[9] He was the school's first Director of Athletics and Student Health and held the post for 38 years until his retirement in 1949.[10] During his time as athletic director, he led a construction program of $400,000 worth of athletic facilities, including Alumni Field and the physical education building that was completed in 1931.[3] The latter building was renamed the Curry Hicks Physical Education Building (also commonly known as the "Curry Hicks Cage") in June 1941.[11][12] In his official biography, the UMass Library states:

"Curry S. Hicks pioneered the University's athletics program as it transitioned from the Massachusetts Agricultural College to the University of Massachusetts. Hicks led the charge to build modern athletic fields and gymnasia and during his tenure, many of the University's teams climbed to new heights of excellence. ... On his retirement in 1949, Hicks left behind a thoroughly modernized athletics program ..."[2]

Hicks was also a professor of physical education and the head of the school's Division of Physical Education and Hygiene. He was credited with building up the physical education curriculum at UMass for both men and women.[3] His publications include "The influence of faculty supervision on the moral effects of athletics in high schools and colleges" (1912),[13] and "Community Playgrounds" (1938).[14]

Hicks' wife, Adeline (Herrick) Hicks, was a classmate of Hicks in the Michigan State Normal College Class of 1909.[15] She established the physical education program for women at the University of Massachusetts and became the head of physical education for women.[10][16] She was an early advocate of modern dance as part of the physical education curriculum.[15]

In a draft registration card completed at the time of World War I, Hicks reported that he was living in Amherst and working as a college teacher for Massachusetts Agricultural College.[17]

Death

After his retirement in 1949, Hicks and his wife Adeline lived in Tucson, Arizona.[2] He died there in February 1964 at age 78.[3]

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References
  1. Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Census Place: Hamlin, Eaton, Michigan; Roll: T623_709; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 74.
  2. "Curry S. Hicks Papers". UMass Library. Archived from the original on 2011-04-20. Retrieved 2011-04-22.
  3. "Curry Hicks Succumbs In Tucson: Ex-Professor, U. of M. Athletics Manager Was 78". The Berkshire Eagle. March 2, 1964.
  4. Shafer, Ian. "Eastern Michigan University (All seasons results)". College Football Reference. Archived from the original on July 26, 2012. Retrieved December 30, 2010.
  5. "Football Bowl Subdivision: Eastern Michigan University Directory". The Sports Network. Archived from the original on June 22, 2011. Retrieved April 13, 2011.
  6. DeLassus, David. "Eastern Michigan Coaching Records". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on December 5, 2010. Retrieved December 30, 2010.
  7. Summer Sessions University of Massachusetts. University of Massachusetts. 1962. p. 260.
  8. Steven R. Sullivan (2006). University of Massachusetts Amherst Athletics. Arcadia Publishing. p. 123.
  9. "Athletic Department Staff". UMass Athletics. Archived from the original on 2012-03-26.
  10. Vince Cleary (Spring 2008). "Making Waves: Curry Hicks, Ruth Totman, Frank Boyden, legends first, gyms second". UMass Amherst Magazine.
  11. "Curry Hicks Physical Education Building". UMass Amherst. Archived from the original on 2012-10-15. Retrieved 2011-04-22.
  12. Kevin Cullen (January 28, 1993). "The rage that was the cage Curry Hicks, UMass' wild, crazy and cramped arena, is almost a memory". Boston Globe.
  13. Curry S. Hicks (1912). The influence of faculty supervision on the moral effects of athletics in high schools and colleges.
  14. Curry S. Hicks (1938). Community Playgrounds. Extension Service, Massachusetts State College.
  15. "Adeline E. Hicks Papers, 1917-1987". Five College Archives Digital Access Project. Archived from the original on 2011-09-27. Retrieved 2011-04-22.
  16. "Adeline Hicks, started UMass women's physical education". Daily Hampshire Gazette. April 3, 1987. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved April 22, 2011.
  17. Draft Registration Card for Curry Starr Hicks, born January 17, 1885. Ancestry.com. World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line]. Registration Location: Hampshire County, Massachusetts; Roll: 1684521; Draft Board: 8.
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