Glen W. Harmeson (March 9, 1908 – June 23, 1983) was an American football player, coach of football and basketball, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Lehigh University (1934–1941), Wabash College (1946–1950), and Arkansas State College—now Arkansas State University (1954), compiling a career college football record of 49–60–11. Harmeson was also the head basketball coach at Lehigh from 1934 to 1937 and at Wabash from 1950 to 1951, tallying a career college basketball mark of 20–43.

Glen Harmeson
Harmeson pictured in Epitome 1940, Lehigh yearbook
Biographical details
Born(1908-03-09)March 9, 1908
Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
DiedJune 23, 1983(1983-06-23) (aged 75)
Lafayette, Indiana, U.S.
Playing career
Football
1927–1929Purdue
Basketball
1927–1930Purdue
Baseball
1928–1930Purdue
Position(s)Quarterback (football)
Outfielder (baseball)
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Football
1930–1931Purdue (freshmen)
1932–1933Purdue (first assistant)
1934–1941Lehigh
1946–1950Wabash
1951–1952Purdue (assistant)
1954Arkansas State
Basketball
1934–1937Lehigh
1950–1951Wabash
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
1939–1942Lehigh
Head coaching record
Overall49–60–11 (football)
20–43 (basketball)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Football
1 Middle Three (1936)
Awards

Harmeson was a high school star in basketball, football, and baseball for Indianapolis' Emmerich Manual High School; he was awarded three varsity letters in each of three high school sports and was a three-time All-State basketball player.

During his intercollegiate career at Purdue, Harmeson was named all-Big Ten Conference in basketball, football, and baseball; he was a co-captain for the 1930 Big Ten champion basketball team with Stretch Murphy and a teammate of John Wooden and was a member of the 1928 Big Ten champions. He led the Boilermakers to the 1929 Big Ten title in football, quarterbacking them to a perfect record of 8–0 (5–0 in conference), outscoring the opposition 187–44. He was the first Purdue athlete to play on two teams in same academic year that posted undefeated conference marks. As a freshman at Purdue, he was awarded four freshman letters.

He was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 1981.[1]

Coaching career

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Lehigh

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Harmeson was the 18th head football coach at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and he held that position for eight seasons, from 1934 until 1941. His record at Lehigh was 23–42–5.[2]

Wabash

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Harmeson's next coaching move was to become the 23rd head football coach at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana and he held that position for five seasons, from 1946 until 1950. His coaching record at Wabash was 25–10–6.[3]

Arkansas State

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Harmeson coached the Arkansas State University football team for the 1954 season. After concluding with a record of 1–8, he retired from coaching.

Later life and death

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Harmeson worked at the Indiana Veterans Home from 1966 until 1978. He died on June 23, 1983, at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Lafayette, Indiana.[4]

Head coaching record

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Football

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Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs
Lehigh Engineers (Middle Three Conference) (1934–1941)
1934 Lehigh 4–4 1–1 2nd
1935 Lehigh 5–4 1–1 2nd
1936 Lehigh 6–2 2–0 1st
1937 Lehigh 1–8 0–2 3rd
1938 Lehigh 2–5–2 0–2 3rd
1939 Lehigh 3–6 0–2 3rd
1940 Lehigh 2–7 0–2 3rd
1941 Lehigh 0–6–3 0–2 3rd
Lehigh: 23–42–5 4–12
Wabash Little Giants (Indiana Intercollegiate Conference) (1946–1957)
1946 Wabash 7–1 5–1 3rd
1947 Wabash 5–1–2
Wabash Little Giants (Independent) (1948–1950)
1948 Wabash 4–4
1949 Wabash 5–2–1
1950 Wabash 4–2–3
Wabash: 25–10–6
Arkansas State Indians (Independent) (1954)
1954 Arkansas State 1–8
Arkansas State: 1–8
Total: 49–60–11
      National championship         Conference title         Conference division title or championship game berth

References

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  1. ^ "Glen Harmeson - Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame".
  2. ^ Lehigh Coaching Records Archived December 10, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ Wabash College coaching records Archived November 21, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "Glen Harmeson, Retired Coach". Indianapolis News. Indianapolis, Indiana. June 24, 1983. p. 31. Retrieved March 23, 2019 – via Newspapers.com  .
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