Eddie Erdelatz (April 21, 1913 – November 10, 1966) was a football player and coach who is best remembered for his nine years as head football coach of the U.S. Naval Academy, as well as holding the distinction of being the first head coach of the American Football League's Oakland Raiders.
Erdelatz's early life was not easy, losing his mother just two weeks after his birth, but he soon found that football would become a focal part of his life. P...
more
Eddie Erdelatz (April 21, 1913 – November 10, 1966) was a football player and coach who is best remembered for his nine years as head football coach of the U.S. Naval Academy, as well as holding the distinction of being the first head coach of the American Football League's Oakland Raiders.
Erdelatz's early life was not easy, losing his mother just two weeks after his birth, but he soon found that football would become a focal part of his life. Playing three years at end for St. Mary's College in California beginning in 1932 under the legendary Slip Madigan, Erdelatz showed himself to be a gritty competitor. In one case, a scraped leg that led to infection (and possible amputation) failed to keep him off the field, while his senior season was not stopped, despite a shoulder separation and twisted knee.
In 1936, Erdelatz became St. Mary's line coach under Madigan, leaving for a similar position with the University of San Francisco two years later. By 1940, he found himself back at St....
less
