Eddie Cochems facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Eddie Cochems

Cochems, c. 1906 at Saint Louis
Biographical details
Born	(1877-02-04)February 4, 1877 Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, U.S.
Died	April 9, 1953(1953-04-09) (aged 76) Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.
Playing career
Football
1898–1901	Wisconsin
Position(s)	Halfback, end
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Football
1902–1903	North Dakota Agricultural
1904	Wisconsin (assistant)
1905	Clemson
1906–1908	Saint Louis
1914	Maine
Baseball
1908	Saint Louis
Head coaching record
Overall	42–11–2 (football)

Edward Bulwer Cochems (born February 4, 1877 – died April 9, 1953) was an important American football player and coach. He played football for the University of Wisconsin from 1898 to 1901. Later, he became a head football coach at several universities. These included North Dakota State University (1902–1903), Clemson University (1905), Saint Louis University (1906–1908), and the University of Maine (1914).

Cochems is famous for being the first football coach to build his team's offense around the forward pass. This play became legal in the 1906 college football season. His 1906 team had a perfect record of 11 wins and 0 losses. They scored 407 points while only letting opponents score 11 points. Many people consider him the "father of the forward pass" in American football.

Early Life and Family

Eddie Cochems was born in 1877 in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. This town is in Door County, Wisconsin. He was one of 11 children and the smallest of seven brothers.

His older brother, Henry Cochems, also played football at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Eddie also had a twin brother, Carl Cochems, who became a famous opera singer.

College Athlete at Wisconsin

Cochems went to the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He played football, baseball, and ran track for the Badgers. He was the captain of the 1901 Wisconsin baseball team.

However, he was best known for his football skills. Cochems started as a left end. Later, he moved to the left halfback position for the 1900 and 1901 seasons. During his four years, the Badgers football team had an impressive record of 35 wins, 4 losses, and 1 tie. He was part of a very strong group of running backs.

A classmate named Max Loeb remembered Cochems as "one of the most spectacular men of my time." Another classmate, O.G. Erickson, said Cochems was "wonderfully built, handsome and affable." He also noted that Cochems was strong despite weighing only 165 pounds. He played full games and rarely got injured.

In 1901, Cochems helped the Badgers beat Kansas 50–0. The Chicago Daily Tribune reported that Cochems and his teammates made huge runs. In his final game for Wisconsin in 1901, Cochems ran back a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown against Amos Alonzo Stagg's Chicago Maroons. This play brought him lasting fame.

Cochems also scored two touchdowns in a 39–5 win over Chicago in 1900. He scored four touchdowns in a 54–0 win against Notre Dame in 1900.

Cochems was also a fan of bicycling. In 1900, he took a bicycle trip across Europe with a classmate. They rode through many countries, including England, France, and Germany. The trip cost each of them only $125.

Early Coaching Career

In 1902, at age 25, Cochems became the head football coach at North Dakota Agricultural College. This school is now North Dakota State University. His 1902 team had a perfect record, winning all four games and not allowing any points. They outscored opponents 168 to 0. His 1903 team finished with five wins and one loss.

In 1904, Cochems returned to the University of Wisconsin as an assistant football coach. He also worked as an assistant athletic director. He tried to become the head coach at Wisconsin but lost the vote.

In 1905, Cochems became the head football coach at Clemson. His team had shutout wins against Georgia (35–0) and Auburn (6–0). Clemson finished the season with a record of 3 wins, 2 losses, and 1 tie.

Coaching at St. Louis University

Developing the Forward Pass

In February 1906, Cochems was hired as the head football coach at St. Louis University. The 1906 college football season brought new rules, including making the forward pass legal. Cochems had always been excited about the idea of the forward pass.

At St. Louis, Cochems reunited with Bradbury Robinson, a former teammate from Wisconsin. Robinson was also very interested in the forward pass. He had learned how to throw a spiral pass in 1904.

To get ready for the new season, Cochems took his team to a special camp in Wisconsin. The goal was to practice and develop the forward pass. Author Harold Keith wrote that this camp was where "the first, forward pass system ever devised" was created.

First Legal Forward Pass

St. Louis Post-Dispatch photo of Brad Robinson throwing a forward pass in 1906

On September 5, 1906, St. Louis played Carroll College. In that game, Robinson threw football's first legal forward pass to Jack Schneider.

Cochems reportedly started calling pass plays after his team struggled to run the ball. After one pass was incomplete, Cochems called for the "air attack" again. Robinson threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Schneider. St. Louis won the game 22–0.

The Amazing 1906 Season

The St. Louis team finished the 1906 season undefeated with an 11–0 record. They led the nation in scoring, outscoring their opponents 407 to 11. The forward pass was a major part of their success. Bradbury Robinson threw a 67-yard pass, and Jack Schneider threw a 65-yard pass. These were amazing throws for the type of football used back then.

A big game in 1906 was St. Louis' 39–0 win against Iowa. St. Louis completed eight of ten passes, with four of them going for touchdowns. Cochems said Iowa lost badly because they didn't use the forward pass effectively.

The referee for the Iowa game, Lt. Horatio B. Hackett, was a top official. He later said St. Louis' passing game was "all but perfect." He noted that St. Louis players threw the ball hard and accurately. This allowed receivers to dodge defenders. Hackett's comments were printed in newspapers across the country.

Cochems' Ideas for the Forward Pass

After the 1906 season, Cochems wrote an article called "The Forward Pass and On-Side Kick." It was published in a football guide edited by Walter Camp. Cochems explained how to throw the forward pass and how to improve passing skills.

In 1909, Cochems suggested changing the football itself. He wanted a ball that was "longer, narrower, and a bit heavier." He believed this would make the game more exciting. His ideas basically described the modern football we use today.

Cochems later claimed that famous football schools like Yale, Harvard, and Princeton called him to learn about the forward pass.

Why the Pass Didn't Catch On Quickly

Cochems was surprised that his pass-focused offense wasn't copied right away. For several years, most coaches didn't understand how to use the forward pass well.

It took seven years for Knute Rockne to start using the pass effectively at Notre Dame. Rockne later said that the East Coast football teams didn't pay much attention to what was happening in the Midwest.

Author Murray Greenberg noted that, besides Cochems' team, few teams tried to win games mainly by passing in the early 1900s.

Later Seasons at St. Louis

In 1907, Cochems' St. Louis team had a record of 7 wins, 3 losses, and 1 tie. He also introduced another new idea: having players wear numbers. This helped fans identify individual players, like jockeys in horse racing.

After the 1907 season, some universities accused Cochems of using professional players. Because of this, several schools refused to play St. Louis in 1908.

In 1908, Cochems' team finished with 7 wins, 2 losses, and 1 tie. In March 1909, Cochems resigned from St. Louis University.

Football After St. Louis

After leaving St. Louis, Cochems coached a few other teams. He briefly returned to coaching in 1914 as the head football coach for the University of Maine. His Maine team had a 6–3 record.

Even after he stopped coaching, Cochems stayed involved in football. He attended meetings with important figures like Walter Camp. He also became a well-known game official.

Other Work and Later Life

In 1911, Cochems moved to New York and became involved in politics. He worked as a speaker and campaigner for presidents like Theodore Roosevelt and Herbert Hoover. During World War I, he helped the military. He also worked to end Prohibition, which was a ban on alcohol.

In the 1930s, Cochems returned to Madison, Wisconsin. He worked for the state government. He passed away on April 9, 1953, after a long illness. He had five children with his wife, May Louise Mullen. One of his sons, David, was killed in World War II.

Football Legacy

The "Father of the Forward Pass"

People have had different ideas about how much credit Cochems deserves for the forward pass. However, Walter Camp, a very important figure in early football, chose Cochems to write the only article about the forward pass in his 1907 football guide.

Many people have called Cochems the "father of the forward pass." As early as 1909, a newspaper called him "the first coach to grasp the possibilities of the forward pass." In 1944, author Harold Keith wrote that Cochems was "unquestionably the father of the forward pass."

After Cochems died, the publicity director at St. Louis University, Philip A. Dynan, worked hard to get Cochems recognized. He tried to get Cochems into the College Football Hall of Fame. Coach David M. Nelson, a football expert, said that "E. B. Cochems is to forward passing what the Wright brothers are to aviation." In 2009, Sports Illustrated Kids listed Cochems' development of the forward pass as a "Revolutionary Moment in Sports."

Other Views on the Pass

Not everyone agreed that Cochems was the first to develop the forward pass. Football coach Amos Alonzo Stagg said that many coaches were experimenting with it in 1906. He claimed he had many pass plays himself.

However, Lt. Hackett, the referee who saw both Stagg's and Cochems' teams play in 1906, said St. Louis' passing game was better than anything else he had seen.

Even Cochems' own star player, Bradbury Robinson, said he started developing the pass before Cochems. He wrote that he began working on it at Wisconsin in 1904.

The Rockne Legend

For a long time, Cochems' story was not widely known. This was partly because of the popular 1940 movie Knute Rockne, All American. The movie showed Knute Rockne as the inventor of the forward pass, which wasn't true. Also, St. Louis University stopped playing intercollegiate football in 1949, which made Cochems' story less visible.

However, some people tried to set the record straight. Pulitzer Prize-winning sportswriter Arthur Daley said that credit for the forward pass belonged to Eddie Cochems. In 1952, Gus Dorais, who played for Rockne, also said that Eddie Cochems "deserves the full credit."

Honors and Awards

It took a while for Cochems to get the recognition he deserved. He was nominated for the College Football Hall of Fame twice but was not chosen.

However, Cochems was inducted into the St. Louis Billiken Hall of Fame in 1994. He was also inducted into the University of Wisconsin Athletics Hall of Fame in 1994 and the Madison Sports Hall of Fame in 1968.

In 1999, Sports Illustrated ranked Cochems 29th among the 50 greatest sports figures in Wisconsin history. Since 1994, an award for "Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football" is given out in his name. In 2010, Complex magazine ranked Cochems' 1906 St. Louis team as one of the "50 Most Badass College Football Teams" ever.

Head Coaching Record

Football

Images for kids

• 

  Referee Hackett's analysis of St. Louis' passing game against Iowa, 1906

• 

  Bradbury Robinson showing how to throw an "Overhand spiral" pass

See also

• History of American football