George Huff (coach)

George Huff
Huff pictured in The Official National Collegiate Athletic Association football guide, 1899
Biographical details
Born(1872-06-11)June 11, 1872
Champaign, Illinois, U.S.
DiedOctober 1, 1936(1936-10-01) (aged 64)
Champaign, Illinois, U.S.
Playing career
Football
1890, 1892Illinois
1893–1894Dartmouth
Baseball
1889–1891, 1893Illinois
1894Dartmouth
Position(s)Guard (football)
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Football
1895–1899Illinois
Baseball
1896–1919Illinois
1907Boston Americans
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
1901–1936Illinois
Head coaching record
Overall21–16–3 (football)
317–97–4 (college baseball)
2–6 (MLB)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Baseball
11 Big Ten (1900, 1903–1904, 1906–1908, 1910–1911, 1914–1916)

George A. Huff Jr. (June 11, 1872 – October 1, 1936) was an American football and baseball player, coach, and college athletics administrator. Huff served as the head football coach at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign from 1895 to 1899, compiling a record of 21–16–3. He was also the head baseball coach at Illinois from 1896 to 1919, tallying a mark of 317–97–4, and the athletic director at Illinois from 1901 to 1935. Huff Hall at the University of Illinois in Champaign is named in his honor.

Huff was briefly a manager for the Boston Americans at the start of the 1907 Major League Baseball season following the sudden suicide of Chick Stahl. Cy Young started out as the player/manager, but after six games stepped down in favor of Huff. Huff managed only eight games, finishing with a career 2–6 managerial record, before resigning on May 1, 1907, to return to his old job. Bob Unglaub replaced him. The Americans had a total of four managers in the 1907 season. The team was renamed as the Boston Red Sox the following season.