American Football Database
Advertisement
Branch Bocock
File:Branch Bocock UNC.jpg
Bocock pictured in Yackety Yack 1912, North Carolina yearbook
Sport(s)Football, basketball, baseball
Biographical details
Born(1884-03-10)March 10, 1884
Shenandoah, Virginia
DiedMay 25, 1946(1946-05-25) (aged 62)
Blackstone, Virginia
Playing career
Position(s)Quarterback
Head coaching record
Overall98–55–9 (football)
109–33 (basketball)
70–54–4 (baseball)

James Branch Bocock (March 10, 1884 – May 25, 1946) was an American football, basketball, and baseball coach.[1] He served as the head football coach at the University of Georgia (1908), Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute (VPI)—now known as Virginia Tech (1909–1910, 1912–1915), the University of North Carolina (1911), Louisiana State University (1920–1921),[2] the University of South Carolina (1925–1926), and The College of William & Mary (1928–1930, 1936–1938), compiling a career college football record of 98–55–9. Bocock was also the head basketball coach at VPI (1909–1911, 1913–1915), LSU (1920–1921),[3] and South Carolina (1924–1927), tallying a career college basketball mark of 109–33, and the head baseball coach at VPI (1910–1911, 1914), LSU (1922–1923),[4] and South Carolina (1925–1927), amassing a career college baseball record of 70–54–2.

Early years[]

Bocock was a quarterback for the Georgetown Hoyas.[5]

Coaching career[]

Although official records give Bocock credit only for coaching the Georgia Bulldogs football team in 1908, he also coached the last three games of Georgia's 1907 season. In 1907, Georgia head football coach Bull Whitney was caught in a controversy over the revelation that there were at least four paid professionals on the Georgia and Georgia Tech teams during the game played that year. As a result, Georgia removed all known ringers from its team and Whitney was forced to resign, handing the coaching duties over to Bocock for the last three games. Georgia was 2–1 in those three games.

At VPI, Bocock was the team's first true professional coach and the first head football coach to receive a full-time salary.[6]

Later life[]

Bocock died at the age of 62 on May 25, 1946 at his home in Blackstone, Virginia.[7]

Head coaching record[]

Football[]

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs
Georgia Bulldogs (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association) (1908)
1908 Georgia 5–2–1 3–2–1 6th
Georgia: 5–2–1 3–2–1
VPI (Independent) (1909–1910)
1909 VPI 6–1
1910 VPI 6–2
North Carolina Tar Heels (Independent) (1911)
1911 North Carolina 6–1–1
North Carolina: 6–1–1
VPI (South Atlantic Intercollegiate Athletic Association) (1912–1915)
1912 VPI 5–4
1913 VPI 7–1–1
1914 VPI 6–2–1
1915 VPI 4–4
VPI: 34–14–2
LSU Tigers (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association) (1920–1921)
1920 LSU 5–3–1 1–3
1921 LSU 6–1–1 2–1–1
LSU: 11–4–2 3–4–1
South Carolina Gamecocks (Southern Conference) (1925–1926)
1925 South Carolina 7–3 2–2 T–10th
1926 South Carolina 6–4 4–2 T–4th
South Carolina: 13–7 6–4
William & Mary Indians (Independent) (1928–1930)
1928 William & Mary 6–3–2
1929 William & Mary 8–2
1930 William & Mary 7–2–1
William & Mary Indians (Southern Conference) (1936–1938)
1936 William & Mary 1–8 0–5 16th
1937 William & Mary 4–5 1–3 T–13th
1938 William & Mary 3–7 0–4 15th
William & Mary: 29–27–3 1–12
Total: 98–55–9
      National championship         Conference title         Conference division title
Indicates BCS bowl, Bowl Alliance or Bowl Coalition game.

Basketball[]

Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
VPI (Independent) (1909–1911)
1909–10 VPI 11–0
1910–11 VPI 11–1
VPI (Independent) (1913–1916)
1913–14 VPI 14–5
1914–15 VPI 9–4
1915–16 VPI 12–3
VPI: 57–13 (.814)
LSU Tigers (Southern Conference) (1920–1921)
1920–21 LSU 19–4 5–2
LSU: 19–4 (.826) 5–2 (.714)
South Carolina Gamecocks (Southern Conference) (1924–1927)
1924–25 South Carolina 10–7 4–2
1925–26 South Carolina 9–5 4–2
1926–27 South Carolina 14–4 9–1 1st
South Carolina: 33–16 (.673) 17–5 (.773)
Total: 109–33 (.768)

      National champion         Conference regular season champion         Conference tournament champion
      Conference regular season and conference tournament champion       Conference division champion

Baseball[]

Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason


VPI (Southern Conference) (1910–1911)
1910 VPI
1911 VPI
VPI (Southern Conference) (1914–1914)
1914 VPI 15–4–1
VPI: 38–18–2 (.672)
LSU Tigers (Southern Conference) (1922–1923)
1922 LSU 7–6
1923 LSU 8–9–2
LSU: 15–15–2 (.500)
South Carolina Gamecocks (Southern Conference) (1925–1927)
1925 South Carolina 4–9
1926 South Carolina 6–4
1927 South Carolina 7–8
South Carolina: 17–21 (.447)
Total: 70–54–4 (.563)

      National champion         Conference regular season champion         Conference tournament champion
      Conference regular season and conference tournament champion       Conference division champion

See also[]

References[]

Additional sources[]

  • Reed, Thomas Walter (1949). Athens, Georgia: University of Georgia Press. History of the University of Georgia; Chapter XVII: Athletics at the University from the Beginning Through 1947 imprint pages 3493

External links[]

Template:Georgetown Hoyas quarterback navbox

Template:Virginia Tech Hokies athletic director navbox

Template:Virginia Tech Hokies men's basketball coach navbox Template:Virginia Tech Hokies baseball coach navbox

Template:LSU Tigers basketball coach navbox Template:LSU Tigers baseball coach navbox

Template:South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball coach navbox Template:South Carolina Gamecocks baseball coach navbox Template:South Carolina Gamecocks athletic director navbox

Advertisement