BLAIK, EARL HENRY

born Feb. 15, 1897, Dayton, Ohio, U.S. died May 6, 1989, Colorado Springs, Colo. byname Red Blaik American collegiate football coach whose teams compiled a 1664814 record during his tenures as head coach at Dartmouth College and at the U.S. Military Academy (West Point). Blaik was a superb athlete at Miami University in Ohio and at West Point, where he became an all-American end while playing for Army (191819). After resigning his army commission in the cavalry (1922), he briefly entered a real-estate business before returning to West Point as an assistant coach in 1927. As the head coach at Dartmouth (193440), Blaik led his teams to a 45154 record, including a 21-game winning streak. His coaching career at Army (194158) yielded a remarkable 1213310 record and two consecutive national championships (194445) and earned him a reputation as a brilliant strategist. In 1951 his 45-man team was reduced to one player when the other members, including his son, were dismissed from West Point for a violation of the honour code. Blaik wrote You Have to Pay the Price (1960) and The Red Blaik Story (1974). He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1986.