American football player and coach (1893–1970)
John James "Cap" McEwan (February 18, 1893 – August 9, 1970) was an American football player and coach. He played and coached at the United States Military Academy and was the head coach at the University of Oregon and College of the Holy Cross after his military career ended. He then spent two seasons in the professional ranks, coaching the Brooklyn Dodgers of the National Football League from 1933 to 1934.
Early life
McEwan played from 1913 to 1916 as a center at the United States Military Academy, where he was a three-time All-American and captain of the 1916 Army Cadets football team.[1] After graduating, McEwan served with the 3rd Infantry Division. He was president of the General Courts Martial and at Fort Sam Houston.[2] In 1917, he married Letty Peterson. They had two children, John Jr. and Janet.[2]
Coaching career
In 1919, McEwan returned to West Point as the head line coach. In December 1922, head coach Charles Dudley Daly resigned and was succeeded by McEwan.[3] In his three seasons as head coach, McEwan led Army to an 18–5–3 record. Following the 1925, McEwan accepted the head coaching position at Oregon and resigned from the Army.[4]
From 1926 to 1929 he was the head football coach at Oregon.[5] His record there stands at 20–13–2, with his 1928 team completing a 9–2 campaign. McEwan announced his resignation as head football coach on November 22, 1929.[6] He later back tracked and on December 19, announced that his "plans for the ensuing year are to continue by duties at the University of Oregon".[7] However, following reports that McEwan had provided Army with film of the Stanford–Oregon game, the University of Oregon student executive council voted to ask for McEwan's resignation, a move which was supported by university president, Dr. Arnold Bennett Hall.[8][9]
In 1930, McEwan became head coach at Holy Cross.[10] In 1932, he was suspended by the school following an in-game dispute with athletic trainer Bart F. Sullivan. McEwan accused Sullivan of insubordination for not substituting an injured player, while Sullivan claimed that the player was healthy and because the team had used all of its time outs, substituting a non-injured player would have resulted in a costly penalty.[11] McEwan filed a lawsuit to overturn his suspension, but withdrew it and resigned after reaching a settlement with the university on January 21, 1933.[12]
Later that year, he was hired to coach the Brooklyn Dodgers of the National Football League by the team's new owners, Red Cagle and Shipwreck Kelly.[13] McEwan complied a 9–11–1 record over two seasons.[14]
Later life
Following financially unsuccessful 1934 season, Dodgers owner Dan Topping released McEwan and a number of the team's high profile players.[15] McEwan was unable to secure another coaching position and became an investigator for the Works Progress Administration.[2] In 1942, he returned to active military duty and was assigned to the office of the Chief of Engineers.[16] Receiving the rank of Lieutenant colonel, McEwan served as the labor relations officer for the North Atlantic Division of the United States Army Corps of Engineers.[17] From 1947 to 1963, he was the chief of labor relations for the New York City Transit Authority.[2]
McEwan died on August 9, 1970 at the Veteran's Hospital in Manhattan.[2]
