By Dan FletcherThe Daily Northwestern
Former Northwestern football coach Alex Agase, who led the Wildcats from 1964-1972, died last Thursday near his home in Tarpon Springs, Fla. He was 85.
Agase was a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, a three-time all-American guard at two schools and a decorated veteran of World War II. An Evanston native, Agase posted a 32-58-1 record while serving as the NU coach.
University associate archivist Kevin Leonard said Agase was one of the most popular coaches in NU’s history.
“We’ve never heard anyone condemn anything Agase did here or say a harsh word about him,” Leonard said. “It seems like everyone liked him.”
Leonard said although Agase had a losing record during his tenure at NU, he remains one of the most successful football coaches in the school’s history. Agase built on the foundation established by coach Ara Parseghian, Leonard said, and Agase was named coach of the year by the Football Writers of America in the 1970s.
“Agase was able to attract good players on par with any other school in the country,” Leonard said. “He just wasn’t able to get them in enough depth. It’s a problem a lot of NU coaches have had throughout the years.”
The best record Agase posted was 7-4 in 1971.
Agase left NU suddenly in 1972 after compiling a 2-9 season. Although he turned down a head coaching job at the University of Arizona, he accepted the same position at Purdue University 12 days later.
Tippy Dye, NU’s athletic director at the time, told the Chicago Daily News the decision took him completely by surprise.
“I didn’t think it would happen,” he told the paper. “I thought he would stay with us.”
For his part, Agase said he knew it was time to leave NU after he had a dream in which a Purdue trainer named Pinky Newell – a former teammate of Agase’s – asked him what he was waiting for.
Leonard said Agase was tempted by the chance to turn Purdue into a national competitor.
While Agase had a poor record during his four years at Purdue, he later joined the coaching staff of famed University of Michigan head coach Bo Schembechler as an assistant before retiring from the game.
Agase had a number of noteworthy successes outside of coaching. He was a three-time all-American guard, earning the award at two different schools: twice at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and once at Purdue while training for World War II. He also received the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart for his service in Okinawa during the war.
Current NU Athletic Director Mark Murphy released a statement expressing his condolences to Agase’s family.
He is survived by his wife Norma and three sons.
Reach Dan Fletcher at [email protected].
