Hall of Fame
When a man toils for 40 years within the ranks of collegiate
coaching it is a credit, if he leaves the profession with the
deepest respect of his peers. Jess Neely was such a man,
honored and respected by his fellow coaches. He was elected
president of the American Football Coaches Association and
later received the association?s Stagg Award for contributions
to football. Neely played end and halfback at Vanderbilt and
was captain of the 1922 team. He obtained a law degree at
Vanderbilt, then went into coaching at Southwestern (now
Rhodes College) 1924-27. For the next three years he was
assistant football coach and head baseball coach at Alabama.
Next came the head coach?s job at Clemson 1931-39. His
1939 team beat Boston College 6-3 in the Cotton Bowl. Rice
hired him, and he stayed 27 years 1940-66. He won four
Southwest Conference championships and was in seven bowl
games. During his time Rice built a stadium seating 70,000.
His overall record for 40 years was 207-176-19. Neely
returned to Vanderbilt as director of athletics 1967-71. He
was born January 4, 1898, in Smyrna, Tennessee; died April
9, 1983, in Weslaco, Texas.
