Hall of Fame
John Ralston was the head coach at Utah State (1959-62), Stanford (1963-71), and San Jose State (1993-96), amassing a 97–81–4 record as a college coach. He also headed professional teams, including the Denver Broncos (1972-76) and the Oakland Invaders of the United States Football League (1983-84).
He had a 31-11-1 record at Utah State, and his Aggie teams won two Skyline Conference championships, subsequently playing in the 1960 Sun Bowl and 1961 Gotham Bowl. His nine-year Stanford record was 55-36-3, and he won consecutive Pac-8 Conference titles and Rose Bowls following the 1970 and 1971 regular seasons. The bowl victories both came against undefeated teams, Ohio State and Michigan, respectively.
In 1993, at age 66, he came out of retirement to coach at San Jose State for four years with a 11-34 record. He then took a job as special assistant to the director of athletics at San Jose State. He is one of only four coaches who have returned to the sidelines after being inducted into the Hall.
Ralston's coaching tree includes former NFL head coaches the late Bill Walsh, Dick Vermeil, Jim Mora, Sr., Mike White, the late Rod Rust, the late Jack Christiansen and college head coaches the late Roger Theder, the late Tony Knap, Ed Peasley and Rubin Carter. His best-known players include College Football Hall of Fame inductees Jim Plunkett and Jeff Siemon at Stanford and the late Merlin Olsen at Utah State. NFF National Scholar-Athletes, who he mentored, include Olsen at Utah State and at Stanford John Root and John Sande.
The Oakland, California, native was born on April 26, 1927, and spent a portion of his youth in Norway, Michigan. At 17, Ralston joined the Marine Corps, serving three years and achieving the rank of corporal. He was stationed mainly on the S.S. Little Rock in the South Pacific during World War II. At age 20 he enrolled in the University of California. He was linebacker on the football team, playing for College Football Hall of Fame coach Lynn "Pappy" Waldorf from 1948-50 and graduating in 1951.
Ralston began his coaching career as an assistant football coach at San Lorenzo (Calif.) High in 1953 and spent two seasons at Mt. Diablo High before returning to Cal in 1956 as an assistant football coach. He spent three seasons with the Golden Bears, including the 1958 team that played in the 1959 Rose Bowl.
Ralston served in many sports and numerous roles, including as Philadelphia Eagles assistant coach to Vermeil in 1978; vice-president of the San Francisco 49ers in 1979 and 1980; president of the Portland Breakers of the USFL in 1984 and 1985; general manager of the San Jose Golddiggers, a women's professional volleyball team in 1986; general manager of the Sacramento Capitols in the Team Tennis League in 1987; scout for the Seattle Seahawks football team in 1988-90; and coach of the Moscow Bears, a native Russia team which played U.S. teams in 1990.
In addition to being a College Football Hall of Fame inductee, he is a member of the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame (1996), the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame (1997), the San Jose Hall of Fame (2001) and the sports halls of fame for San Jose State, Stanford, and Utah State. Stanford named him their "Coach of the Century" when the university celebrated its centennial anniversary of football in 1991.
Ralston passed away Sept. 14, 2019. He was 92 and the oldest living College Football Hall of Fame coach at the time of his passing.
