College Football Hall of Fame
"Buck" Shaw built the finest coaching record in Santa Clara
football history. The former Notre Dame tackle joined the
Bronco staff in 1929 as line coach, a position he held until
assuming the head coaching slot in 1936. Over the next seven
seasons, Shaw's teams compiled a record of 47-10-4,
including a span of 16 consecutive wins. The 1937 Santa
Clara crew allowed only nine points over a nine-game
campaign. Highlighting Shaw's tenure at the Bronco helm were
a pair of victories over heavily-favored Louisiana State
elevens, 21-14, in 1937, and 6-0, in 1938. Prior to his days
at Santa Clara, Shaw had been head coach at North Carolina
State (1924) and Nevada (1925-1928). He coached one
year at California (1945) after departing from Santa Clara, but
left the collegiate ranks in 1946 to become head coach of the
San Francisco 49ers, a position he held until 1954. His 49er
teams logged a 33-25-2 record before Shaw returned to the
college game as coach at the newly-established U.S. Air Force
Academy. However, Shaw could not stay away from
professional ball, and in 1958, took over the Philadelphia
Eagles, guiding them to the NFL Championship in 1960.
