Lou Little
![]() Little in 1926 | |
Position: | Tackle |
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Personal information | |
Born: | Leominster, Massachusetts | December 6, 1893
Died: | May 28, 1979 Delray Beach, Florida | (aged 85)
Career information | |
College: | Penn |
Career history | |
As a player: | |
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As a coach: | |
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Career highlights and awards | |
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Military career | |
Allegiance | ![]() |
Service/ | ![]() |
Years of service | 1917–1918 |
Rank | ![]() |
Unit | ![]() |
Battles/wars | World War I Meuse-Argonne Offensive |
Luigi "Lou Little" Piccolo (December 6, 1893 – May 28, 1979) was an American football player and coach born in Leominster, Massachusetts. After Lou's birth, his father, or perhaps Lou himself, changed his family name to "Little", translating the Italian family name.[1][2] He served as the head coach at Georgetown College, now Georgetown University, from 1924 to 1929 and at Columbia University from 1930 to 1956, compiling a career college football record of 151–128–13. Little played college football as a tackle at the University of Pennsylvania for the 1916 and 1919 seasons and then with the professional football team the Frankford Yellow Jackets from 1920 to 1923. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1960. He appeared as Lu Libble in Jack Kerouac's novel Maggie Cassidy, a fictionalized account of Kerouac's early life.
Playing career and military service[]
Little, who graduated from Worcester Academy, played college football at the University of Pennsylvania. Little gained national attention as a varsity tackle during 1916 season and was named All-American, and again in the 1919 season. Between those years, he served with distinction during World War I with the American Expeditionary Forces in France. Commissioned as a lieutenant, he was promoted to a captain in the 6th Infantry Division. He saw action in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.
Coaching career[]
In 1924, Little accepted the post of head football coach at Georgetown and held the position until 1930, when he resigned to become head football coach at Columbia University. Little was the head coach at Columbia from 1930 to 1956. He was probably best known for two wins: the 1934 Rose Bowl when Columbia beat Stanford, 7–0, and a 21–20 win over Army in 1947 in which the Columbia Lions handed the Cadets their first loss since the 1943 season finale, snapping a 23-game undefeated streak. At Columbia, Little coached future Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Sid Luckman and writer Jack Kerouac, who broke his leg playing in 1940. Other players he coached include Paul Governali, Lou Kusserow, Cliff Montgomery and Bill Swiacki.[3][2]
Personal life[]
Little was married to Loretta Donohue for 50 years. Following his 1956 retirement they lived in Barnstable, Massachusetts and Delray Beach, Florida until her death in 1977. Little died at a nursing home in Delray Beach, Florida on May 28, 1979, at the age of 85.[1]
Head coaching record[]
Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | AP# | |||
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Georgetown Blue and Gray / Hoyas (Independent) (1924–1929) | |||||||||
1924 | Georgetown | 4–4 | |||||||
1925 | Georgetown | 9–1 | |||||||
1926 | Georgetown | 7–2–1 | |||||||
1927 | Georgetown | 8–1 | |||||||
1928 | Georgetown | 8–2 | |||||||
1929 | Georgetown | 5–2–2 | |||||||
Georgetown: | 41–12–3 | ||||||||
Columbia Lions (Independent) (1930–1955) | |||||||||
1930 | Columbia | 5–4 | |||||||
1931 | Columbia | 7–1–1 | |||||||
1932 | Columbia | 7–1–1 | |||||||
1933 | Columbia | 8–1 | W Rose | ||||||
1934 | Columbia | 7–1 | |||||||
1935 | Columbia | 4–4–1 | |||||||
1936 | Columbia | 5–3 | |||||||
1937 | Columbia | 2–5–2 | |||||||
1938 | Columbia | 3–6 | |||||||
1939 | Columbia | 2–4–2 | |||||||
1940 | Columbia | 5–2–2 | 20 | ||||||
1941 | Columbia | 3–5 | |||||||
1942 | Columbia | 3–6 | |||||||
1943 | Columbia | 0–8 | |||||||
1944 | Columbia | 2–6 | |||||||
1945 | Columbia | 8–1 | 20 | ||||||
1946 | Columbia | 6–3 | |||||||
1947 | Columbia | 7–2 | 20 | ||||||
1948 | Columbia | 4–5 | |||||||
1949 | Columbia | 2–7 | |||||||
1950 | Columbia | 4–5 | |||||||
1951 | Columbia | 5–3 | |||||||
1952 | Columbia | 2–6–1 | |||||||
1953 | Columbia | 4–5 | |||||||
1954 | Columbia | 1–8 | |||||||
1955 | Columbia | 1–8 | |||||||
Columbia Lions (Ivy League) (1956) | |||||||||
1956 | Columbia | 3–6 | 2–5 | T–6th | |||||
Columbia: | 110–116–10 | 2–5 | |||||||
Total: | 151–128–13 | ||||||||
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See also[]
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b Wallace, William N. (May 30, 1979). "Lou Little, Columbia's Rose Bowl Coach, Dead at 85; Took Over Team in 1930" (PDF). The New York Times. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Oberweger, Alex (September 20, 2017). "Who Was Lou Little?". Columbia Athletics, Football. Columbia University. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- ^ "Hall of Fam, Lou Little". National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame, Inc. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
External links[]
- Lou Little at the College Football Hall of Fame
- Lou Little at Find a Grave
- 1893 births
- 1979 deaths
- American football tackles
- Buffalo All-Americans players
- Columbia Lions football coaches
- Frankford Yellow Jackets players
- Georgetown Hoyas athletic directors
- Georgetown Hoyas football coaches
- Holmesburg Athletic Club players
- Penn Quakers football players
- Union Club of Phoenixville players
- Union Quakers of Philadelphia players
- College Football Hall of Fame inductees
- Worcester Academy alumni
- United States Army personnel of World War I
- United States Army officers
- People from Leominster, Massachusetts
- Sportspeople from Worcester County, Massachusetts
- People from Palm Beach County, Florida
- Sportspeople from the Miami metropolitan area
- Coaches of American football from Massachusetts
- Players of American football from Massachusetts