| Last living Vols starter on 1939 team dies |
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| Written by Admin |
| Thursday, 30 August 2007 10:50 |
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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -Leonard Coffman, the last surviving starter on Tennessee's 1939 football team coached by Robert Neyland, died Thursday, the school announced. He was 92. Coffman, a fullback who was born in Middlesboro, Ky., died in his adopted hometown of Greeneville. He played on the undefeated 1938 team that won a national championship and on the 1939 team that didn't allow a single point until losing to USC 14-0 in the Rose Bowl. The university credited Coffman with being a pioneer of the now-standard dive play for short yardage, leaping headfirst over a low-hitting defensive line. He successfully used it twice for a pair of touchdowns in a 13-0 win over Alabama in 1938. Coffman became a high school coach and administrator in Greeneville, about 65 miles east of Knoxville. Funeral services were set for next Wednesday at 8 p.m. in Greeneville's Cumberland Presbyterian Church. |
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