Biographical details | |
---|---|
Born | Spokane, Washington, U.S. | March 29, 1904
Died | February 24, 1989 Spokane, Washington, U.S. | (aged 84)
Alma mater | Gonzaga University, 1929 |
Playing career | |
Football | |
1923–1926 | Gonzaga |
Position(s) | Quarterback |
Coaching career ( HC unless noted) | |
Basketball | |
1933–1942 | Gonzaga |
1946–1949 | Gonzaga |
Administrative career ( AD unless noted) | |
1939–1942 | Gonzaga |
1946–1949 | Gonzaga |
Claude F. McGrath (March 29, 1904 – February 24, 1989) [1] was a college basketball coach and athletic director at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington. He was the head coach of the Bulldogs from 1933 [2] to 1942. McGrath served in the military during World War II and returned to Gonzaga in 1946 for three seasons. [3] His overall record as head coach stands at 129-133 (.492). [4]
Born in Spokane in 1904, McGrath was a four-sport athlete at North Central High School and graduated in 1923. [2] He initially attended the University of Idaho in Moscow to play college football as a quarterback for the Vandals under head coach Matty Mathews. [5] He soon returned to Spokane and enrolled at Gonzaga, where he played football under head coaches Gus Dorais and Clipper Smith. [5]
McGrath graduated in 1929 and taught at Mead High School, where he became principal and later the superintendent of the school district. [6] He coached multiple sports at both Mead High and Gonzaga University and became the Bulldogs' head basketball coach in 1933 [2] [7] [8] and added the duties of athletic director in 1939. [9] McGrath spent over three years in the U.S. Army Air Forces as an athletic trainer in the Second Air Force and was discharged as a major. He returned to Gonzaga in 1946, then resigned both positions after three seasons in April 1949 to work in the private sector. [3]
McGrath later became a purchasing agent for the Spokane school district in the late 1950s, [10] and retired in 1969. He died in Spokane at age 84 in February 1989. [6]