1919–1921 Washington 1936–1942 Washington Position Halfback | 1922–1928 or 1929 Washington (asst.) Died 14 February 1978 | |
Born February 9, 1900 ( 1900-02-09 ) Alma mater Washington Huskies football | ||
Ray L. Eckmann (February 9, 1900 – February 14, 1978) is a former Seattle-area American football player, athletics administrator, businessman, and politician.
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Early years
Eckmann attended Lincoln High School in Seattle, Washington where he was a star quarterback. As of 2015, he still holds multiple single-game touchdown and scoring state records.
College career
Eckmann played halfback at the University of Washington. He was a three-time letterman and a team captain for the 1921 team which he led in scoring. He also starred for the track team as a sprinter. His football exploits earned him a nomination for the national Helms Football Hall of Fame.
Coaching and administration
After college, he returned to Washington as an assistant football coach from 1922 until 1928. Eckmann became both the Washington athletic director and director of student affairs in 1936. In 1941, he terminated football coach James Phelan who had compiled a 65–37–9 record from 1930 to 1941, to be replaced with Ralph Welch.
Based on his collegiate athletic prowess, Eckmann was appointed in January 1942 to an advisory committee for the Navy Aeronautic V-5 Preflight Schools. He left Washington in 1942 and focused on his clothing business.
Business
In 1918, Carroll Martin opened a men's haberdashery on the Ave in Seattle's University District. Ray Eckmann partnered with Martin four years later on the renamed "Martin & Eckmann's" which sustained over 50 years.
Civics and politics
Eckmann served as the 1950 Seafair prime minister. In 1964, Eckmann was appointed to the Seattle City Council by James d'Orma Braman, who left his councilman position to become mayor. Eckmann remained on the council until 1967, but was briefly reappointed in 1970 due to the death of Myrtle Edwards. His obituary in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer recognized his involvement with "the Shrine, the University Rotary Club, the University Commercial Club, Seafair, the American Automobile Association, the Seattle Yacht Club, and Seattle General Hospital." and "half a century as one of Seattle's most prominent citizens."
Awards
In 1982, Eckmann was inducted into the Washington Huskies hall of fame.
Family
Eckmann and wife Dorothy had two sons, Robert Ray Eckmann and James Eckmann. Robert also played football and basketball at Washington.