Dick Rutherford

Rutherford was born April 11, 1891, in Beatrice, Nebraska. He attended Beatrice High School in that town. A stellar athlete, Rutherford was the star fullback for the Beatrice football team. He also made his mark on the hardwood, with the forward sinking a record 14 field goals in a January 1912 basketball game against Marysville, Kansas. Rutherford attended the University of Nebraska, where he earned a total of 8 athletic letters — 3 in football, 3 in basketball, and 2 in wrestling. Rutherford, a halfback, was touted for the Nebraska head coaching position following the 1915 season, as a potential successor to Jumbo Stiehm, but he ultimately was not offered the job. Rutherford graduated from Nebraska in 1916 and spent the 1917 season at Nebraska as an assistant coach. ==Coaching career==

Washington University (Missouri) Rutherford began his coaching career in earnest in 1917 with the Washington University Pikers of the Missouri Valley Conference. In addition to serving as director of physical education at the school, Resignation After four seasons at the helm of the OAC football team, during which time he managed no more than two wins and a tie for third place in the Northwest Conference, pressure behind the scenes grew for a change of coaches. On Thursday, January 24, 1924, on the heels of a junket to Hawaii with his team to play two exhibition games, a special meeting of the OAC board of regents was held, at which Rutherford submitted his resignation. At the time of his clearly forced resignation, Rutherford expressed appreciation to the student body for their loyalty. "I want it distinctly understood that I am quitting OAC with nothing but the kindest feeling for the institution and the students that have so wholeheartedly given me their loyal support," he said. He remained mum about the situation surrounding his exit, declaring "I have nothing to say with regard to the causes which led to my resignation. Some things will never be known, even after I leave the institution. But I do want to say that, while I may have been disappointed at the turns things have taken at times, I still love old OAC and will cherish the friendships I have formed through the years that come." ==Later life and death==

After leaving Corvallis, Rutherford moved to Long Beach, California, where he became director of the Pacific Coast Club. After a time, he moved to Fallbrook, California, the self-proclaimed "Avocado Capital of the World," where he became an avocado farmer. His body was interred at Paradise Cemetery. ==Head coaching record==