The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Dudley DeGroot

Followed Berl Huffman. Dudley DeGroot held New Mexico at Regional Program IV for 3 seasons.

The journeyman
26–26
1948–1952 · 2 stints
West VirginiaNew Mexico
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Career arc

His real stature score, season by season, across every program he’s coached — so a stretch that stays in one tier the whole way can still climb or sink on the line, not just flatten out. Node color marks the tier reached. Which program a stretch belongs to is carried by the shaded lane behind it.

Stature score reached, by season of his head-coaching careerWEST VIRGINIANEW MEXICORegional Programthe building-block levelWest Virginia, 1948: 9-3, Regional Program II1948West Virginia, 1949: 4-6, Regional Program II1949+2.4New Mexico, 1950: 2-8, Regional Program IV1950New Mexico, 1951: 4-7, Regional Program V1951New Mexico, 1952: 7-2, Regional Program IV1952-1.6One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached Regional Program in his 1st career season — faster than 20% of the 925 FBS coaches who have ever reached Regional Program (rank #1 of 925 by seasons-to-arrival).

West Virginia, 2 seasons
+2.4
Regional Program II → Regional Program II.
New Mexico, 3 seasons
−1.6
Regional Program IV → Regional Program IV.

The big-game ledger

How he does in the games that matter most — rivalry record, performance broken out by real opponent tier, one-score games, and his toughest historical matchup.

3–2 against his rivals. Just 1–2 against Bowden Wyatt.

Rivalry record
3–2
60.0% · 2 rivals
One-score games
7–5–1
53.8% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
0–1
0.0%
Rivalry ledger
New Mexico State3–0100%
Pittsburgh0–20%
The toughest matchup
vs. Bowden Wyatt1–2
3 meetings, 1950–1952
’50 L’51 L’52 W
33% win rate across a real, 3-meeting series — short of the bar this site uses before badging a series “Nemesis.” Shown here as the toughest matchup on record, not an algorithmic crown.
Performance by opponent class
Blue Blood
0–1 0.0%
Power Program
0–2 0.0%
National Program
1–6 14.3%
Regional Program
14–13 51.9%

Coaching career

1950–1952
New Mexicocaretaker
Regional Program IV → Regional Program IV
Dudley DeGroot held New Mexico at Regional Program IV for 3 seasons.

17th-best New Mexico tenure of 22 by the numbers.

Followed Berl Huffman (1947–1949) · succeeded by Robert Titchenal (1953–1955).

13–17
1948–1949
West Virginiacaretaker
Regional Program II → Regional Program II
Dudley DeGroot held West Virginia at Regional Program II for 2 seasons.

14th-best West Virginia tenure of 16 by the numbers.

Followed Bill Kern (1940–1947) · succeeded by Art Lewis (1950–1959).

13–9