The Zeitgeist List · coaching

William Spaulding

William Spaulding held UCLA at National Program II for 3 seasons.

15–13
1936–1938 · 1 stint
UCLA
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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 careerUCLANational Programrespectable, streakyRegional Programthe building-block levelUCLA, 1936: 6-3, National Program II1936UCLA, 1937: 2-6, National Program II1937UCLA, 1938: 7-4, National Program II1938+0.0One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached National Program in his 1st career season — faster than 41% of the 675 FBS coaches who have ever reached National Program (rank #1 of 675 by seasons-to-arrival).

UCLA, 3 seasons
+0.0
National Program II → National Program II.

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.

0–2 against his rivals. Winless in 3 tries against Howard Jones.

Rivalry record
0–2–1
0.0% · 1 rival
One-score games
2–5–3
20.0% · margin ≤8
Rivalry ledger
USC0–2–10%
The toughest matchup
vs. Howard Jones0–2–1
3 meetings, 1936–1938
’36 T’37 L’38 L
0% 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
Power Program
3–9 25.0%
National Program
4–4 50.0%
Regional Program
2–0 100.0%

Coaching career

1936–1938
UCLAcaretaker
National Program II
William Spaulding held UCLA at National Program II for 3 seasons.

19th-best UCLA tenure of 20 by the numbers.

Succeeded by Babe Horrell (1939–1944).

15–13