C. A. Clingenpeel

Clarence A. Clingenpeel (December 12, 1886 – December 2, 1975) was an American athlete and sports coach. He was best known for his time at Central College (now known as Central Methodist University), where he played several sports and later coached from 1914 to 1917, and again from 1925 to 1941. Clingenpeel also coached football at Austin College for one year and for seven years he coached football and basketball at Kemper Military School. He was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame in 1958 and later into the Central Methodist Hall of Fame in 1983.

Early life and education Clingenpeel was born on December 12, 1886, in Delphos, Kansas. He attended Central College (now known as Central Methodist University) in Fayette, Missouri, and played several sports there for four years, including football, baseball, and basketball, He led the football team to a championship in 1911 while playing quarterback and was described in a 1925 article as being widely regarded as the "greatest catcher Central ever had." Coaching career

In 1914, Clingenpeel was hired as the new athletic director at his alma mater. and baseball coach. In his first season as football coach, Clingenpeel led the team to "distinct success" after they had gone through "disappointment" in the past several years, compiling an overall record of 4–3, with wins over Tarkio (21–3), William Jewell (7–0), Kirksville (12–0), and Westminster (53–0), along with losses against Warrensburg (20–7), Drury (35–0), and Missouri Wesleyan (20–7), good enough for a second-place finish in the conference.

After the 1916–17 sports season, Clingenpeel left Central to become the athletic director at Austin College in Sherman, Texas. The Kansas City Star recapped his three-year stint at the school: Clingenpeel leaves the Missouri conference, in which he has been a fine factor, with a reputation for excellent sportsmanship and proved coaching ability. "Cling" was graduate coach and director at Central for several years and during his regime the Fayette College more than held its own in state conference circles. In addition to the success that crowned his coaching efforts Clingenpeel's teams had an excellent reputation for clean, sportsmanlike play. He resigned in 1918 to become football coach at Kemper Military School. and was for a time their athletic director. In his first year as basketball coach, he turned out an "exceptional" team which won the conference championship in a "romp." Clingenpeel also led the football team to within a half-game of the championship in 1919. The next year, they posted one of the best high school seasons ever in that section of the country, according to The Kansas City Star. The Kemper team, although from a high school, played against colleges in Kansas and Missouri and was able to tie several of them.

Clingenpeel continued serving at Kemper until 1925, when he returned to his alma mater, Central College. He became athletic director, football coach, track and field coach, He was correct in his prediction,

Clingenpeel led both the football and basketball teams to the conference championships in 1928. He also led the basketball team to a championship, and became coach of the baseball team around this time. In 1931–32, he led the basketball team to another conference championship, and it was written in The Ragout that championships "have come to be customary instead of occasional acquisitions." They did not win it in 1933–34, the first time in four years. Clingenpeel led the football team in 1934 to their first conference championship since 1930. He continued coaching the football and basketball teams until 1941, when he had to stop for a year due to an illness. His health returned in 1942; however, when he went back to continue coaching, the school told him that he had been dismissed. The Kansas City Star sports editor wrote that, "There's something wrong somewhere in a case like that," considering that Clingenpeel had served the college for nearly two decades, took a year off from illness, and was then abruptly notified that he had been dismissed after returning to health.

Later life and death After being dismissed from Central, Clingenpeel began serving in the personnel department at Pratt & Whitney. He was named director of field activities for the Missouri State Chamber of Commerce in 1945. Clingenpeel was presented with the Central College Distinguished Alumni Award in 1952. Clingenpeel was posthumously inducted into the Central College Hall of Fame in 1983, as a charter member.

Head coaching record College football

CFB Yearly Record Entry championship = conference year = 1926 name = Central overall = 6–1 (Central initially compiled a record of 5–2 (5–1 in the Missouri College Athletic Union); however, Westminster, the only team to defeat Central in inter-conference play, later forfeited their win due to the use of ineligible players.)