Harry Ockerman
American football, basketball, and baseball player and coach, college athletics administrator
About Harry Ockerman
Lived 1902 – 1979 (aged 76–77). Harry Ockerman was an American baseball player and basketball coach.
Harry N. Ockerman (December 20, 1902 – September 30, 1979) was an American football, basketball, and baseball player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Bowling Green State University from 1935 to 1940 and at Michigan State Normal College—now known as Eastern Michigan University—from 1949 to 1951, compiling a career college football record of 27–38–9. Ockerman was also the head basketball coach at Michigan State Normal from 1932 to 1935, tallying a mark of 34–16, and the head baseball coach at the school in 1929 and from 1932 to 1934, amassing a record of 18–12.
Head coach Michigan State Normal football In 1951, Ockerman's second, and final, year coaching the MSNC Hurons, the press reported rumors that the football players had been "doped" with novocain to allow them to play through injuries. Joseph McCulloch, in his fourth decade as MSNC's athletic director, denied the allegation, telling reporters, "We want to know who started these rumors."
Late life and death After retiring from coaching, Ockerman owned and operated a calendar and specialty advertising business in Baltimore. He died on September 30, 1979, at Boswell Hospital in Sun City, Arizona.
Head coaching record Football
Basketball
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Important facts
People in Harry Ockerman's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Harry Ockerman's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Harry Ockerman?
American football, basketball, and baseball player and coach, college athletics administrator
When was Harry Ockerman born?
Harry Ockerman was born on 20 December 1902.
When did Harry Ockerman die?
Harry Ockerman died in 1979 in Arizona.
What was Harry Ockerman's occupation?
Harry Ockerman was a baseball player and basketball coach.
What nationality was Harry Ockerman?
Harry Ockerman was American.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Harry Ockerman. https://biography.guide/harry-ockerman/
MLA: "Harry Ockerman." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/harry-ockerman/.
Chicago: "Harry Ockerman." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/harry-ockerman/.
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