Joe Curtis
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| Sport(s) | Football |
|---|---|
| Biographical details | |
| Born |
November 14, 1882 Pueblo, Colorado |
| Died | January 29, 1972 (aged 89) Kansas City, Missouri |
| Playing career | |
| 1903–1906 | Michigan |
| Position(s) | Tackle |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1907–1908 | Tulane |
| 1909 | Colorado Mines |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 14–5 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Awards | |
| 2x Second-team All-American (1904–1905) 3x First-team All-Western (1904–1906) |
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John Spencer "Big Joe" Curtis (November 14, 1882 – January 29, 1972) was an American football player and coach. While playing for the University of Michigan, he was selected as a first-team All-Western tackle three consecutive years from 1904 to 1906 and as an All-American in 1904 and 1905. In his four seasons as the starting left tackle for the Michigan Wolverines, the team compiled a record of 37–2–1, won two national championships and outscored opponents by a combined total of 1,699 to 60. Curtis later served as the head football coach at Tulane University from 1907 to 1908 and at the School of Mines in Golden, Colorado in 1909.
A native of Pueblo, Colorado, Curtis played three years of high school football in Colorado. He enrolled at the University of Michigan in 1903 to play football for Fielding H. Yost's famous "Point-a-Minute" football teams. He played tackle for the Michigan Wolverines from 1903 to 1906.
As a freshman in 1903, Curtis was selected by Yost to play on the varsity football team. He started all twelve games at left tackle for the Michigan team that finished the season with a record of 11–0–1, outscored opponents 565–6, and has been retrospectively declared National Champions.
In 1904, Curtis started all ten games at left tackle for the Michigan football team that compiled a 10–0 record, outscored opponents 567–22, and has been retrospectively declared national champions. At the end of the 1904 season, Curtis was selected as a first-team All-Western tackle by the Chicago Daily News, Chicago Journal, Chicago Post and Chicago News. The Chicago Tribune also selected Curtis for its 1904 All-Western team and noted: "Curtis of Michigan has been the star tackle of the year. Weighing 230 pounds, strong, active, he has outplayed every opponent. Seldom has he been 'boxed in' by end of tackle plays, and in getting down the field under punts he has often preceded his ends. On the offense he has developed into one of the best ground gainers on Yost's eleven, and has been most effective in disposing of his opponents when his team has had possession of the ball."
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