Taylor Sanford
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 21, 1908[1] Hampton, Virginia,U.S. |
| Died | August 8, 1966(aged 57) Petersburg, Virginia,U.S. |
| Alma mater | Richmond,1929 |
| Playing career | |
| 1925–1929 | Richmond |
| Position(s) | First baseman |
| Coaching career (HCunless noted) | |
| Baseball | |
| 1929–1942 | Hargrave Military Academy |
| 1942–1949 | Randolph–Macon |
| 1951–1955 | Wake Forest |
| Football | |
| 1949–1953, 1955 | Wake Forest(assistant) |
| Administrative career (ADunless noted) | |
| 1942–1949 | Randolph–Macon |
| 1959–1966 | Fort Lee |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 1955 College World Series | |
| Awards | |
| ABCACoach of the Year, 1955 | |
Taylor H. Sanford(November 11, 1908[1]– August 8, 1966) was an Americanbaseballplayer, coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head baseball coach atRandolph–Macon Collegefrom 1942 to 1949 and atWake Forest Universityfrom 1951 to 1955. He led theWake Forest Demon Deacons baseballteam to the1955 College World Serieschampionship. Sanford's Demon Deacons also made up theUnited States national teamat severalPan American Games.
Early life
[edit]Sanford was born to Dr. and Mrs. T. Ryland Sanford inHampton, Virginia.He later attendedHargrave Military Academywhere he was an all-state athlete in football, basketball and baseball. He then enrolled at theUniversity of Richmond.[2]
Playing career
[edit]Sanford was captain of theRichmond Spidersfootball, basketball, and baseball teams, and set school records in the shot put and discus.[3]He then played baseball professionally in the Bi-State and Piedmont leagues while also coaching prep and college teams. He ended his professional career in 1946, having never climbed higher than Class B.
He was listed as ascoutfor theNew York YankeesofMajor League Baseballin 1948.[4]
Coaching career
[edit]Sanford began his coaching career at Hargrave, coaching for thirteen years at the prep school. He became athletic director and coach of the baseball and basketball teams atRandolph–Macon.His teams won a total of five conference championships over his seven years inAshland, Virginia,before moving toWake Forestas freshman football coach. In his second year at Wake Forest, he added baseball to his coaching duties while continuing in various assistant coaching roles with the football team. Most notably, the Deacs won theAtlantic Coast Conferenceand College World Series in 1955.[2][5]
Sanford also headed the Wake Forest team when it was selected as the representativeUnited States national teamat the1951 Pan American Gamesin Buenos Aires, Argentina.[6][7]The Wake Forest team, which was the first U.S. national team to participate in international competition since the1942 Amateur World Series,took the silver medal.
During the College World Series, a rainout forced a game on Sunday, sparking a small controversy at the Baptist school when word reached Wake Forest.[3]This followed word that Sanford would not be kept full-time after the 1956 season and little recognition from the school of his achievement in Omaha. Sanford therefore resigned from Wake Forest on January 31, 1956, citing his "feeling of insecurity" and that he had "no assurance that I will have a job after the current season is over."[5]
Later life and death
[edit]Sanford returned to Virginia after stepping down at Wake Forest, and served as athletic director at Fort Lee. He died on August 8, 1966, inPetersburg, Virginia.[2]In 1977, Sanford was inducted into theVirginia Sports Hall of Fame.
Head coaching record
[edit]| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wake Forest Demon Deacons(Southern Conference)(1951–1953) | |||||||||
| 1951 | Wake Forest | 16–7 | |||||||
| 1952 | Wake Forest | 13–12 | |||||||
| 1953 | Wake Forest | 15–5 | |||||||
| Wake Forest Demon Deacons(Atlantic Coast Conference)(1954–1955) | |||||||||
| 1954 | Wake Forest | 13–9 | 8–7 | 4th | |||||
| 1955 | Wake Forest | 29–7 | 11–3 | 1st | College World Series | ||||
| Wake Forest: | 42–16 | 19–10 | |||||||
| Total: | 86–40 | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
References
[edit]- ^abBaseball Referenceplayer page
- ^abc"Taylor Sanford Dies at 57 in Petersburg".The Free Lance-Star.Fredericksburg, VA. August 9, 1966. p. 5.RetrievedJanuary 27,2013.
- ^abJim Sumner (June 15, 2007)."Looking Back... Wake Forest's College World Series Championship in 1955".theacc.RetrievedJanuary 27,2013.
- ^Spink, J.G. Taylor, ed.,1948 Official Baseball Guide and Record Book.St. Louis:The Sporting News
- ^ab"Taylor Sanford Resigns as Deacs Baseball Coach".Wilmington Morning Star.February 1, 1956. p. 10.RetrievedJanuary 27,2013.
- ^"Wake Forest Accepts Offers To Play In Argentina Test".The News & Observer.Raleigh, North Carolina.AP.February 6, 1951. p. 13.RetrievedDecember 24,2021– via newspapers.
- ^"Demon Deacons In Tie For Second Place".Rocky Mount Telegram.Rocky Mount, North Carolina.AP.March 7, 1951. p. 10.RetrievedDecember 24,2021– via newspapers.
External links
[edit]- Career statistics and player information fromBaseball Reference (Minors)
- 1908 births
- 1966 deaths
- American men's basketball players
- Baseball coaches from Virginia
- Baseball first basemen
- Baseball players from Hampton, Virginia
- Basketball coaches from Virginia
- Basketball players from Virginia
- College men's track and field athletes in the United States
- Danville Leafs players
- Danville-Scholfield Leafs players
- Hargrave Military Academy alumni
- High school baseball coaches in the United States
- Mayodan Millers players
- Minor league baseball managers
- New York Yankees scouts
- Randolph–Macon Yellow Jackets athletic directors
- Randolph–Macon Yellow Jackets baseball coaches
- Randolph–Macon Yellow Jackets football coaches
- Randolph–Macon Yellow Jackets men's basketball coaches
- Richmond Colts players
- Richmond Spiders baseball players
- Richmond Spiders football players
- Richmond Spiders men's basketball players
- Rocky Mount Red Sox players
- Baseball players from Petersburg, Virginia
- Wake Forest Demon Deacons baseball coaches
- Wake Forest Demon Deacons football coaches
- Wilson Tobs players