View source for Blanton Collier

{{Short description|American football coach (1906–1983)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Good article}}
{{Infobox Canadian Football League biography
| name = Blanton Collier
| image = Blanton Collier, American football coach, in 1963.jpg
| alt = 
| caption = Collier on the sideline in September 29, [[1963 Cleveland Browns season|1963]].
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1906|7|2}}
| birth_place = [[Millersburg, Kentucky]], U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1983|3|22|1906|7|2}}
| death_place = [[Houston|Houston, Texas]], U.S.
| team = 
| number = 
| status = 
| position1 = Head coach
| height_ft = 
| height_in = 
| weight_lb = 
| college = [[Georgetown Tigers football|Georgetown (KY)]]
| high_school = [[Paris High School (Paris, Kentucky)|Paris (KY)]]
| coaching_years1 = 1928–1943
| coaching_team1 = [[Paris High School (Paris, Kentucky)|Paris HS (KY)]]
| coaching_years2 = 1944–1945
| coaching_team2 = {{nowrap|[[Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football|Great Lakes Navy]] (asst.)}}
| coaching_years3 = 1946–1953
| coaching_team3 = [[Cleveland Browns]] (asst.)
| coaching_years4 = 1954–1961
| coaching_team4 = [[Kentucky Wildcats football|Kentucky]]
| coaching_years5 = 1962
| coaching_team5 = Cleveland Browns (asst.)
| coaching_years6 = 1963–1970
| coaching_team6 = Cleveland Browns
| career_highlights = 
| awards = NFL champion (<!--[[1950 Cleveland Browns season|1950]],-->[[1964 Cleveland Browns season|1964]])<!--<br>AAFC Champion ([[1947 Cleveland Browns season|1947]], [[1948 Cleveland Browns season|1948]])--><br>[[Southeastern Conference|SEC]] Coach of the Year ([[1954 Kentucky Wildcats football team|1954]])
| records = '''Professional''': {{Winning percentage|76|34|2|record=y}}<br>'''College''': {{Winning percentage|41|36|3|record=y}}<br>{{nowrap|'''High school''': {{Winning percentage|73|50|10|record=y}}}}
| module = {{Infobox military person
| embed = yes
| allegiance = {{flagicon|United States}} [[United States of America|United States]]
| branch = [[File:United States Department of the Navy Seal.svg|20px|United States Navy seal]] [[United States Army|U.S. Navy]]
| serviceyears = 1943–1945
| rank = 
| unit =[[Naval Station Great Lakes|Great Lakes Training Station]]
| battles = [[World War II]]
| awards = 
}}
}}
'''Blanton Long Collier''' (July 2, 1906 – March 22, 1983) was an [[American football]] head coach who coached at the [[University of Kentucky]] between 1954 and 1961 and for the [[Cleveland Browns]] in the [[National Football League]] (NFL) between 1963 and 1970. His [[1964 Cleveland Browns season|1964 Browns team]] won the [[1964 NFL Championship Game|NFL championship]] and remains the second-most recent [[Cleveland]] professional sports team to win a title.<ref name=yvincdfc>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=fiJAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=elgMAAAAIBAJ&pg=1696%2C3336209 |work=Youngstown Vindicator |location=(Ohio) |agency=Associated Press |title=Collier dies, fine coach |date=March 24, 1983 |page=30 }}</ref>

Collier grew up in [[Paris, Kentucky]], and attended [[Paris High School (Paris, Kentucky)|Paris High School]]. After graduating from [[Georgetown College (Kentucky)|Georgetown College]], he returned to his old high school to teach and coach sports for 16 years. Collier left the position to join the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] in 1943 during [[World War II]]. At a naval base outside of [[Chicago]], he met [[Paul Brown]], who was coaching a service football team there. After the war, Brown hired Collier as an assistant coach for the Browns, a team under formation in the [[All-America Football Conference]]. After seven years as Brown's top aide, a span over which the Cleveland team won five league championships, Collier took a job as head football coach at Kentucky in 1954. His Kentucky Wildcats teams amassed a 41–36–3 [[winning percentage|win-loss-tie]] record over eight seasons.

Collier was fired after the 1961 season and Brown rehired him as an assistant. [[Art Modell]], the owner of the Browns, then fired Brown in [[1963 Cleveland Browns season|1963]] and promoted Collier to head coach. Under Collier, the Browns reached the NFL championship game four times and won once, in [[1964 NFL Championship Game|1964]]. In eight seasons as a professional football coach with the Browns, they never had a losing season under Collier, who won 69% of his games, one of the [[List of National Football League head coach wins leaders|highest winning percentages]] in NFL history for coaches with at least 100 games coached, which ranks among the top ten ahead of numerous head coaches.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.si.com/nfl/talkoffame/state-your-case/state-your-case-blanton-collier-won-enough-games-to-coach-his-way-into-canton|title=State Your Case: Blanton Collier won enough games to coach his way into Canton|access-date=17 April 2023|magazine=Sports Illustrated|date=March 16, 2020|author=Ron Borges}}</ref> Struggling with hearing loss, Collier retired after the [[1970 Cleveland Browns season|1970]] season, although he remained a scout and quarterbacks coach for several more years. He was diagnosed with [[prostate cancer]] in 1976, and retired to [[Texas]], where he died in 1983.<ref name="srcoldi"/>

Collier was well-liked by players and renowned as a good sportsman and student of the game. The Kentucky chapter of the [[National Football League Players Association|NFL Players Association]] in 2007 established the Blanton Collier Award in his honor. The Paris High School football field is named after him.

==Early life and college career==
Born in [[Millersburg, Kentucky]], to O.H. and Eva (née Long) Collier;{{sfn|Kelber|1992|p=214}} the family moved to nearby [[Paris, Kentucky|Paris]] when Collier was age six.<ref name=yvincdfc/> He attended from [[Paris High School (Paris, Kentucky)|Paris High School]], where he played [[High school football|football]] and [[High school basketball|basketball]],{{sfn|Kelber|1992|p=214}} and worked as a tobacco-picker in the summers during high school.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=67}} After graduating, he enrolled at Kentucky's [[Georgetown College (Kentucky)|Georgetown College]], playing on the football team and earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1927.{{sfn|Kelber|1992|p=214}}{{sfn|Piascik|2007|p=17}}

==High school and assistant coaching career==

Collier went to work at Paris High School in 1928 as a mathematics teacher, and coached several of the school's sports teams.{{sfn|Kelber|1992|p=214}} He got the nickname "George" when he was a teacher because he affectionately called most of his male students "George" and most of his female students "Martha".{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=67}} He married Mary Varder from Paris in 1930, and spent 16 years at the high school before enlisting in the U.S. Navy in 1943 during World War II.{{sfn|Kelber|1992|p=214}} Collier's Paris football team had an overall record of 73–50–10.<ref name="Collier HS records" /> Collier was 37 years old when he joined the military; although he likely could have avoided enlisting because he was a teacher and had a family, he felt serving in the war was his duty.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=68}}

Collier was assigned to the [[Naval Station Great Lakes|Great Lakes Naval Training Station]] north of Chicago, where he was a survival swimming instructor.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=68}} In the Navy, Collier first had trouble with his hearing, a problem that bothered him later in life. He was once called to report to his ship over a loudspeaker, but did not hear it.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=68}} Doctors thought his hearing may have been damaged by teaching swimming in a tidal pool or from practicing on the shooting range.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=68}} "It never became an issue until the Navy, when they figured he had less than 40% of a normal person's hearing," his daughter Kay Collier-Slone said in 1997.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=68}} To compensate for his hearing loss, Collier became an expert lip reader.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=68}}

At Great Lakes, Collier went regularly to observe the practices of the station's service football team, the [[Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football|Great Lakes Bluejackets]].{{sfn|Keim|1999|p=140}} There, he met Paul Brown, who had left a head-coaching job at [[Ohio State University]] to serve in the Navy and lead the Bluejackets team.{{sfn|Piascik|2007|p=17}}{{sfn|Keim|1999|p=140}} Collier took notes and hoped to pick up some football knowledge he could use when he returned to Paris.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=53}} Brown, however, noticed Collier's dedication, and brought him onto his staff as a volunteer assistant.{{sfn|Keim|1999|p=140}}

In 1945, Brown was hired by [[Arthur B. McBride]] as the first coach of the Cleveland Browns, a team under formation in the new All-America Football Conference (AAFC).{{sfn|Piascik|2007|pp=11–12}} Brown hired Collier as a backfield coach for the team, which was set to begin play in 1946.{{sfn|Piascik|2007|p=17}} Initially, his specialty was pass defense, but Brown soon rewarded Collier's extensive football knowledge with a broader assistant coaching assignment.{{sfn|Piascik|2007|p=17}}

Collier served under Brown from 1946 to 1953, a period in which the team won all four titles in the AAFC before moving to the [[National Football League]] (NFL) in 1950.{{sfn|Piascik|2007|pp=64, 81, 121, 145}} That season, the Browns captured the NFL title and then reached but lost the following three championship games.{{sfn|Piascik|2007|pp=181, 233, 253, 281}} Collier's coaching style was the opposite of Brown's; Brown was a disciplinarian whose stern nature and aloofness often brought him into conflict with players, while Collier was a friendly, warm man whose patience and studiousness endeared him to players.{{sfn|Piascik|2007|p=17}} "Everything had to be perfect; he was a stickler on perfection – but at the same time, he had great patience," Browns [[quarterback]] [[Otto Graham]] said.{{sfn|Piascik|2007|p=17}} After the 1946 season, Brown asked Collier to analyze every play run by the offense, and Collier came up with a detailed breakdown of why each play succeeded or failed. This was the genesis of an annual grading system Collier developed to evaluate players' performances. The Browns used it for many years.{{sfn|Keim|1999|pp=140–141}}

==University of Kentucky==

When [[Kentucky Wildcats football|University of Kentucky]] head football coach [[Bear Bryant]] left for [[Texas A&M Aggies football|Texas A&M University]] after the 1953 season, Collier accepted an offer to succeed him.{{sfn|Keim|1999|p=141}} He stayed at Kentucky for eight years, a span during which the Wildcats football team had a 41–36–3 record, including a 5–2–1 record against arch rival [[Tennessee Volunteers football|Tennessee]].{{sfn|Kelber|1992|p=214}}<ref name="UK football history page">{{cite web|title=History and Tradition |url=http://www.ukathletics.com/sports/m-footbl/archive/kty-m-footbl-archive.html |publisher=University of Kentucky |access-date=September 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150627065443/http://www.ukathletics.com/sports/m-footbl/archive/kty-m-footbl-archive.html |archive-date=June 27, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Notable wins included a 1954 victory at [[Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football|Georgia Tech]], then ranked 15th in the [[AP Poll]], and defeats of eighth-ranked [[Ole Miss Rebels football|Ole Miss]] in 1955 and 12th-ranked Tennessee in 1957.<ref name="UK beats Georgia Tech">{{cite news|title=Mills Sparks Kentucky Past Georgia Tech|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=3QAqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=hMwEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4896,2512257&dq=kentucky+wildcats+georgia+tech&hl=en|access-date=September 1, 2012|newspaper=Daytona Beach Morning Journal|date=October 24, 1954|agency=Associated Press|location=Atlanta|page=14}}</ref><ref name="Kentucky beats Mississippi">{{cite news|title=Kentucky Gains 21–14 Win Over Mississippi|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=FYoeAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fcsEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2136,3167127&dq=kentucky&hl=en|access-date=September 1, 2012|newspaper=Daytona Beach Morning Journal|date=September 25, 1955|agency=Associated Press|location=Lexington, Ky.|page=9}}</ref><ref name="UK beats Tennessee, 1957">{{cite news|last=Hudson|first=Bill|title=Michaels Sparks Kentucky To 20–6 Victory Over Vols|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=H2tJAAAAIBAJ&sjid=5QoNAAAAIBAJ&pg=2830,3879467&dq=kentucky&hl=en|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130124134642/http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=H2tJAAAAIBAJ&sjid=5QoNAAAAIBAJ&pg=2830,3879467&dq=kentucky&hl=en|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 24, 2013|access-date=September 1, 2012|newspaper=The News and Courier|date=November 24, 1957|agency=Associated Press|location=Lexington, Ky.|page=3D}}</ref> In 1954, Collier was named the coach of the year in the [[Southeastern Conference]].{{sfn|Kelber|1992|p=214}}

Despite a winning record, Collier was fired in January 1962, when he was making [[United States dollar|$]]17,500 per year (about ${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|17500|1962|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).<ref name="Collier fired from UK" /> He was replaced a week later by [[Charlie Bradshaw (football coach)|Charlie Bradshaw]], an assistant to Bear Bryant at [[Alabama Crimson Tide football|Alabama]].<ref name="Bradshaw hired at UK">{{cite news|title=Kentucky Hires Bryant Aide Bradshaw|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=C6VCAAAAIBAJ&sjid=SqsMAAAAIBAJ&pg=6999,444124&dq=blanton+collier&hl=en|access-date=September 1, 2012|newspaper=Middlesboro Daily News|date=January 12, 1962|agency=Associated Press|location=Lexington, Ky.|page=12}}</ref> Bryant had led the Wildcats to appearances in three major bowl games, but Collier never led the Wildcats to a bowl during his tenure. His best record was in his first year, when the team finished 7–2.<ref name="Collier fired from UK">{{cite news|title=Kentucky Gives Collier Gate|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=5VRVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=1z4NAAAAIBAJ&pg=4390,735195&dq=blanton+collier&hl=en|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130124172705/http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=5VRVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=1z4NAAAAIBAJ&pg=4390,735195&dq=blanton+collier&hl=en|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 24, 2013|access-date=August 31, 2012|newspaper=The Miami News|date=January 3, 1962|agency=Associated Press|location=Lexington, Ky.|page=2C}}</ref>

Kentucky's football program was overshadowed by its successful [[Kentucky Wildcats basketball|basketball program]] during Collier's tenure. Collier was also criticized for his poor recruiting skills, a crucial factor for college coaches.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=66}} Many fans wrote the university to complain about him and his staff.<ref name="Collier in SI" /> Still, several future star coaches served as assistants under Collier at Kentucky, including [[Don Shula]], [[Chuck Knox]], [[Howard Schnellenberger]], and [[Bill Arnsparger]].<ref name="Collier in SI">{{cite magazine|title=People|magazine=Sports Illustrated|date=February 4, 1974|volume=40|issue=5|url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1135637/index.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203003548/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1135637/index.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 3, 2013|access-date=November 24, 2012}}</ref><ref name="Collier coaching tree">{{cite web|last=Oremland|first=Brad|title=The NFL Coaching Tree 2008|url=http://www.sports-central.org/sports/2008/02/29/the_nfl_coaching_tree_2008_pt_2.php|publisher=Sports Central|access-date=September 1, 2012|date=February 29, 2008}}</ref> Standout players under Collier included [[All-American]]s [[Lou Michaels]] and Schnellenberger.<ref name="UK football history page" />

==Cleveland Browns==
After losing his job at Kentucky, Collier said he was unsure what he would do next.<ref name="Collier fired from UK" /> "Right now I feel I would like to remain in football if the opportunity presents itself," he said.<ref name="Collier fired from UK" /> Two weeks later, Brown brought him back onto the Cleveland Browns staff as an offensive assistant.<ref name="Collier hired by Brown again">{{cite news|title=Collier And Brown Equally Delighted|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=37BOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=JgEEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1788,4686540&dq=blanton+collier&hl=en|access-date=September 1, 2012|newspaper=Toledo Blade|date=January 16, 1962|agency=Associated Press|location=Cleveland|page=17}}</ref> Collier and Brown had remained close friends during his time at Kentucky. Collier attended the Browns' training camps in Ohio during the summers, and Brown's family visited Collier on occasion in [[Lexington, Kentucky|Lexington]].{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=53}} Collier said he was happy to be back with the Browns, saying it was "like returning home".{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=54}} Brown praised Collier's teaching and called him a "scientific football man" and "one of my closest friends".{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=54}}

By the time Collier rejoined the Browns, the team was in the throes of a transition. Art Modell had bought the club in 1961, and was locked in a bitter power struggle with Brown.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=47–49}} The two men came into conflict over Brown's autocratic coaching style and his failure to notify Modell about personnel decisions. Brown had held almost complete control over football matters for almost two decades, but Modell was not willing to give Brown the free hand that previous owners had given him. Without informing Modell, Brown in 1962 traded away star [[halfback (American football)|halfback]] [[Bobby Mitchell]] for the right to draft [[Ernie Davis]], a back who won the [[Heisman Trophy]] and surpassed [[Jim Brown]]'s rushing records at [[Syracuse University]].{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=50–51}} Davis died of [[leukemia]] before he played a down for the Browns.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=52}} Another source of tension between Paul Brown and Modell was Brown's relationship with Jim Brown, the team's star [[fullback (American football)|fullback]]. Jim Brown grew increasingly independent as he rose to fame. He started a weekly radio show, which grated against Paul Brown's emphasis on discipline and teamwork over individualism. Other players, including quarterback [[Milt Plum]], openly questioned Paul Brown's coaching and his control over the team's play-calling.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=48}}

Brown made some changes as a result of the pressure from his players and Modell, and allowed Collier to put into place a "check-off system" that allowed the quarterback to run several approved alternative plays to the ones Brown called.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=54}} When Collier was praised in the ''Cleveland Press'' for instituting the system successfully, however, Brown put an end to it.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=54}} "The players believed that Paul was upset when Blanton received some good press," former Browns quarterback [[Jim Ninowski]] said in 1997. "Paul just junked Blanton's system, as if to say, 'Hey, I'm running the show now'."{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=54–55}} As Collier grew apart from Brown, he became closer to Modell, who enjoyed discussing football minutiae with him.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=55}}

After a 7–6–1 season in 1962, Modell fired Brown and offered the head-coaching job to Collier.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=59, 64}} Collier told Modell he first needed the blessing of his wife and of Brown, to whom he still felt a sense of loyalty. He called Brown, who told him he had to take the job because he had a family to support.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=65}} Collier accepted a three-year contract that would pay him $35,000 a year (about ${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|35000|1963|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=65}} In contrast with Brown, Collier was almost universally liked by players and other coaches.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=66–67}} He was soft-spoken, which was unusual for a head coach, but he earned the respect of the team with his extensive knowledge and his willingness to give players more freedom than Brown ever did. One significant difference was his approach to play-calling. Like Brown, Collier served as his own play-caller. However, he let [[Frank Ryan (American football)|Frank Ryan]], who replaced Plum as the team's starting quarterback in 1963, change plays at the line of scrimmage, and allowed more flexibility in pass routes and blocking schemes.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=73–75}}

The changes paid off. In 1963, the team finished 10–4, and Jim Brown broke the NFL's single-season rushing record with 1,863 yards.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=73, 77}} Brown was also voted the league's [[Most Valuable Player]].{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=78}} Cleveland, however, finished a game behind the [[New York Giants]], and did not reach the [[1963 NFL Championship Game|championship game]]. The Browns had started out 6–0, but faltered after racial divisions cropped up within the team. Some black players believed white teammates were getting to play ahead of them because of their race.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=78}} Toward the end of the season, Collier met with the team's leaders and told them the racism had to stop. After the season, he traded away players he thought were sowing discord and opened up a dialogue with those who remained to stamp out the tension.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=79}}

===1964 championship===
Cleveland climbed back to the top of the Eastern Conference in 1964 with a 10–3–1 record behind Jim Brown's league-leading 1,446&nbsp;yards of rushing and reached the [[1964 NFL Championship Game|championship game]] against the [[History of the Baltimore Colts|Baltimore Colts]].<ref name="1964 statistics">{{cite web|title=1964 Cleveland Browns Statistics & Players |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/cle/1964.htm |publisher=Pro-Football-Reference.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120412133451/http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/cle/1964.htm |archive-date=April 12, 2012 |access-date=June 15, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Most sportswriters predicted an easy win for the Colts, who led the league in scoring behind quarterback [[Johnny Unitas]] and halfback [[Lenny Moore]]. The Browns' defense, moreover, was suspect. The team gave up 20 more first downs than any other in the league.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=122–124}} The teams, however, had not faced each other for three years. Before the game, Collier and Colts coach Don Shula agreed to give each other full access to video of regular-season games. Ever the student, Collier took full advantage of the opportunity. The Browns had run what was dubbed a "rubber band" pass defense, allowing short throws while trying to prevent big plays. The Colts' top receivers, however, [[Raymond Berry]] and [[Jimmy Orr]], were not fast. They tended to pick apart defenses with short, tactical completions, which led Collier to institute a man-to-man pass defense for the game. This, he figured, would buy more time for the defensive line and force Unitas to scramble — not his forte.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=131–132}}

The strategy worked, and in Cleveland Municipal Stadium two days after [[Christmas]], the Browns beat the Colts 27–0.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=148}} The Browns scored 10 points in the third quarter and a further 17 in the fourth, clinching the team's first title since Otto Graham's departure after the 1955 season.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=150–151}}

===Later Seasons===
The Browns ended with an 11–3 record the following year, and comfortably won the East for the second year in a row.<ref name="1965 statistics">{{cite web|title=1965 Cleveland Browns Statistics & Players |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/cle/1965.htm |publisher=Pro-Football-Reference.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120611034018/http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/cle/1965.htm |archive-date=June 11, 2012 |access-date=June 15, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> That set up a second straight appearance in the [[1965 NFL Championship Game|NFL Championship game]], this time in Green Bay against the Packers. The teams battled it out on a slippery, mucky [[Lambeau Field]] on January 2, 1966. While score was close early on, [[Vince Lombardi]]'s team held the Browns scoreless in the second half, winning 23–12 in an upset on a [[Paul Hornung]] touchdown.{{sfn|Page|2010|pp=206–209}} Despite Jim Brown's retirement after the 1965 season, the Browns had another four consecutive winning seasons and advanced to the NFL championship game in 1968 and 1969 under Collier, but lost both times.<ref name="Browns lose NFL championship, 1968">{{cite news|title=Collier Laments Mistakes, Praises Victors|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lSchAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BWYEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3206,8490215&dq=blanton+collier&hl=en|access-date=September 1, 2012|newspaper=Sarasota Herald-Tribune|date=December 30, 1968|agency=Associated Press|location=Cleveland|page=18}}</ref><ref name="Browns lose 1969 championship">{{cite news|title=Collier Knew Vikes Had It|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=iJtRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2mwDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4836,876960&dq=blanton+collier&hl=en|access-date=September 1, 2012|newspaper=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|date=January 5, 1970|agency=Associated Press|location=St. Paul-Minneapolis|page=24}}</ref>

Plagued by hearing problems, the 64-year-old coach announced his retirement before the end of the 1970 season, which the Browns finished with a 7–7 record.<ref name="Collier retires" /> Collier told Modell that he could no longer hear his players, and it was difficult to read their lips through new face masks that obscured their mouths.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=297}} Modell tried to help by getting Collier to try new hearing aids, and even sent him for [[acupuncture]] treatment, but none of it worked.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|pp=69–70}} Collier struggled during press conferences because he often could not hear what reporters were asking and answered the wrong questions.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=70}} In eight years as coach, Collier led Cleveland to a championship and a 76–34–2 record.<ref name="Collier retires">{{cite news|title=Browns' Blanton Says He's Retiring This Year|newspaper=Rochester Sentinel|date=December 2, 1970}}</ref> [[Nick Skorich]], who came to the Browns as offensive coordinator in 1964, was named as his successor on January 7, 1971.<ref name="Skorich named Browns coach">{{cite news|title=Name Nick Skorich New Browns' Coach|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kA40AAAAIBAJ&sjid=veAIAAAAIBAJ&pg=2732,1969226&dq=blanton+collier&hl=en|access-date=September 1, 2012|newspaper=Bangor Daily News|date=January 8, 1971|agency=Associated Press|location=Cleveland|page=7}}</ref>

==Later life and death==

Collier continued to work with the Browns after he stepped down, serving as a scout and quarterbacks coach until leaving the game for good in 1976.{{sfn|Keim|1999|p=144}} He was the coach of the college team in the 1971 [[College All-Star Game]], a now-defunct matchup between the NFL champion and a selection of the best college players from around the country, replacing former Browns quarterback Otto Graham.<ref name="Collier named all-star coach">{{cite news|title=Collier named all-star coach|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=FStkAAAAIBAJ&sjid=sQkEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1295,3408518&dq=blanton+collier&hl=en|access-date=September 1, 2012|newspaper=Star-News|date=February 20, 1971|agency=United Press International|location=Chicago|page=1C}}</ref> Georgetown College in 1970 awarded him an honorary doctorate of laws degree.{{sfn|Kelber|1992|p=214}}

Collier was diagnosed with [[prostate cancer]] in 1976, and retired to a house on a lake in Texas, where he played golf and visited with friends and family.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=297}} He died of the disease in 1983.<ref name=srcoldi>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=uu0vAAAAIBAJ&sjid=nu4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=7065%2C6933226 |work=Spokesman-Review |location=(Spokane, Washington) |agency=Associated Press |title=Blanton Collier dead of cancer |date=March 29, 1983 |page=18}}</ref> His wife died in 1996 and was buried next to him in Paris, Kentucky.{{sfn|Pluto|1997|p=297}} Collier and his wife had three daughters, Carolyn, Jane, and Kay.<ref name="Collier HS records">{{cite web|title=Paris To Honor Blanton Collier And Delza Maggard At Big Orange Preview |url=http://www.paris.k12.ky.us/Portals/140/District%20Documents/Paris%20to%20honor.pdf |publisher=Paris High School |access-date=September 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/6BEnqNUF7?url=http://www.paris.k12.ky.us/Portals/140/District |archive-date=October 7, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Legacy==

Collier was recognized after his death for his sportsmanship, intelligence, and mild manner. He was inducted into the [[University of Kentucky College of Education]] Hall of Fame in 2001.<ref name="Collier UK HOF">{{cite web|title=Blanton Long Collier (1906–1983) |url=http://www.uky.edu/Education/hofamers/Collier.html |publisher=University of Kentucky |access-date=September 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303185745/http://www.uky.edu/Education/hofamers/Collier.html |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 2007, the Kentucky chapter of the [[National Football League Players Association|NFL Players Association]] established a Blanton Collier Award given annually to a football player or players who excel both on and off the field.<ref name="Collier award">{{cite web|title=The 2012 NFLPA, Kentucky Chapter Blanton Collier Award |url=http://www.coachcolliergroup.org/KY-Chapter-NFLPA-blanton-collier-award.php |publisher=Blanton Collier Sportsmanship Group |access-date=September 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005165434/http://www.coachcolliergroup.org/KY-Chapter-NFLPA-blanton-collier-award.php |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 5, 2011 }}</ref> Past winners include [[Tony Dungy]], Jim Brown, [[Gale Sayers]], and the [[Manning family]]: [[Archie Manning|Archie]], Olivia, Cooper, [[Peyton Manning|Peyton]], and [[Eli Manning|Eli]].<ref name="Collier award" /> A group of former Kentucky players in 2008 started the Blanton Collier Sportsmanship Group, which promotes ethics, education, and integrity in sports.<ref name="Collier group">{{cite web|title=About Us-Blanton Collier Sportsmanship Group, Inc.|url=http://www.coachcolliergroup.org/about-us.php|publisher=Blanton Collier Sportsmanship Group|access-date=September 1, 2012}}</ref> The nonprofit organization now oversees the Blanton Collier Award.<ref name="Collier award" />

The [[Professional Football Researchers Association]] named Collier to the PFRA Hall of Very Good Class of 2009.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.profootballresearchers.com/hall-of-very-good-2009.htm |title=Hall of Very Good Class of 2009 |access-date=November 23, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190312102048/http://www.profootballresearchers.com/hall-of-very-good-2009.htm |archive-date=March 12, 2019 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Collier was inducted into the Kentucky Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016.

The football stadium at Paris High School is named after Collier.<ref name="Collier stadium">{{cite web|title=Blanton Collier Stadium gets makeover |url=http://www.wkyt.com/sports/headlines/Blanton-Colliers-daughters--166072656.html |publisher=WKYT |access-date=September 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160311071436/http://www.wkyt.com/sports/headlines/Blanton-Colliers-daughters--166072656.html |archive-date=March 11, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Head coaching record==
===College===
{{CFB Yearly Record Start | type = coach | team = | conf = | bowl = | poll = no }}
{{CFB Yearly Record Subhead
| name      = [[Kentucky Wildcats football|Kentucky Wildcats]]
| conf      = [[Southeastern Conference]]
| startyear = 1954
| endyear   = 1961
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = 
| year         = [[1954 college football season|1954]]
| name         = [[1954 Kentucky Wildcats football team|Kentucky]]
| overall      = 7–3
| conference   = 5–2
| confstanding = T–3rd
| bowlgame     = 
| bowloutcome  = 
| bcsbowl      = 
| ranking      = no
| ranking2     = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = 
| year         = [[1955 college football season|1955]]
| name         = [[1955 Kentucky Wildcats football team|Kentucky]]
| overall      = 6–3–1
| conference   = 3–3–1
| confstanding = T–7th
| bowlgame     = 
| bowloutcome  = 
| bcsbowl      = 
| ranking      = no
| ranking2     = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = 
| year         = [[1956 college football season|1956]]
| name         = [[1956 Kentucky Wildcats football team|Kentucky]]
| overall      = 6–4
| conference   = 4–4
| confstanding = 6th
| bowlgame     = 
| bowloutcome  = 
| bcsbowl      = 
| ranking      = no
| ranking2     = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = 
| year         = [[1957 college football season|1957]]
| name         = [[1957 Kentucky Wildcats football team|Kentucky]]
| overall      = 3–7
| conference   = 1–7
| confstanding = 12th
| bowlgame     = 
| bowloutcome  = 
| bcsbowl      = 
| ranking      = no
| ranking2     = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = 
| year         = [[1958 college football season|1958]]
| name         = [[1958 Kentucky Wildcats football team|Kentucky]]
| overall      = 5–4–1
| conference   = 3–4–1
| confstanding = T–6th
| bowlgame     = 
| bowloutcome  = 
| bcsbowl      = 
| ranking      = no
| ranking2     = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = 
| year         = [[1959 college football season|1959]]
| name         = [[1959 Kentucky Wildcats football team|Kentucky]]
| overall      = 4–6
| conference   = 1–6
| confstanding = 10th
| bowlgame     = 
| bowloutcome  = 
| bcsbowl      = 
| ranking      = no
| ranking2     = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = 
| year         = [[1960 college football season|1960]]
| name         = [[1960 Kentucky Wildcats football team|Kentucky]]
| overall      = 5–4–1
| conference   = 2–4–1
| confstanding = 9th
| bowlgame     = 
| bowloutcome  = 
| bcsbowl      = 
| ranking      = no
| ranking2     = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = 
| year         = [[1961 college football season|1961]]
| name         = [[1961 Kentucky Wildcats football team|Kentucky]]
| overall      = 5–5
| conference   = 2–4
| confstanding = 8th
| bowlgame     = 
| bowloutcome  = 
| bcsbowl      = 
| ranking      = no
| ranking2     = no
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record Subtotal
| name       = Kentucky
| overall    = 41–36–3
| confrecord = 21–34–3
}}
{{CFB Yearly Record End
| overall  = 41–36–3
| bowls    = no
| poll     = no
| legend   = no
}}

===NFL===
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"|Team !! rowspan="2"|Year !! colspan="5"|Regular Season !! colspan="4"|Post Season
|-
!Won!!Lost!!Ties!!Win %!!Finish!! Won !! Lost !! Win % !! Result
|-
![[1963 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]||[[1963 NFL season|1963]]
||10||4||0||71.4||2nd in Eastern Conference|| – || – || – || –
|-! style="background:#FDE910;"
![[1964 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]||[[1964 NFL season|1964]]
||10||3||1||76.9||'''1st in Eastern Conference'''|| 1 || 0 || 100.0 || <small>'''Beat [[1964 Baltimore Colts season|Baltimore Colts]] in [[1964 NFL Championship Game|NFL Championship game]]'''</small>
|- style="background:#fdd;"
![[1965 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]||[[1965 NFL season|1965]]
||11||3||0||78.6||'''1st in Eastern Conference'''|| 0 || 1 || 0.0 || <Small>'''Lost to [[1965 Green Bay Packers season|Green Bay Packers]] in [[1965 NFL Championship Game|NFL Championship game]]'''</Small>
|- 
![[1966 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]||[[1966 NFL season|1966]]
||9||5||0||64.3||2nd in Eastern Conference|| – || – || – || 
|- style="background:#fdd;" 
![[1967 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]||[[1967 NFL season|1967]]
||9||5||0||64.3||'''1st in Century Division'''|| 0 || 1 || 0.0 || <Small>'''Lost to [[1967 Dallas Cowboys season|Dallas Cowboys]] in Eastern conference championship game'''</Small>
|- style="background:#fdd;"
![[1968 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]||[[1968 NFL season|1968]]
||10||4||0||71.4||'''1st in Century Division'''|| 1 || 1 || 50.0 || <Small>'''Beat [[Dallas Cowboys]] in Eastern Conference championship game. <br>Lost to [[1968 Baltimore Colts season|Baltimore Colts]] in [[1968 NFL Championship Game|NFL Championship game]]'''</Small>
|- style="background:#fdd;"
![[1969 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]||[[1969 NFL season|1969]]
||10||3||1||76.9||'''1st in Century Division'''|| 1 || 1 || 50.0 || <Small>'''Beat [[Dallas Cowboys]] in Eastern Conference championship game. <br>Lost to [[1969 Minnesota Vikings season|Minnesota Vikings]] in [[1969 NFL Championship Game|NFL Championship game]]'''</Small>
|-
![[1970 Cleveland Browns season|CLE]]||[[1970 NFL season|1970]]
||7||7||0||50.0||2nd in AFC Central|| – || – || – ||
|-
! colspan="2"|CLE Total|| 76 || 34 || 2 || 69.1 |||| 3 || 4 || 42.9 ||
|-
! colspan="11"|Source: [https://www.pro-football-reference.com/coaches/CollBl0.htm Pro-Football-Reference]
|-
|}

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography}}
* {{portal-inline|Kentucky}}

==References==

{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

===Bibliography===

{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book|last=Cantor|first=George|year=2008|title=Paul Brown: The Man Who Invented Modern Football|publisher=Triumph Books|location=Chicago|isbn=978-1-57243-725-8}}
* {{cite book|last=Keim|first=John|year=1999|title=Legends by the Lake: The Cleveland Browns at Municipal Stadium|publisher=University of Akron Press|location=Akron, OH|isbn=978-1-884836-47-3}}
* {{cite book|last=Kelber|first=John E.|year= 1992|title=The Kentucky Encyclopedia|publisher=The University Press of Kentucky|location=Lexington, KY|isbn=978-0-813-11772-0}}
* {{cite book|last=Page|first=Joseph S.|year=2010|title=Pro Football Championships Before the Super Bowl: A Year-by-Year History, 1926–1965 |publisher=McFarland|location=Jefferson, NC|isbn=978-0-7864-4809-8}}
* {{cite book|last=Piascik|first=Andy|year=2007|title=The Best Show in Football: The 1946–1955 Cleveland Browns|publisher=Taylor Trade Publishing|location=Lanham, MD|isbn=978-1-58979-571-6}}
* {{cite book|last=Pluto|first=Terry|author-link=Terry Pluto|year=1997|title=Browns Town 1964: Cleveland Browns and the 1964 Championship|publisher=Gray & Company|location=Cleveland|isbn=978-1-886228-72-6}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
* {{Find a Grave}}

{{Kentucky Wildcats football coach navbox}}
{{Cleveland Browns coach navbox}}
 
{{1946 Cleveland Browns}}
{{1947 Cleveland Browns}}
{{1948 Cleveland Browns}}
{{1949 Cleveland Browns}}
{{1950 Cleveland Browns}}
{{1964 Cleveland Browns}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Collier, Blanton}}
[[Category:1906 births]]
[[Category:1983 deaths]]
[[Category:United States Navy personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:Cleveland Browns head coaches]]
[[Category:Cleveland Browns scouts]]
[[Category:Georgetown Tigers football players]]
[[Category:Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football coaches]]
[[Category:Kentucky Wildcats football coaches]]
[[Category:High school football coaches in Kentucky]]
[[Category:People from Paris, Kentucky]]
[[Category:People from Millersburg, Kentucky]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Kentucky]]
[[Category:Deaths from prostate cancer]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in Texas]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Kentucky]]