Jazz Byrd
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1904 |
| Died | December 9, 1994 (aged 90) Wilmington, Delaware, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1922–1924 | Lincoln (PA) |
| Basketball | |
| c. 1924 | Lincoln (PA) |
| Track | |
| c. 1924 | Lincoln (PA) |
| Position(s) | Running back (football) Guard (basketball) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1926–1929 | Florida A&M |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1926–1930 | Florida A&M |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 3–13–2 |
Franz A. "Jazz" Byrd (c. 1904 – December 9, 1994) was an American college football player and coach and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) employee. He served as the head football coach at Florida A&M University from 1926 to 1929, compiling a record of 3–13–2.
College playing career
Byrd played college football at Lincoln University in Chester County, Pennsylvania, helping the Lions to an 8–0–1 record in 1924 in which they outscored their opponents 306–3.[1]
Byrd was revered by the sportswriters of the Black press of his era and beyond as the greatest open-field runner at Black colleges. His performances in the annual Thanksgiving Day games against Howard University in 1922, 1923, and 1924 were widely covered and celebrated in the African-American press. Byrd was frequently referred to as the equal of Red Grange, the famed University of Illinois running back of the same era.[2]
College coaching career
He served as the head football coach at Florida A&M University from 1926 to 1929.[3]
Later life
Byrd was employed by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), before being named the first African American state income tax collector.[1] He died at the age of 90, on December 9, 1994, at Riverside Extended Pavilion Care in Wilmington, Delaware.[4]
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida A&M Rattlers (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) (1926–1929) | |||||||||
| 1926 | Florida A&M | 1–3 | 1–1 | ||||||
| 1927 | Florida A&M | 2–3 | 0–3 | ||||||
| 1928 | Florida A&M | 0–4 | 0–4 | ||||||
| 1929 | Florida A&M | 0–3–2 | 0–3 | ||||||
| Florida A&M: | 3–13–2 | 1–11 | |||||||
| Total: | 3–13–2 | ||||||||
References
- ^ a b "Franz "Jazz" Byrd". Lincoln Lions. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
- ^ Gaither, Steven J. (January 15, 2015). "The Black Red Grange: Black College Football's Forgotten Legend". HBCU Gameday. Retrieved June 12, 2025.
- ^ "Athletics History". Florida A&M Rattlers. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
- ^ "Frank 'Jazz' Byrd, 90, Lincoln U. star athlete". The News Journal. Wilmington, Delaware. December 13, 1994. p. 22. Retrieved October 28, 2019 – via Newspapers.com .