Johnny Orr (basketball, born 1927)

For other people named John Orr, see John Orr (disambiguation).

Johnny Orr

Orr from 1975 Michiganensian
Personal information
Born	(1927-06-10)June 10, 1927
Died	December 30, 2013(2013-12-30) (aged 86) Des Moines, Iowa, U.S.
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight	195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High school	Taylorville (Taylorville, Illinois)
College	Illinois (1944–1945) Beloit (1946–1949)
BAA draft	1949: 2nd round, 20th overall pick
Selected by the St. Louis Bombers
Playing career	1949–1950
Position	Forward
Number	12, 9
Coaching career	1951–1994
Career history
As player:
1949–1950	St. Louis Bombers
1950	Waterloo Hawks
As coach:
1951–1959	Dubuque HS
1959–1963	Wisconsin (assistant)
1963–1966	UMass
1967–1968	Michigan (assistant)
1968–1980	Michigan
1980–1994	Iowa State
Career highlights and awards
2× Big Ten regular season champion (1974, 1977) Henry Iba Award (1976) NABC Coach of the Year (1976) 2× Big Ten Coach of the Year (1974, 1977) 100 Legends of the IHSA Boys Basketball Tournament (2007)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference

John Michael Orr (June 10, 1927 – December 30, 2013) was an American basketball player and coach, best known as the head coach of men's basketball at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, University of Michigan, and at Iowa State University. In the 1975–76 season, Orr was named National Coach of the Year.

Early life and playing career

Orr was born in Taylorville, Illinois or Yale, Kansas^[1][2][3][4] and grew up in Taylorville during the Great Depression. Orr attended Taylorville High School under coach Dolph Stanley and in his senior year (1944) led the Tornadoes to a state championship and a 45–0 record, the first team to ever finish a season undefeated in the Illinois High School Association's history.^[5] In 2007, Orr was voted one of the "100 Legends of the IHSA Boys Basketball Tournament," recognizing his superior performance in his appearance in the tournament.^[6] After high school Orr went to the University of Illinois and was the youngest freshman to compete in three sports. After joining the United States Navy for the end of World War II, Orr returned to the college game at Beloit College. This reunited him with his high school coach Dolph Stanley, who had come to Beloit College as athletic director, head basketball and football coach.^[4]

Orr was initially drafted in 1948 BAA draft by the Minneapolis Lakers of the Basketball Association of America, the precursor to the NBA. Orr did not play for the Lakers, and was again drafted the next year in the 2nd round by the St. Louis Bombers. In 1950, Orr played 21 games for the Bombers before moving to the Waterloo Hawks for 13 more games.

Coaching career

In 1951, Orr was named as head coach at Dubuque Senior High School in Dubuque, Iowa, holding the position until 1959.^[4] In 1959, Orr joined the collegiate ranks, becoming an assistant coach at Wisconsin.

UMass

Orr attained his first collegiate head coaching position in 1963 at UMass, where he guided the team to 15–9 record in 1963–64.^[4]

Michigan

After three seasons at UMass, Orr moved to the University of Michigan in 1967, serving as an assistant under head coach Dave Strack for one season.

In 1968 Orr was named head coach at Michigan, a position he would hold for 12 seasons. His 1973–74 team made it to the Elite Eight in the NCAA tournament and Orr was named Big Ten Coach of the Year. In 1976, Michigan was the NCAA tournament runner-up (to the undefeated Indiana Hoosiers) and Orr was named National Coach of the Year. His 209 wins were the most in Michigan history until John Beilein passed him in 2017.

Iowa State

Orr left Michigan to become the head coach of the Iowa State Cyclones in 1980, a program that had only one postseason appearance of any sort in school history, when it went to the Final Four in 1944. Orr would go on lead the team to six NCAA Tournaments in 14 seasons. The surprise move to Iowa State in 1980 came about when the Iowa State athletic director called to inquire about Orr's assistant, Bill Frieder. When Orr learned how much Iowa State was willing to pay Frieder, Orr negotiated the job for himself. Iowa State initially paid Orr $45,000 annually compared to his $33,665 salary at Michigan.^[7] Frieder then would succeed Orr at Michigan. In Orr's fourth season in Ames, Orr led the Cyclones to the 1984 NIT–only the second postseason appearance of any sort in school history. The following season, he led the Cyclones to their first NCAA Tournament berth in 40 years. The following season, Orr's Cyclones reached the Sweet Sixteen of the 1986 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament with a second round victory over the number five ranked team in the nation, Michigan. Orr claims this was the greatest victory of his career. Orr led Iowa State to four more NCAA tournament berths before retiring from Iowa State in 1994. He remains the winningest coach in Iowa State history with 218 wins.

Hilton Coliseum

Orr's Iowa State teams won 76.7% of their games at Hilton Coliseum. Under Orr, attendance numbers more than doubled from the 6,000 fan average that preceded his arrival. The school band would play the theme from The Tonight Show as Orr entered the arena floor before each game and Orr would give a fist pump to the Iowa State crowd. Orr coached Iowa State to 20 victories over teams ranked in the top 25 at Hilton, with writers coining the term “Hilton Magic.” ^[7]

Currently at Hilton Coliseum, Iowa State donors have access to "Johnny's", a sports bar themed space on the east side of Hilton Coliseum. There are multiple flat-screen TVs as well as food served before the game and snacks served at halftime. Alcoholic beverages are served at the bars. A statue of Johnny Orr sits at the entrance along with cases full of memorabilia from his tenure at Iowa State.

Death

Orr died on December 30, 2013, at the age of 86 at Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines.^[8][9] Orr suffered from complications from a head injury from a fall at home.^[10]

Awards and honors

Taylorville High School Hall of Fame (athlete) ^[11]

1969 – Beloit College Hall of Fame (athlete) ^[12]

1973 – National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Hall Of Fame (Athlete) ^[13]

1973 – Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame ^[14]

1973–1974 – Big Ten Coach of the Year^[15]

1975–1976 – National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) National Coach of the Year ^[16]

1992 – Dubuque Senior High School Hall of Fame ^[17]

2001 – Iowa State University Hall of Fame ^[18]

2004 – Des Moines Register Hall of Fame ^[19]

2011 – Statue erected in Hilton Coliseum^[20]

2011– University of Michigan Hall of Honor^[21]

Career statistics

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

Playing career

NBA

Source^[22]

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	FG%	FT%	APG	PPG
1949–50	St. Louis	21	.362	.857	.3	1.9
1949–50	Waterloo	13	.324	.857	1.1	4.0
Career		34	.339	.857	.6	2.7

Head coaching record

College

Statistics overview

Season	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason
UMass Redmen (Yankee Conference) (1963–1966)
1963–64	UMass	15–9	5–5	3rd
1964–65	UMass	13–11	8–2	2nd
1965–66	UMass	11–13	5–5	3rd
UMass:		39–33	18–12
Michigan Wolverines (Big Ten Conference) (1968–1980)
1968–69	Michigan	13–11	7–7	4th
1969–70	Michigan	10–14	5–9	T–6th
1970–71	Michigan	19–7	12–2	2nd	NIT Quarterfinal
1971–72	Michigan	14–10	9–5	T–3rd
1972–73	Michigan	13–11	6–8	T–6th
1973–74	Michigan	22–5	12–2	T–1st	NCAA Division I Elite Eight
1974–75	Michigan	19–8	12–6	2nd	NCAA Division I First Round
1975–76	Michigan	25–7	14–4	2nd	NCAA Division I Runner-up
1976–77	Michigan	26–4	16–2	1st	NCAA Division I Elite Eight
1977–78	Michigan	16–11	11–7	T–4th
1978–79	Michigan	15–12	8–10	6th
1979–80	Michigan	17–13	8–10	T–6th	NIT Third Round
Michigan:		209–113	120–72
Iowa State Cyclones (Big Eight Conference) (1980–1994)
1980–81	Iowa State	9–18	2–12	8th
1981–82	Iowa State	10–17	5–9	6th
1982–83	Iowa State	13–15	5–9	5th
1983–84	Iowa State	16–13	6–8	T–4th	NIT First Round
1984–85	Iowa State	21–13	7–7	T–3rd	NCAA Division I First Round
1985–86	Iowa State	22–11	9–5	2nd	NCAA Division I Sweet 16
1986–87	Iowa State	13–15	5–9	6th
1987–88	Iowa State	20–12	6–8	5th	NCAA Division I First Round
1988–89	Iowa State	17–12	7–7	T–4th	NCAA Division I First Round
1989–90	Iowa State	10–18	4–10	6th
1990–91	Iowa State	12–19	6–8	5th
1991–92	Iowa State	21–13	5–9	T–6th	NCAA Division I Second Round
1992–93	Iowa State	20–11	8–6	T–2nd	NCAA Division I First Round
1993–94	Iowa State	14–13	4–10	T–6th
Iowa State:		218–200	79–117
Total:		466–346
National champion         Postseason invitational champion         Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion       Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion       Conference tournament champion

See also

• List of NCAA Division I Men's Final Four appearances by coach

References

1. "John Michael Orr Obituary". Legacy.com. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
2. "Johnny Orr remembered: Six standout players, by the numbers, quotes in his career, his heritage, roots and other notes". The Des Moines Register. December 31, 2013. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
3. "Former Iowa State basketball coach Johnny Orr dies". KansasCity.com. The Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 1, 2014. Retrieved January 1, 2014.
4. Brown, Rick (December 31, 2013). "Former Iowa State, Michigan coach Johnny Orr dies at 86". USAToday.com. Retrieved January 1, 2014.
5. "Records & History". www.ihsa.org. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
6. "IHSA Announces 100 Legends of Boys Basketball Tournament". www.ihsa.org. April 12, 2006. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
7. Yardley, William (January 2, 2014). "Johnny Orr, Coach Who Turned Iowa State Into Contender, Dies at 86". The New York Times.
8. Hansen, Marc (December 31, 2013). "Hansen: Johnny Orr was more than a winning basketball coach". Des Moines Register. Archived from the original on December 31, 2013. Retrieved December 31, 2013.
9. "Legendary Iowa State coach Johnny Orr dies". KETV. December 31, 2013. Retrieved December 31, 2013.
10. Peterson, Randy (January 3, 2014). "Goodbye, Coach". The Des Moines Register. p. A1. Retrieved December 24, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Orr, Johnny – Taylorville High School Sports Hall of Fame". sites.google.com.
12. "Beloit College – Official Athletics Website". Beloit College.
13. "Hall of Fame – National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics". naiahonors.com.
14. "Basketball Museum of Illinois – John Orr". basketballmuseumofillinois.com.
15. "Michigan coach Johnny Orr passes away". December 31, 2013.
16. "JOHNNY ORR, IOWA STATE COACHING LEGEND, PASSES AT 86" (PDF). NABC.
17. "Sports Hall of Fame – 1992". Senior High School.
18. "Johnny Orr – Hall of Fame Class of 2001". Iowa State University Athletics.
19. "Register Sports Hall of Fame Database - Johnny Orr - DesMoinesRegister.com". data.desmoinesregister.com.
20. "Johnny Orr statue unveiled at ISU". The Des Moines Register. January 12, 2011. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
21. "University of Michigan Hall of Honor". Archived from the original on October 1, 2011. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
22. "Johnny Orr". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved March 24, 2023.