Bob Scott, a member of the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame and the legendary men’s lacrosse coach at Johns Hopkins University, died on Thursday, September 15 in Towson, Maryland at the age of 86.
During his 20-year tenure as head coach for lacrosse at Hopkins, Scott guided the Blue Jays to seven national championships, including the school’s first NCAA Championship in his final season on the sideline in 1974. He compiled a 158-55-1 overall record, and had 42 players earn first-team All-America recognition during his career. Additionally, Scott was awarded the F. Morris Touchstone Award as the national coach of the year in 1965, 1968 and 1972.
Scott transitioned to a role as Johns Hopkins’ director of athletics in 1973 and served in that role until he retired in 1995. He spent more than 46 years associated with the school since first arriving on the Homewood campus as an undergraduate. At various points during his career at Hopkins he also coached football, basketball, wrestling and soccer.
Known to his legion of friends and fans simply as "Scotty," he also authored Lacrosse: Technique and Tradition, the fastest-selling book on lacrosse in history.
In a statement released by Johns Hopkins, current men’s lacrosse head coach Dave Pietramala said, “Bob Scott represented all that is good about coaching and athletics. Few others have touched the lives of so many and Johns Hopkins would not be the place it is today without Bob Scott; we’ve lost one of the truly special ones.”
Scott first came to Johns Hopkins in the fall of 1948, following an outstanding athletic career at Baltimore’s Forest Park High School. He excelled in football and lacrosse at Homewood, and served as the captain for both sports.
In 1952, he earned honorable mention All-America honors and was chosen captain of the South All-Stars in that year’s North-South Lacrosse Classic. As an undergraduate, he was president of the H-club, the lettermen’s organization; was elected to membership in Omicron Delta Kappa, an honorary leadership fraternity, and received the Penniman Award for outstanding play as a midfielder. In recognition of his outstanding student leadership, the University presented him the Barton Cup.
After graduating from Johns Hopkins, Scott entered the U.S. Army, and was stationed in Fort Benning, Georgia. He rose to the position of instructor in the Ranger Department. After serving for two years, Scott returned to Homewood as the men’s lacrosse coach – and didn’t leave until retiring four decades later.
“Scotty started at the top in the most storied program in lacrosse, and he delivered in a way that made him a Lacrosse Hall of Famer,” said longtime friend Bill Tanton. “More than that, through all the years, starting as a player and continuing in whatever position he held, he was an exemplary leader and man. Coaches and even players at other colleges around the country were fully aware of that.”
“He was as fine a human being as I’ve ever known in my 72 years,” said Dick Edell, who battled Hopkins many times in his role as head lacrosse coach at Army West Point and the University of Maryland.
A former member of the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Executive Committee, and treasurer of the United States Lacrosse Coaches Association, Scott was additionally a member of the NCAA Rules Committee and All-American Committee.
Scott was inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1976 and the Johns Hopkins University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994. He was also the recipient of the 2013 Spirit of Tewaaraton Award.
Scott was preceded in death by his wife of 55 years, Margo, who passed away in 2014. He is survived by two daughters, Susan Bracken and her husband Michael, and Nancy Mohler and her husband Mike, and four grandchildren: Scott and Drew Bracken, and Hannah and Michael Mohler.
