Bio – Ross, Cecil Byron “Cebe”

Ross, Cecil B. 1939
Photograph from 1939 Murmurmontis
Ross, Cecil B. 1924
Cebe Ross , WVWC 1924

Born: November 22, 1901 (Selbyville, Upshur, WV)

Died: April 2, 1953

Education:

  • A.B. West Virginia Wesleyan College (1923)

Served:

  • Alumni Secretary and Admissions Counselor 1952-53
  • Athletic Director and Coach 1925-28
  • Athletic Coach 1928-32
  • Coach 1925-27
  • Coach and Director of Athletics 1934-40
  • Community Council Committee: Athletics 1946-47 
  • Director of Athletics and Coach 1946-53
  • Faculty Committee: Athletics 1931-37; 1939-42; 1946-52
  • Faculty Committee: High School Publicity 1930-31
  • Faculty Committee: Housing 1952-53
  • Faculty Committee: Student Solicitation 1931-40
  • Faculty Committee: Tournament 1926-1928; 1930-39
  • Trustee Committee: Alumni Relations 1942-43
  • Trustee Committee: Public Relations 1952-53

Taught:

  • Instructor in Physical Education 1932-33
  • Professor of Physical Education 1940-43
  • Director of Athletics and Coach with rank of Associate Professor 1946-53

Notes:

  • Starred in three sports at Buckhannon High School and at Wesleyan, earning all-state honors in high school.
  • Coached Buckhannon to a state title in 1924
  • Fall 1925 started a 22-year coaching career at Wesleyan and married the former Miss Mary Morgan, a classmate at the college
  • His teams defeated gridiron powerhouses of that day, including Southern Methodist, New York, and Georgetown Universities. The Bobcats tied Navy, top eleven in the country, and tied West Virginia University.
  • His players included Clifford “Gip” Battles (one of Wesleyan’s two men in the Football Hall of Fame), Leonard “Feets” Barnum, and Nelson Peterson.
  • Coached at Morris Harvey for a year during World War II and then enlisted in the Navy serving in the pre-flight training at Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
  • Returned to Wesleyan in 1946
  • His basketball team won the state title that year.

Sources:

PLM 8/6/18