One Man, Three Schools, and a Bell
by Jon Williamson • December 2009 • No Comments •
Sometimes you find a special treasure when you least expect it. While researching an article about Lambda Chi Alpha at Wabash, I came upon the story of Raymond Robert Neal (Wabash).
Born in Mellott, Indiana, Neal became captain of the Wabash College football team, playing both offense and defense on the line. Then in 1921 he transferred to Washington and Jefferson College. W & J enjoyed a very successful season in 1921. Finishing unbeaten, and ranking 12th in the polls, they were invited to play the University of California in the 1922 Rose Bowl.
The game ended in a 0-0 tie. Neal went on to play professionally with the Akron Pros in 1922, and from 1924 through 1926 he played with the Hammond Pros. Neal then went into the coaching ranks and became the head football coach at DePauw University in 1930.
Monon Bell Tradition
Neal began his coaching career with great success. In 1930 and 1931, the team finished their seasons with a combined record of 13 victories and only two losses. In 1932, a school rivalry between DePauw and Wabash, which began in 1890 and is the oldest one west of the Allegheny Mountains, was galvanized by the awarding of a traveling trophy, to be given to the winning team.
The traveling trophy selected was a 300 pound locomotive bell from the Monon Railroad, hence the Monon Bell Game was born. The first game ended in a 0–0 tie as DePauw finished with a losing season; but 1933 would change the way DePauw and Neal would be remembered. When Neal retired in 1945, DePauw held a 7 to 5 advantage with two ties in the Monon Bell game.
What made 1933 a memorable year was that DePauw finished with a perfect record, undefeated, untied, and unscored upon. Yes, they scored 136 point to their opponents 0. It was a magical season and one that hasn’t been matched since. Coach Neal would complete his coaching career at DePauw with 79 wins, just 34 losses, and 7 ties.
Retirement and Honors
In 1946, he became the athletic director and Department of Physical Education chairman at DePauw, and, after retiring in 1954, became the postmaster of Greencastle, Indiana.
Brother Neal was inducted into the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in 1977, the Wabash College Athletic Hall of Fame in 1984, the DePauw Athletic Hall of Fame as a coach in 1986, and, in 2002, as a member of the 1921 Washington & Jefferson Rose Bowl Football team, into the Washington & Jefferson College Athletic Hall of Fame. Raymond ‘Gaumey’ Neal was regarded as the heart and soul of the 1933 DePauw team, a very special man who would be described as a player’s coach.
DePauw’s Most Famous Quote
Chester C. Elson (DePauw 1936), a Lambda Chi and a member of the 1933 team, would later become very successful in the insurance industry and, in 1988, would be inducted into the DePauw Athletic Hall of Fame. Elson came to DePauw with $7 in his pocket. He considered Neal a principal influence on his life and paid Raymond Neal this greatest compliment, which is recorded on the DePauw Athletic Hall of Fame website: “He fed me when I was hungry, housed me when I had no place to stay, and helped me when I had no money.”
In 1979, Elson spearheaded a drive that, in just 90 days, raised more than $2 million from 28 members of the 1933 football team to honor their coach. Today, the Raymond ‘Gaumy’ Neal name stands on the fieldhouse at Lilly Center at DePauw as a result.
