Ad Rutschman

Bio

Adolph "Ad" Rutschman was head football coach at Linfield College 24 years and won three national championships in NAIA Division II in 1982, 1984, 1986. He was Linfield baseball coach 13 years, 1971-83, and won NAIA national championship in 1971. He is the only coach who won national championships in both football and baseball. He served 25 years as Linfield director of athletics. In 1995, Linfield built Rutschman Field House, named for Ad and his wife, Joan, for their service to the school. In his years as Linfield head coach, Rutschman never had a losing season. This helped Linfield break the national record of producing 42 consecutive winning seasons. Rutschman won 15 conference championships. His record was 183-48-4, a percentage of .787 . He was in the NAIA playoffs 12 times. In 1984, Linfield trailed Northwestern (Iowa) 22-0 in the title game and won 33-22. Linfield won in 1982 over William Jewell 33-15 and in 1986 over Baker 17-0. Ad Rutschman was a three-sport star at Hillsboro High School, enrolled at Linfield in 1950 and won 12 letters in football, basketball, and baseball. In football, he set a school rushing record, 3,761 yards in his career, and it still stands. He returned to Hillsboro High School as a teacher and a coach in 1954. He won one state championship in football, three in baseball and moved to Linfield. He was named to the NAIA Hall of Fame in 1988, the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1995. He added a master's degree in 1983. Rutschman's philosophy is contained in his quotes: "We can teach integrity, trust, accountability, getting along with each other, and living within a set of rules." "I hope I've had a positive effect on people. The most satisfying thing is to see your kids have success after they graduate."