Earl Walter "Skip" Bute (August 29, 1899 – October 14, 1988) was an American sports coach and athletics administrator. He coached football, basketball, baseball, track and field, tennis, and golf at Wahpeton State Science School—now known as the North Dakota State College of Science (NDSCS). Bute served as the head football coach at NDSCS from 1924 to 1965.[1] He also taught mathematics and was the athletic director at the school. Wahpeton was a junior college during Bute's tenure, but competed in the North Dakota College Athletic Conference (NDCAC) against mostly four-year schools.[2]
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 29, 1899 Grand Ridge, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | October 14, 1988 (aged 89) Breckenridge, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1923 | North Dakota Agricultural |
| Position | Quarterback |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1924–1965 | Wahpeton / Wahpeton Science |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1924–1966 | Wahpeton / Wahpeton Science |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 141–100–18 (football) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| Football 1 IAC (1925) 7 NDIAC/NDIC (1936–1939, 1942, 1948, 1962) | |
Bute was born on August 29, 1899, in Grand Ridge, Illinois. He attended school in Doran, Minnesota, before going to Wahpeton Science and then North Dakota Agricultural College—now known as North Dakota State University.[3] At North Dakota Agricultural he played football as a quarterback in 1923.[4] Bute resigned as athletic director and coach at Wahpeton Science in 1966. His football teams compiled a record of 141–100–18.[5]
Bute died on October 14, 1988, at a nursing home in Breckenridge, Minnesota.[6]
Head coaching record
editFootball
edit| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wahpeton Wildcats (Interstate Athletic Conference) (1924–1931) | |||||||||
| 1924 | Wahpeton | ||||||||
| 1925 | Wahpeton | T–1st | |||||||
| 1926 | Wahpeton | ||||||||
| 1927 | Wahpeton | ||||||||
| 1928 | Wahpeton | 3–3 | 4th | ||||||
| 1929 | Wahpeton | ||||||||
| 1930 | Wahpeton | 4–2 | T–2nd | ||||||
| 1931 | Wahpeton | ||||||||
| Wahpeton Wildcats (North Dakota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference / North Dakota Intercollegiate Conference / North Dakota College Athletic Conference) (1932–1965) | |||||||||
| 1932 | Wahpeton | 3–1–1 | 2–1–1 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1933 | Wahpeton | 3–3–1 | 2–2–1 | T–4th | |||||
| 1934 | Wahpeton | 4–3 | 3–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1935 | Wahpeton | 1–4–1 | 1–3–1 | 6th | |||||
| 1936 | Wahpeton | 6–1 | 6–0 | 1st | |||||
| 1937 | Wahpeton | 6–0–1 | 4–0–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1938 | Wahpeton | 7–0 | 5–0 | 1st | |||||
| 1939 | Wahpeton | 6–1 | 6–0 | 1st | |||||
| 1940 | Wahpeton | 4–3 | 3–2 | 4th | |||||
| 1941 | Wahpeton | 3–3 | 2–2 | T–4th | |||||
| 1942 | Wahpeton | 4–0 | 4–0 | 1st | |||||
| 1943 | No team–World War II | ||||||||
| 1944 | No team–World War II | ||||||||
| 1945 | Wahpeton Science | 2–2 | |||||||
| 1946 | Wahpeton Science | 4–2 | 3–1 | 3rd | |||||
| 1947 | Wahpeton Science | 3–4 | 3–2 | 4th | |||||
| 1948 | Wahpeton Science | 5–2 | 5–0 | T–1st | |||||
| 1949 | Wahpeton Science | 3–4–1 | 3–3 | 6th | |||||
| 1950 | Wahpeton Science | 3–4 | 2–3 | 5th | |||||
| 1951 | Wahpeton Science | 1–3–1 | 1–2–1 | 5th | |||||
| 1952 | Wahpeton Science | 2–5 | 1–5 | T–7th | |||||
| 1953 | Wahpeton Science | 5–2 | 4–2 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1950 | Wahpeton Science | 5–2 | 4–2 | 4th | |||||
| 1955 | Wahpeton Science | 4–2 | 4–2 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1956 | Wahpeton Science | 4–2–1 | 3–2–1 | T–4th | |||||
| 1957 | Wahpeton Science | 4–2 | 4th | ||||||
| 1958 | Wahpeton Science | 2–5 | 2–5 | 6th | |||||
| 1959 | Wahpeton Science | 4–2 | 4th | ||||||
| 1960 | Wahpeton Science | 0–6 | 7th | ||||||
| 1961 | Wahpeton Science | 6–2 | 4–2 | T–2nd | |||||
| 1962 | Wahpeton Science | 6–2 | 5–1 | T–1st | |||||
| 1963 | Wahpeton Science | 3–5 | 3–3 | 5th | |||||
| 1964 | Wahpeton Science | 2–4 | 5th | ||||||
| 1965 | Wahpeton Science | 2–5–1 | 0–5–1 | T–6th | |||||
| Wahpeton / Wahpeton Science: | 141–100–18 | ||||||||
| Total: | 141–100–18 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
References
edit- ↑ "Earl Bute Honored by Grid Writers". The Forum. Fargo, North Dakota. August 7, 1965. p. 8. Retrieved December 19, 2025 – via Newspapers.com
. - ↑ "Wahpeton's Skip Bute dead at 89". The Forum. Fargo, North Dakota. October 16, 1988. p. E3. Retrieved December 19, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
- ↑ "Obituaries; Earl Bute". The Forum. Fargo, North Dakota. October 16, 1988. p. D4. Retrieved December 19, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
- ↑ "Wahpeton Science Here For Baby Bison Tilt". The Forum. Fargo, North Dakota. October 17, 1924. p. 14. Retrieved December 19, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
- ↑ "Earl Bute Quits Post At School of Science". The Bismarck Tribune. Bismarck, North Dakota. Associated Press. May 19, 1966. p. 18. Retrieved December 19, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
- ↑ "NDSCS coaching legend dies". Grand Forks Herald. Grand Forks, North Dakota. October 19, 1988. p. 2D. Retrieved December 19, 2025 – via Newspapers.com .
External links
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