Coach Jack Is Back

The sultan of squash is back.

John M. "Jack" Barnaby '32, coach of the men's squash and tennis teams for 36 years until his retirement in 1976, will return to Harvard to take the reigns of the women's squash team this season.

During his lengthy tenure as Crimson squash mentor, Barnaby compiled an unparalled 354-95 record, including 20 national team championships, ten 6-man championships, and 21 Ivy League titles.

Elyse Jacobs will assist Barnaby, handling the administrative chores. The tandem replaces last year's coaching duo of Paul Moses and Sukie MacGraw. After guiding the racquetwomen to an 11-2 record, Moses' two-year contract was not renewed.

Many squad members said at the end of last season that although Moses was a devoted coach, he was a poor teacher.

However, there can be no doubt about the teaching credentials of Moses' successor. Barnaby has authored what many call The Book on squash.

"I'm going to enjoy it," Barnaby said yesterday from his New Hampshire residence, speaking with a hint of the enthusiasm that made him such a durable coach.

"Squash coaches are pretty rare--they (the Department of Athletics) had a hard time filling that job," he added.

Several observers had criticized the sacking of Moses before a suitable replacement was found. Fortunately, it didn't take much to coax Barnaby out of retirement.

"I'm looking forward with great anticipation and pleasure to this part-time assignment. It's a very interesting challenge, and I see no reason why we shouldn't do well after a while."

How does Barnaby feel about coaching the racquetwomen after directing the men's squad for so many years?

"I see no reason why the women shouldn't have the teaching and the knowledge imparted to them," he said.

Part of Barnaby's task will be to groom Elyse Jacobs, an outstanding athlete with a previously limited exposure to squash. Jacobs attended Michigan University, graduating the same spring Barnaby retired.

Barnaby doesn't anticipate any problems. "I always said 'Give me an athlete, and I'll teach him the game.' But give me a fat slob..."

The racquetwomen had a good season last winter despite several setbacks. Top-ranked Sarah Mlezcko, one of Harvard's finest athletes, decided to take a rest from competitive sports. And later in the campaign, tragedy struck when freshman star Cynthia Stanton died in a plane crash.

The Crimson squad still managed a fine record. They performed admirably in a 5-2 loss to Princeton at Jadwin, but fell by the same score to an uninspired Yale team in the more comfortable confines of Hemenway Gym later that week.

Many holdovers on the young (nobody lost to graduation) squad are thrilled by Barnaby's arrival. "It came as a big surprise. His experience and savvy are unmatched. I'm looking forward to learning the thinking game," Eleanor Cunningham, one of the squad's most consistent performers last season, said yesterday.

But Princeton, which continually recruits aggressively to secure top talent, has a far superior team.

"I understand there is a big gap. It is always a slow, upward ramp. We'll have a lot of work on technique," Barnaby cautions. But he is quick to insist that he's looking to win--soon. "I hate that phrase 'building years,'" Barnaby says, condemning two words heard often on the Harvard sports scene of late.

* * *

Harvard sports lore is full of stories about Barnaby, or "The Master," as the squash cognoscenti often say. Like the time he rebuilt the post-war squad in one year, leading them to a championship the next. Or his dramatic finale as squash coach, when his Crimson racquetmen toppled heavily-favored Princeton, 6-3, to cop yet another national title.

Or, his "other sport"--tennis. His record: 369-155. Barnaby lets his teams speak for themselves. He bowed out by leading his tennis squad to a share of the Ivy League title.

Now Jack is back, though his legend and legacy never left. "Harvard has been struggling in a lot of sports," he says. "But we had an old saying about Cambridge: 'Atmosphere of excellence.' And while that shouldn't be taken too seriously, I'd like to aim for it."

And that is welcome news for any Harvard sports fan.