Hall of Fame
Like so many Coe athletic stars, Chuck Elias got his start in sports right here in Cedar Rapids. He competed in football and basketball at Wilson High School. He played American Legion baseball and was a member of four State Championship teams. Described by the Cedar Rapids Gazette "Red Peppers" column as the "teen marine," Chuck joined the U.S. Marine Corps and served in the battles for Guam and Iwo Jima during World War II. Chuck Elias chose Coe for his post-war education and he was starting quarterback for the Coe football team 1947 through 1949. The Coe coaches knew a good thing when they saw it and they kept Chuck on the staff, where he was backfield coach for Dick Clausen on tearns that won three Midwest Conference championships. He also assisted Harris Lamb and later Tommy Thomsen in basketball. Coe had not had a baseball team for some time and he helped re-establish baseball as a sport at Coe. To promote the sport, he scheduled a week-long southern Spring tour. That tour went into the history books under the label of "Charley's Folly," as every game except one was rained out. He earned his master's degree from the University of Iowa. While at Coe he played semi-professional baseball and for three years was secretary-treasurer of the old M & J Baseball League. He was an organizer of the Eastern Iowa Officials Association and president of the Cedar Rapids Officials Association. In 1953, he headed northward to Minneapolis as a biology teacher and assistant football coach at Marshall High School and then as head football coach at Minneapolis Central. His days at Minneapolis Central produced unparalleled success. Between 1961 and 1967, his Minneapolis Central football team compiled a record of 55 wins and only 4 losses. Three times they won the Minneapolis City Championship, and three times they won the Twin Cities Championship. For those not familiar with the Twin Cities, the Minneapolis champion and the St. Paul champion used to face each other in the final game of each season. In 1966, Central was Minnesota State Champion and rated fifth in the nation. In 1966, Chuck was chosen Prep Coach of the Year, and in 1973 he was inducted into the Minnesota Football Coaches Hall of Fame. He served as executive secretary-treasurer of the Minnesota High School Football Association for 12 years. Chuck retired from coaching in 1968 and became a school administrator until his retirement in 1983. Wilson High School, semi-pro baseball teams, Coe College, and Minneapolis Central High School have all known bright periods of sports history through the playing skill and the coaching ability of Charles Frank Elias. Thus, with distinction, he has earned entry into the Kohawk Athletic Hall of Fame.
