Bibb Falk, Post ‘Black Sox’ Star and Texas Longhorns Coach, Dies

Bibb Falk, who replaced “Shoeless Joe” Jackson after Jackson was banished from baseball following the “Black Sox” scandal and whose career included coaching the Texas Longhorns to two national championships and 20 Southwest Conference baseball titles, has died. He was 90.

Falk, one of two namesakes for the university’s Disch-Falk Field, home of the Longhorns baseball team, died Thursday night at Brackenridge Hospital after a long illness.

The last survivor of the 1920 White Sox team, a team rebuilt after the 1919 World Series gambling scandal recently depicted in the movie, “Eight Men Out,” Falk replaced Jackson in the lineup for the Chicago team.

He was runner-up to Babe Ruth for the American League batting title in 1924, when he hit .352. He batted .345 in 1926.

In 12 seasons with the White Sox and Cleveland Indians, he finished with a .315 career batting average.

In 1940, he became the Longhorns coach when longtime coach William J. (Billy) Disch was forced to retire because of ill health.

Falk’s 1949 and 1950 Texas teams won national championships.

The Longhorns won 15 outright conference titles and shares of five others in his 25 years as coach, and his overall coaching record was 478 wins and 176 losses.

In 1967, he retired and was succeeded by Cliff Gustafson, the current Longhorns coach who has the team within one victory of the College World Series championship.