Obituary

ELMIRA, N.Y. - The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) community is in mourning following the passing of Bill Kalbaugh, who died at his home on September 14. A member of the RPI Athletics Hall of Fame, Kalbaugh coached men's basketball and golf, both for extended periods.

Kalbaugh coached the men's basketball team for 30 years (1953-83), posting a 297-341 record, setting the school record for career wins.

He led the Engineers to seven Independent Collegiate Athletic Conference (ICAC) titles, including four outright (1966-67, 1968-69, 1972-73 & 1975-76), and his teams earned four trips to the NCAA Division III Tournament, including 1957-58 (14-6), 1972-73 (16-9), 1974-75 (13-9) and 1975-76 (17-9). RPI twice garnered the ECAC Howard Schoenfeld Sportsmanship Award by the College Basketball Officials Association. In fact, Kalbaugh was assessed just one technical foul in his RPI career.

He was the Capital District Coach of the Year in 1970 (all sports) and named the District I College Coach of the Year in 1975.

In addition to basketball, he coached RPI's golf team beginning in 1961 with the 1986 team winning the Rensselaer Alumni Association Team of the Year Award. He was also the Executive Director of the "Let's Go Red!" booster club beginning in 1983, initiating the department's annual golf tournament.

Kalbaurgh attended Mechanicville High School, graduating in 1940, and Springfield College, where he earned an undergraduate degree in 1944 (physical education)  and a Masters' in 1947. He captained the baseball team and went on to play professionally in Brooklyn Dodgers organization.

Prior to joining the staff at RPI, Kalbaugh led the boys' basketball team at Mechanicville High School, where he coached the "Whiz Kids".