War Hero, A&M Chancellor had tarleton ties

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A&M Chancellor had tarleton ties

The commander was among the first to take the beach at Normandy on D-Day.

Bullets flew, artillery raged and about half the Allied soldiers deployed in the historic offensive were casualties. Still, his Rangers hit the sand at Pointe du Hoc under withering German fire and disabled enemy gun batteries perched atop 100-foot cliffs.

He was injured twice in the fighting, but still achieved his mission – to establish a beachhead for Allied forces.

He was also part of the action in the Battle of the Bulge and received numerous commendations, including the Distinguished Service Cross, Legion of Merit, Silver Star and the French Legion of Honor with croix de guerre avec palme.

For his outstanding service and dedication, he wound up a general.

Tarleton football coach James Earl Rudder, like thousands of other Americans in the early 1940s, was called upon to take up arms and put off his daily life for the good of the country. He responded by becoming one of the United States’ most decorated war heroes.

His connection to John Tarleton Agricultural College began as a student from 1927 to 1930. He earned a spot on Coach W.J. Wisdom’s state junior college champion Plowboy football team as center and displayed leadership traits even then, becoming team captain in his second season.

Rudder’s first taste of military training came in ROTC classes while at Tarleton and continued at Texas A&M, from which he graduated in 1932.

After building a budding high school football powerhouse in Brady, Rudder was tabbed to take over for Wisdom in 1938, and guided the football Plowboys until his war-related resignation in ’41.

Rudder’s public service continued after his Army career ended. The former Plowboys coach was elected mayor of Brady and Texas Land Commissioner before becoming vice-president, then president of Texas A&M University and ultimately Chancellor of The Texas A&M University System.

In commemoration of Rudder’s heroism and his leadership of The Texas A&M University System, Tarleton has named a pedestrian walk Rudder Way and plans to install a statue of him in November.