A native of Aurora, Ill., John Mauer lost both parents by the age of 13 and was raised by a sister. With the support of a local businessman, John attended the University of Illinois where his roommate was Harold “Red” Grange. During his tenure at the University of Illinois, Mauer participated in athletics and his senior year was named the outstanding athlete and scholar in the Big Ten Conference. He was also one of the first college basketball players to use the “one hand” shot.
Following graduation from college, Mauer began a long and distinguished career in coaching. He got his first big opportunity when he was offered the University of Kentucky basketball coaching position in 1927. He preceeded Adolph Rupp and compiled a record of 40 wins and 14 losses during his three years coaching the Wildcats.
In the early 1930’s, Coach Mauer moved to Miami of Ohio where he coached with Paul Brown and Webs Eubank. Also while at Miami he coached one of his favorite players, Walter “Smoky” Alston, who went on to fame with the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers. In 1938, General Robert Neyland hired Coach Mauer to be head basketball, assistant football, and head baseball coach at the University of Tennessee. His basketball teams won two SEC Championships, and he has the best won-lost percentage of any modern U-T men’s coach. Coach Mauer moved to the United States Military Academy at West Point from 1947-51, and then moved to the University of Florida. With that move, he became the first and only man to be head coach in the same sport three different SEC schools.