John Stewart Spencer (March 4, 1937 â July 10, 2021) was an American college football coach. He was the head football coach for Bridgewater College in Bridgewater, Virginia from 1968 to 1984, compiling a record of 56âÂÂ93âÂÂ3.
Spencer was born in Denver and played high school football at Northwestern Senior High School in Baltimore. He played college football for Shepherd as a tackle.
Spencer started his career as an assistant coach for GardnerâÂÂWebb in 1961. In 1966, he joined his alma mater, Shepherd, as the line coach. In 1967, he became an assistant coach for Bridgewater. The following year, in 1968, Spencer was named head football coach. In seventeen seasons as head coach, he finished with an overall record of 56âÂÂ93âÂÂ3. His best season came in 1980 when he led his team to a 6âÂÂ3 record and an Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) title. He resigned following the 1984 season. From 1985 until his retirement in 2002, he served as the linebackers coach through four coaching tenures: Joe Bush, Dan Antolik, Max Lowe, and Mike Clark.
Spencer also served as the head track and field coach during his tenure with GardnerâÂÂWebb.
Spencer died on July 10, 2021.