Farrell was a professional foot-racer in the 1880s and 1890s, beginning as a competitor in the hook, hose and ladder teams of New England.

He coached at Michigan for 18 years and developed many great athletes, including DeHart Hubbard and Eddie Tolan.

Farrell grew up at a time when professional foot-racing was one of the most popular sports in New England,[2] attracting as much attention as football would in the 20th Century.

[7] In the hook and ladder days, Farrell raced with some of the greats of the sport who later became major college track coaches, including Keene Fitzpatrick, Mike Murphy, Johnny Mack and Bill Donovan.

[7] Farrell became a regular in the "Caledonian games," a professional track circuit in Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Buffalo and Chicago.

[8] After winning his second Sheffield Handicap, a Massachusetts newspaper reported: "Steve Farrell is perhaps the best known runner in the world, having swept the card of sprinters in both hemispheres.

[1] Gambling was a major element of professional foot-racing, and Farrell reportedly "earned a substantial living by betting on himself against the best men in Europe and America.

"[2][11][12] It is said that Farrell "earned more money from professional foot racing than any other man who made a livelihood from this sort of endeavor.

"[5] After gaining fame as the winner of the Sheffield Handicap, Farrell returned to the United States and signed up to race a horse at the Barnum & Bailey Circus in New York's Hippodrome.

Farrell announced that he would race against the horse with no handicap, and the widely publicized event drew 10,000 paying customers.

After his running career ended in 1898, Farrell spent four years as a private track instructor specializing in conditioning runners.

[15][16] In December 1911, Farrell became involved in a struggle for power between the faculty and Student Athletic Board at Ohio State.

[17] They went on to chronicle his record and describe their admiration for him in the student newspaper, saying, "No one man has ever done more for Ohio State athletics than "Steve" Farrell Since his coming to Ohio State two years ago, a cleaner, more sportsman-like spirit has been instilled into every athlete coming under the trainers' influence.

"[18] In September 1912, Farrell was hired as the athletic trainer at the University of Michigan and noted at the time that the Ann Arbor institution "is the only western college that is thought much of down east.

"[19] He served as the school's track coach until his retirement in 1930, and he was also the trainer to Fielding H. Yost's football teams from 1912 to 1919.

There is no finer influence on college athletes in America than that which Steve exerts at Michigan ..."[26]When the United States entered World War I, Farrell volunteered at age 53 and passed the Air Service examination.

"[5] Farrell died of a heart attack at age 69 in October 1933 while on the first tee of the University of Michigan Golf Course in Ann Arbor.