Two-Sport Stars
Following up on the Mahomes story
Last week I threatened to pile on a bit — after a squib about the Mahomeses and cross-generational NFL-MLB combinations — to discuss two-sport stars: individuals who played at the highest level in both baseball and football. For what follows I am indebted to my dear departed friend Stan Grosshandler, who wrote a fine essay on two-sport stars for Total Baseball some thirty years ago. Any errors in the updates are mine and I will be pleased to learn of them.
There was a time when the first pitch of Opening Day was in early April and the last out of the World Series occurred during the first week of October. The NFL kicked off the second week of September and finished their Championship Game shortly after Thanksgiving. Basketball was just something to occupy the time until Opening Day came again. It was relatively easy for a gifted athlete to exchange his steel baseball spikes for the long, hard rubber cleats used in football; therefore early in this century the two-sport star was not unusual, and most of these are found in the first four decades of the twentieth century.
Professional baseball has always been well defined, dating back to the
National Association of 1871; however, prior to the formation of the American Professional Football League in 1920, it is difficult to determine what football teams were truly professional. It is the opinion of knowledgeable sports historians that several teams that played in western Pennsylvania and central Ohio at the turn of the century were indeed paid. These clubs recruited the best athletes available, therefore the majority of two-sport players played for cities like Latrobe and Greensburg, Pennsylvania, and the Ohio cities of Canton and Massillon.
Ed “Batty” Abbattichio was the first, and one of the most successful, of the two-sport players. The husky 5'11", 170-pound native of Latrobe was a slick-fielding second sacker for Philadelphia, Boston, and Pittsburgh of the National League from 1897 through 1910 and a hard-running and -punting fullback for Latrobe from 1895 to the turn of the century.
The most famous of all early two-sport athletes was Christy Mathewson, the legendary Giants pitcher who between 1900 and 1916 won 373 games. He was a member of the first group of players voted into the Cooperstown Hall of
Fame. Christy had played football at Bucknell, where he was a star fullback
and punter. He played the 1900 season with the Pittsburgh Stars, winning
several games with his punting.
In 1900 a team with the unusual name of the Homestead Library and
Athletic Club did a fine job of recruiting, signing two great Brown University halfbacks, Fred Crolius and John Gammons, plus David Fultz of Dartmouth. All three proved to be among the top football players of the day; but they also played major league baseball. All three were outfielders: Fred Crolius played a total of 58 games in 1901 for the Boston Braves and for the 1902 Pittsburgh Pirates. John Gammons was a teammate of Crolius on the 1901 Braves, getting into only 28 games. David Fultz, who spent one season as a player-coach with the Athletic Club, enjoyed success between 1898 and 1905 with Philadelphia and Baltimore of the NL and with Philadelphia and New York of the AL. His career average was .271. He also earned a law degree at N.Y.U. and was to become an early-day advocate for the rights of players. In 1912 he organized the Players Fraternity, challenging the treatment of players and the reserve clause. Prior to the 1916 season he threatened a strike which never materialized. Baseball was not quite ready for a union, and David eventually became president of the International League.
In 1902 Philadelphia Athletic manager Connie Mack and owner Ben Shibe
were convinced to organize a football team to take advantage of the many
rivalries within the state. Connie put together a team and included Rube
Waddell, allegedly to keep track of the eccentric southpaw pitcher during the
off-season. Though Rube was supposed to have gotten into a few games briefly as a lineman, there is no documentation that he ever played pro football.
Charles Moran, who had two cups of coffee with the Cardinals, one in 1903
as a pitcher and a second in 1908 as a catcher, played halfback for the
powerful 1905 Massillon Tigers. “Uncle Charley,” as he came to be known, gained considerable fame as a football coach. His Centre College team was nationally known as the “Praying Colonels,” as a result of Charley’s asking them to have a prayer session prior to each game. Moran then went on to a second career, umpiring in the National League from 1917 through 1939.
The lives of Jim Thorpe and Earle “Greasy” Neale seem to intertwine on both the diamond and gridiron. After his great triumph in the 1912 Olympic Games, Jim Thorpe joined the New York Giants as an outfielder. His great power and speed made him very attractive as a baseball player; however, pitchers soon found out that “the world’s greatest athlete” could not hit a curve. Jim’s lackadaisical approach to the game did not go well with the tough Giant manager John McGraw; yet Jim played for the Giants intermittently from 1913 through 1919.
In April 1917 Jim was sold to the Cincinnati Reds. On May 2, 1917, he was playing right field when Fred Toney of the Reds opposed Jim “Hippo” Vaughn of the Cubs. Each pitched hitless ball until the top of the tenth, when with runners on second and third and two out Thorpe, who had struck out twice, hit the ball on the handle, resulting in a high hopper to Vaughn. The pitcher realized he could not throw the fleet Thorpe out at first, so he threw home late and the only run of the game scored. Jim was given credit for a single and the RBI that broke up the only double no-hitter ever played. In August he was sold back to the Giants and played in one game of the World Series. In his final season with both the Giants and Braves, Jim hit .327 over 62 games.
Jim Thorpe was a member of the Canton Bulldogs from 1915 until they
became part of the new professional league in 1920. Thorpe was actually
elected president of the league, an obvious figurehead position. He went on
to play for several NFL clubs, retiring in 1929 at age forty-two.
Hitting ahead of Thorpe and playing center field the day of the double
no-hitter was Earle “Greasy” Neale. A sharp lefthanded hitter, Greasy was a
Red from 1916 through 1924 and had a career .259 average, with his best season in 1917 when he batted .294. Neale’s zenith on the diamond came in the 1919 World Series. His .357 was the best on the club as the Reds won.
Greasy Neale was coaching at West Virginia Wesleyan when he played end
for the 1917 Canton Bulldogs under the name of Foster. Thorpe was running the team, and he asked Greasy to play several backfield positions during the year due to many injuries. In 1917 he played backfield and coached the Dayton Triangles.
It is as a coach that Greasy Neale gained his highest accolades. He took
an underdog Washington and Jefferson team to the Rose Bowl in 1921 and tied a powerful California team. After several successful college coaching jobs, he took over the Philadelphia Eagles in 1941, and before he retired after the
1950 season, he had built the club into an NFL power, winning three divisional and two league titles. He is in both the college and pro football Halls of Fame for his coaching ability.
The star of the 1919 Rose Bowl, George Halas joined the New York Yankees that spring. A switch-hitting outfielder, Halas injured his hip sliding into third at Cleveland. After 12 games and an .091 average, his diamond career was over.
George then turned his attention to pro football, organizing the Decatur Staleys, who were to become the Chicago Bears. Halas played end, coached, and owned this club, developing it into one of the all-time greatest sports franchises.
On the 1920 Decatur Staleys were a 5'6", 145-pound quarterback and a
5'8", 155-pound halfback. The quarterback, Chuck Dressen, played third base
seven years for the Reds and one for the Giants, compiling a career .272 mark.
He then spent sixteen years as a manager, leading the Cincinnati Reds,
Brooklyn Dodgers, Washington Senators, Milwaukee Braves, and Detroit Tigers. His Dodger teams were defeated in the 1952 and ’53 World Series. The halfback, Paddy Driscoll, played in only 13 games for the 1917 Chicago Cubs. He was to have a Hall of Fame career as an NFL player and coach.
On April 22, 1922, Ty Cobb injured his ankle and rookie Johnny Mohardt
took his place on the bases. Mohardt had played football at Notre Dame in the
same backfield as George Gipp and was now trying to win a spot in the Tiger
outfield. Mohardt only played in five games, batted just once (he got a hit, so his career average was 1.000), and then left baseball. He played for five
seasons in the NFL, financing his medical training. He eventually became a
distinguished surgeon and the Assistant Medical Director of the Veterans
Administration.
Hinkey Haines appeared in 14 regular and 2 World Series games for the
1923 World Champion Yankees, his only season of major league baseball. He was also a member of the 1927 New York Giants, the NFL champs, making Hinkey the only man to be a member of two major league championship teams in different sports.
Hinkey had played college football at Penn State, where his coach was
Hugo Bezdek. “He was a tough guy,” recalled Hinkey, “but we all felt he was very fair. He had emigrated from Czechoslovakia and learned his football with Stagg at Chicago. He [Bezdek] is the only man to take three different schools to the Rose Bowl, manage a big league baseball team (the Pittsburgh Pirates), and coach an NFL team (the Cleveland Rams).”
Charlie Berry, a Walter Camp All-American end at Lafayette College in 1924, joined the 1925 Philadelphia Athletics as a catcher. On the A’s he found outfielder Walter French, who had starred at West Point, and Mickey Cochrane, a former Boston College football player. Unfortunately for Charlie, Cochrane was one of the greatest catchers the game has ever seen, so Berry only played in 10 games that year. In the fall he and French played for the Pottstown Maroons, an NFL power at the time. Exhibiting great pass-catching and field goal-kicking ability, Berry was the top scorer in the league with 72 points, while French averaged 5.4 yards per carry.
Both Berry and French soon gave up the gridiron. Berry caught for eleven years with the Red Sox, White Sox, and A’s, while French was a gifted pinch hitter and a career .303 batter for six seasons as an Athletic. When Berry graduated from Lafayette, his place at end was taken by Frank Grube, who caught for seven seasons in the AL, was a teammate of Berry’s on the Chisox, and also played in the NFL.
After finishing his active career, Berry remained with Connie Mack as a
coach until 1940. He officiated in the NFL from 1941 to 1961 and was also an
American League ump from 1942 to 1962. In 1958 Charlie Berry had the unique experience of officiating the World Series and the NFL Championship Game — the sudden-death game, one of sports’ all-time great events.
Whether it was Connie Mack’s brief football experience back in 1902 or
the fact that he liked college-educated men on his teams, he seemed to have a
proclivity for hiring football stars. Besides Cochrane and French, he signed
All-Americans Berry, Ace Parker, Sam Chapman, and Eric Tipton (though the
latter two never played pro football). Ace Parker was a highly acclaimed Duke athlete when he joined the A’s in 1937. On April 30 of that year, he made his initial appearance at bat as a pinch hitter and hit a home run. This was the first time an American League rookie had ever hit a homer in his first at bat as a pinch hitter.
That fall Parker wanted to join the Brooklyn Dodgers of the NFL, but Connie Mack would not grant permission; however, by November the old gentleman relented and Ace entered the NFL, where he became a Hall of Famer. His baseball career ended after his second season. Other dual-sport players on the A’s were Lyle Bigbee, Jim Castiglia, Bruno Haas, Bert Kuczynski, and Ernie Orwell.
Perhaps because they were always desperate for talent, the St. Louis Browns usually had a two-sport man on the team. By far the most notable was Ernie Nevers, a terrific all-round athlete from Stanford.
“When I finished in college in 1926, I was offered a $25,000 bonus by the
Browns and another $25,000 bonus by the Duluth Eskimos of the NFL,” Ernie
recalled several years before his death. “I took both.”
“My greatest thrill in baseball was just pitching to those famous players like Ruth [he gave up Babe’s eighth and forty-first homers in 1927], Foxx, and others. My fondest recollection was one of the first times I faced Walter Johnson. I never saw his first two pitches. Johnson then called time and
motioned the catcher out. When he got back, he told me Walter was going to
groove it. When I uttered my disbelief, he replied that Walter always means
what he says.
“Well, I started swinging as he wound up and hit the ball to the wall for a double. When I got to second, he was smiling for he had let a raw rookie look good.”
In three years for the Browns, Nevers posted only a 6–12 record due to a
sore arm. He then devoted his time to the gridiron. His biggest day in
football was Thanksgiving Day of 1929. Playing for the Chicago Cardinals
against the Bears, he scored 6 touchdowns and kicked 4 extra points, a total
of 40 points, a record that has never been surpassed. Though he had a brief NFL career as both a player and coach, his impact was such that he is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Other Brownies who performed on the gridiron were outfielder Red Badgro, now in the Pro Football Hall of Fame; outfielder-third baseman Larry Bettencourt, now in the College Football Hall of Fame; catcher Russ Young; shortstop Jim Levey; and outfielder Pete Layden.
The most prominent dual-sport stars of the 1950s were Vic Janowicz, who won the 1950 Heisman Award as a junior at Ohio State, and Carroll Hardy from Colorado. Janowicz caught for the 1953 Pirates with little success and switched to third the next season, again without success. That fall he joined the Washington Redskins and gave up the diamond sport. A terrific runner, passer, and kicker, he was the number-two scorer in the NFL the next season; however, a postseason accident finished his great sports career.
Carroll Hardy had been a defensive back and punter at Colorado when he joined the ’49ers in 1955.
“I was picked as a defensive back and punter,” Carroll recalls. “However, they had an unusual amount of injuries and I ended up playing in the offensive backfield with Y.A. Tittle, Hugh McElhenny, Joe Perry, and John Henry Johnson — all of whom made the Pro Football Hall of Fame.”
“I had a pretty good season, caught 12 passes for 4 TDs, one of which was a 79-yarder from Tittle. Hank Greenberg, G.M. of the Indians, convinced me to concentrate on baseball.” Hardy then joined the Cleveland Indians for the 1958 season and later played until 1968 with the Boston Red Sox, Houston Astros, and Minnesota Twins.
“I am probably the only man to pinch-hit for Ted Williams, Roger Maris, and Carl Yastrzemski. On September 30, 1960, Ted was hitting against Hector Brown of the Orioles in the first inning when he fouled a ball off his leg and just walked off the field. Manager Pinky Higgins yelled at me to get up there and I promptly lined into a double play. I later found out I was the only man who had ever pinch-hit for Ted Williams.
“I hit for Roger while we were with the Indians as Billy Pierce, a lefty, was pitching. There were two men on in the eleventh, and I hit a ball I was positive was foul, but the ump called it fair and we won.”
One of the last to try both sports for quite a while was Tom Brown, a lefthanded, switch-hitting first sacker. Tom opened the 1963 season with the Senators but was soon back in the minors. He then opted for football, joined the Green Bay Packers in time to enjoy their most successful period, and was the first man to play in the Super Bowl and major league baseball. It would be twenty-four years until another athlete attempted both baseball and football.
Bo Jackson won the Heisman Award in 1985 and joined the Kansas City Royals. In 1987 he became a running back for the Los Angeles Raiders; however, a football injury at the end of the 1990 season finished both careers. Bo hit more homers (112) and scored more touchdowns (18) than any other two-sport player.
Deion Sanders and Brian Jordan were both defensive backs for the Atlanta Falcons (1989–91). In 1992 Sanders continued to play both sports while Jordan concentrated on baseball with the Cardinals. By playing for the Atlanta Braves in the 1992 World Series, Deion Sanders joined both Jim Thorpe and Greasy Neale as the only men to play in a World Series and pro football the same fall.
D.J. Dozier played running back for the Minnesota Vikings 1987–91. In 1992 he played in the outfield for the New York Mets. Others who have played in MLB and the NFL since 1970 include Drew Henson (Yankees; Cowboys, Lions), Chad Hutchinson (Cardinals; Cowboys, Bears), and Matt Kinzer (Cardinals; Lions).
Umpires have also been two-sport stars in MLB and the NFL. Cal Hubbard, an American League arbiter for twenty-five years, was such a fine football player that he has been elected to both the College and Professional Halls of Fame.
Hank Soar is a three-sport man. An AL man in blue for twenty-four years, he was also a star halfback for the Giants and briefly coached Providence in the BAA, predecessor to the NBA. “My greatest baseball thrill,” Hank stated, “was the day I was at first and Don Larsen pitched his perfect game. My only close call was on Jackie Robinson in the second and nobody complained. One of my best football days was the 1938 Championship Game, when I caught the winning TD pass. The basketball job was a fluke. I worked for the team and was the only one they could get to coach it that season.”
With Soar on the 1943 and ’44 Giants was guard Frank Umont, who called balls and strikes in the AL for nineteen years. Bill Stewart is best remembered in sports as the ump who missed the Feller-Masi pickoff play in the 1948 Series, but Bill deserves better. An NL umpire for twenty-two years, he was the first American-born referee in the National Hockey League, where he officiated for fourteen years. In 1937–38 he became coach of the Chicago Black Hawks. The team won but 14 games; however, they captured
the Stanley Cup. The next season Bill was fired halfway into the schedule.
Because of the length of a baseball season and the physical demands of
football, it takes a very talented man with exceptional endurance to play both
in the same year.
One of the most unusual groups to participate in both sports are the six who hit a home run and scored a touchdown the same year. This elite club includes Pid Purdy, Red Badgro, Ace Parker, Steve Filipowicz, Bo Jackson, and Deion Sanders.
Professional basketball has a history very similar to pro football. At the turn of the century several professional teams appeared, mostly on the East Coast. Eventually leagues appeared that were considered major leagues by some historians and minor leagues by others. The first professional basketball league to be considered a major league by most historians is the ABL, which existed from 1925 to 1931.
As the schedules of major league baseball and basketball were somewhat compatible, it is not surprising to find diamond stars playing the court sport for extra money and to stay in condition. Perhaps the most successful of all the dual athletes was Gene Conley, who starred in both major league baseball and the NBA. The 6'8" Conley joined the 1952 Boston Braves as a pitcher and the Celtics the same year as a center-forward. For the next several years Gene concentrated on baseball with the Milwaukee Braves, pitching in one World Series and three All-Star Games. In 1959 he returned to the Celtics and proved a perfect backup man for the superstars of that team as they won three straight titles.
“There is no doubt my greatest thrill in sports came in the 1955 All-Star Game. I was the losing pitcher the previous year, and as this game was in Milwaukee, I really wanted to pitch. I finally got to in the twelfth inning and struck out Al Kaline, Mickey Vernon, and Al Rosen. We won on a Stan Musial home run in the bottom of the inning.
“One day I was sitting in front of my locker,” Gene continued, “when coach Red Auerbach walked up and asked me if I realized I was the only man to have a World Series and NBA Championship ring. Until Red mentioned it, I was unaware of the fact.”
The only member of the Baseball Hall of Fame who played major league
basketball is shortstop Lou Boudreau. Lou joined Cleveland in late 1938 and then played guard for the Hammond Ciesar All-Americans, where his fellow guard was John Wooden, who became one of the game’s greatest coaches. The next season Boudreau was briefly a nonplaying coach.
A career .295 hitter, Lou hit over .300 four times in his career, leading the league in hitting in 1944 and batting a tremendous .355 in 1948, when he
captured the MVP Award. The Indians realized that twenty-four-year-old Boudreau was a natural leader and appointed him as manager in 1942. He won the World Series in 1948 and managed through 1950. He then spent six seasons managing the Red Sox and one with the Cubs.
Dick Groat led the nation’s college basketball players in scoring as a junior at Duke. In 1952 he went directly from the campus to the Pittsburgh Pirates, becoming one of thirty-nine men to go directly to the big leagues and never play minor league ball.
“The Pirates were not going anywhere,” Dick said, “so they had nothing to lose by putting me at short. That fall I played with Fort Wayne. I had returned to Duke to finish my studies, and the owner of the team sent his private plane to take me to games. I then was called into the service, and when I got out, Branch Rickey of the Pirates convinced me the hard gym floor would ruin my legs for baseball, so I never returned to basketball, though it was my favorite game.”
A fourteen-year player in the National League, Dick was captain of the World Champion 1960 Pirates, leading the league in hitting and winning the MVP Award. Dick played in a second Series with the Cards in 1964. A career .286 hitter, he surpassed the .300 mark four times.
Frank Baumholtz played the outfield for ten years in the senior circuit. In 1952 he finished second to Stan Musial in the batting race and posted a lifetime .290 mark. Frankie, a star at Ohio U., played for Youngstown of the NBL in 1946–47 and Cleveland of the BBA in 1947–48; he was a top scorer both years.
Dave DeBusschere and Ron Reed were forwards on the 1965–66 Detroit Pistons, where Dave was the player-coach. Both were aspiring major league pitchers whose careers took different turns. Dave’s fame was made on the
basketball court, while Ron made it on the diamonds of the National League.
DeBusschere’s baseball career consisted of two undistinguished years on
the mound for the White Sox; however, he had twelve brilliant seasons in the
NBA. After six seasons with the Pistons, two as a player-coach, he joined the
great Knicks of the early 1970s and enjoyed their championship seasons. He
later served briefly as Commissioner of the ABA. His career scoring average
was 16.1 per game.
Reed spent nineteen years playing for several NL teams. As a starter for Atlanta, his best season was an 18–10 mark in 1969. When he joined the Phillies, he became a relief artist and in 1979 led the league in relief wins. Ron appeared in five World Series games for the Phillies and posted a career record of 146–140, with 103 saves and an ERA of 3.46.
Steve Hamilton played for the 1958–59 Minneapolis Lakers, but, like Reed, he found his talents were more suited to baseball. A southpaw, he pitched for twelve years in both leagues and, upon joining the Yankees, became an outstanding bullpen man, appearing in three games of the 1963 and ’64 World Series, recording one save. Steve’s career ERA was a very respectable 3.05.
Several major league players who had brief pro basketball careers included
George Crowe, a top National League pinch hitter for ten years; Irv Noren, who played the outfield in both leagues for twelve seasons; and Del Rice, a longtime catcher. Howie Schultz, of whom great slugging feats were expected when he joined the Dodgers in 1943, found greater success as a scorer in the NBL and NBA. In 1950 he was a player-coach for Anderson of the NBL. Another NBL coach was Red Rolfe, the great third baseman of the Bronx Bombers of the 1930s, who led Toronto of the NBL for a single season.
The only dual-sport player to pitch a no-hitter was Bill McCahan, who joined the Philadelphia Athletics after his military duty. In 1947 he threw a no-hit game against the Washington Senators. Chuck Connors, who had brief careers in both professional baseball and basketball, found his real calling in television series and the movies, gaining genuine stardom in those fields.
The latest men to play both sports were: Danny Ainge, who after three seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays joined the Boston Celtics, where his great
athletic ability became more apparent; and Mark Hendrickson, whose NBA career commenced just as that of Ainge was winding down.
BASEBALL — FOOTBALL
Ed Abbaticchio
Fullback
Mt. St. Mary’s
1895–1900, Latrobe.
Cliff Aberson
Halfback
1946, Green Bay, NFL.
Red Badgro (PFH)
End
Southern California
1927–28, New York Yankees, NFL; 1930–35, New York Giants, NFL;
1936, Brooklyn, NFL.
George Barclay
Halfback
Bucknell, Lafayette
1896–98, Greensburg.
Norman Bass
Defensive Halfback
University of the Pacific
1964, Denver, AFL.
Jim Bedford
End
Southern Methodist University
1925, Rochester, NFL; 1926, Hammond, NFL.
Dutch Bergman
Head Coach
Notre Dame
1943, Washington, NFL.
Charles Berry (CHF)
End/Linesman
Lafayette
1925–26, Pottsville, NFL; 1940–60, NFL head linesman.
Joe Berry
Halfback
Pennsylvania, Muhlenberg
1921, Rochester, NFL.
Larry Bettencourt (CHF)
Center
St. Mary’s
1933, Green Bay, NFL.
Hugo Bezdek (CHF)
Coach
Chicago
1937–38, Cleveland, NFL.
Lyle Bigbee
End
Oregon
1922, Milwaukee.
Tom Brown
Defensive Halfback
Maryland
1964–68, Green Bay, NFL; 1969, Washington, NFL.
Garland Buckeye
Guard
1920, Chicago Tigers, NFL; 1921–24, Chicago Cardinals; 1926, Chicago, AFL.
Bruce Caldwell
Halfback
Brown, Yale
1928, New York Giants.
Ralph Capron
Halfback
Minnesota
1920, Chicago Tigers, NFL.
Jim Castiglia
Halfback
Georgetown
1941, 1945–46, Philadelphia; 1947, Baltimore, AAFC; 1947–48, Washington.
Chuck Corgan
Halfback
Arkansas
1924–26, Kansas City, NFL; 1926, Hartford; 1927, New York Giants.
Fred Corlius
Halfback
Brown
1900–01, Homestead; 1902, Pittsburgh.
D.J. Dozier
Halfback, Penn State
1987–90, Minnesota.
Paul Desjardien (CHF)
Guard
Chicago University
1920, Chicago Tigers, NFL; 1922, Minneapolis.
Charles Dressen
Quarterback
1920, Decatur; 1922–23, Racine.
Paddy Driscoll (PHF, CHF)
Quarterback
Northwestern
1919, Hammond; 1920, Decatur, APFL; 1920–25, Chicago Cardinals; 1926–29,
Chicago Bears; 1942–45, 1956–57, Chicago Bears, head coach.
Oscar Eckhardt
Halfback
Texas
1928, New York Giants.
Steve Filipowicz
Quarterback
Fordham
1945–46, New York Giants.
Paul Florence
End
Loyola
1920, Chicago Cardinals.
Walter French
Halfback
Army
1922, Rochester; 1925, Pottsville.
David Fultz
Halfback
Brown
1900–01, Homestead.
John Gammons
Halfback
Brown
1898–99, Duquesne; 1900–01, Homestead; 1902, Pittsburgh.
Walter Gilbert
Halfback
Valparaiso
1923–26, Duluth.
Norman Glockson
Guard
1922, Racine.
Frank Grube
End
Lafayette
1928, New York Yankees.
Bruno Haas
Halfback
Worcester
1921, Cleveland; 1921, Akron; 1922, Dayton.
Hinky Haines
Halfback
Penn State
1925–28, New York Giants; 1929, 1931, Staten Island.
George Halas (PHF)
End, Coach, Owner
Illinois
1919, Hammond; 1920, Decatur, APFL; 1921, Chicago, APFL; 1922–83, Chicago,
NFL.
Carroll Hardy
Halfback
Colorado
1955, SF, NFL.
Drew Henson
Quarterback
Michigan
2004–05, 2008, Dallas, Detroit, NFL.
Cal Hubbard (BHF, PHF, CHF)
Tackle
Centenary, Geneva
1927–28, 1936, New York Giants; 1929–33, Green Bay; 1936, Pittsburgh.
Chad Hutchinson
Quarterback
Stanford
2002–04, Cowboys, Bears
Bo Jackson
Halfback
Auburn
1987–90, LA Raiders.
Vic Janowicz (CHF)
Halfback
Ohio State
1954–55, Washington.
Rex Johnston
Halfback
Southern California
1960, Pittsburgh.
Brian Jordan
Defensive Back, Richmond
1989–91, Atlanta.
Matt Kinzer
Punter
Purdue
1987, Detroit.
Bert Kuczynski
End
Pennsylvania
1943, Detroit; 1946, Philadelphia.
Pete Layden
Halfback
Texas
1948–49, New York, AAFC; 1950, New York Yankees.
Jim Levey
Halfback
1934–36, Pittsburgh.
Dean Look
Quarterback
Michigan State
1962, New York, AFL.
Wally MacPhee
Halfback
Princeton
1926, Providence.
Howard Maple
Halfback
Oregon State
1930, Chicago Cardinals.
Walter Masters
Halfback
Pennsylvania
1936, Philadelphia; 1943, Cardinals; 1944, Cardinals-Pittsburgh.
Christy Mathewson (BHF)
Fullback
Bucknell
1902, Pittsburgh Stars.
Jim McKean
Quarterback
1964–65, Montreal, CFL.
John Mohardt
Halfback
Notre Dame
1922–23, Chicago Cardinals; 1924, Racine; 1925, Chicago Bears; 1926, Chicago,
AFL.
Charles Moran
Halfback
Tennessee
1905–06, Massillon.
Earle Neale (PHF, CHF)
Halfback
West Virginia Wesleyan
1916–17, Canton; 1918, Dayton; 1941–50, Philadelphia, coach.
Ernie Nevers (PHF, CHF)
Fullback
Stanford
1926–27, Duluth; 1929–31, Chicago Cardinals; 1939, Cardinals, head coach.
Ossie Orwoll
Halfback
Luther
1926, Milwaukee.
Ace Parker (PHF, CHF)
Halfback
Duke
1937–41, Brooklyn, NFL; 1945, Boston; 1946, New York, AAFC.
John Perrin
Halfback
Michigan
1926, Hartford.
Al Pierotti
C/G/T
Washington & Lee
1920, Akron, NFL; 1920, Cleveland; 1921, New York; 1923–24, Milwaukee; 1923,
Racine; 1926, Boston, AFL; 1927, Providence; 1929, Boston.
Pid Purdy
Halfback
Beloit
1926–27, Green Bay.
Dick Reichle
End
Illinois
1923, Milwaukee.
Deion Sanders
Defensive Back
Florida State
1989- , Atlanta.
John Scalzi
Halfback
Georgetown
1931, Brooklyn.
John Singleton
Halfback
1929, Dayton.
Red Smith
Halfback
Notre Dame
1927, 1929, Green Bay; 1928, 1931, New York Giants; 1928, New York Yankees;
1930, Newark.
Hank Soar
Halfback
Providence
1936, Boston, AFL; 1937–44, 1946, New York Giants.
Evar Swanson
End
Lombard
1924, Milwaukee; 1925, Rock Isle; 1925–27, Chicago Cardinals.
Jim Thorpe (PHF, CHF)
Halfback
Carlisle
1915–19, Canton; 1920, Canton, APFA; 1921, Cleveland, NFL; 1922–23, Oorang;
1924, Rock Isle; 1925, New York Giants; 1926, Canton; 1928, Chicago Cardinals.
Andy Tomasic
Halfback
Temple
1942, 1946, Pittsburgh.
Frank Umont
Guard
1943–45, New York Giants.
Louis Urban
End
Boston College
1921–23, Buffalo.
Joe Vance
Halfback
Southwest Texas
1931, Brooklyn.
Ernie Vick (CHF)
Center
Michigan
1925, 1928, Detroit; 1927–28, Chicago Bears.
Tom Whalen
End/Center
Georgetown, Notre Dame
1920, Canton; 1921, Cleveland.
Mike Wilson
End
Lehigh
1923–24, Rock Isle.
Hoge Workman
Halfback
Ohio State
1924, 1931, Cleveland; 1932, New York Giants.
Ab Wright
Halfback
Oklahoma A&M
1930, Frank.
Tom Yewcic
Quarterback
Michigan State
1961–66, Boston, AFL.
Russ Young
Halfback
1925, Dayton.
BASEBALL — BASKETBALL
Danny Ainge
Guard
Brigham Young
1981–89, Boston; Sacramento, 1989–91, Portland 1991–92, Phoenix 1992–95.
Ernie Andres
Guard/Forward
Indiana
1939–40, 1945–48, Indianapolis, NBL.
Babe Barna
Forward, West Virginia
1939–40, Clarksburg, WBT.
Rex Barney
Guard
1947–48, Omaha, PBLA.
Bill Barrett
Guard/Forward
1921–22, Worcester, IL.
Frank Baumholtz
Guard
Ohio University
1945–46, Youngstown, NBL; 1946–47, Cleveland, BAA.
Bozie Berger
Forward, Maryland
1938–39, Washington, ABL.
Hank Biasetti
Guard
Assumption (Canada)
1946–47, Toronto, NBL.
Lou Boudreau (BHF)
Guard/Forward
Illinois
1938–39, Hammond, NBL; 1939–40, Hammond, coach, NBL.
Art Bramhall
Guard/Forward
1929–31, Chicago, ABL.
Frank Bruggy
Forward
1909–10, Elizabeth, EL; 1913–14, Gloversville, NYSL; 1914–15, South
Philadelphia, EL, Gloversville, NYSL; 1915–16, Kingston, Elizabeth, North
Hudson, IL; 1916–17, Paterson, IL; 1917–18, Ansonia, CSL, Providence-Scranton, PSL; 1919–20, Germantown, EL, Scranton, PSL (coach), Jersey City, IL; 1920–21, Scranton, PSL (coach), Germantown, EL, Easthampton-Springfield, IL; 1921–22, Brooklyn, MBL, Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, EL; 1922–23, Elizabeth, MBL (coach), Atlantic City, EL; 1924–25, Paterson, MBL.
Frank Carswell
Guard
Rice
1947–48, Houston, PBLA, Flint, NBL.
Gene Conley
Forward
Washington State
1952–53, 1958–61, Boston; 1962–64, New York, NBA.
Chuck Connors
Center/Forward
Seton Hall
1945–46, Rochester, NBL; 1946–48, Boston, BAA.
Jerry Conway
Guard/Forward
St. Anselm
1919–20, Turners Falls, IL; 1920–21, Holyoke, IL; 1921–22, Holyoke, IL, Glens Falls; 1922–23, Holyoke, IL, Albany, NYSL; 1925–26, Washington, ABL; 1927–28, Albany, MBL.
Bill Crouch
Forward/Guard
Michigan, Eastern Michigan
1935–26, Windsor, MBC.
George Crowe
Forward/Center
Indiana Central
1946–48, New York, WBT; 1948–49, Dayton, NBL.
Snake Deal
Center/Forward
1898–99, Germantown, Philadelphia, NBL; 1899–1900, Chester, Camden, NBL; 1900–01, Philadelphia, NBL; 1901–03, Camden, NBL; 1903–04,
Pittsfield-Chicopee-Springfield, WMBL; 1905–06, East Falls, PBL; 1906–08,
East Liverpool, CBL; 1908–10, Johnstown, CBL; 1914–15, Tamaqua, PSL.
Dave DeBusschere
Forward
Detroit University
1962–69, Detroit; 1968–74, New York; 1975–76, commissioner, ABA.
Brooks Dowd
Forward
Lehigh, Springfield
1916–17, Mohawk, NYSL; 1919–20, Springfield, IL, Mohawk, NYSL; 1920–21,
Springfield (coach), IL, Mohawk, NYSL; 1921–22, Mohawk, NYSL, Springfield, IL;
1922–23, Springfield, IL; 1925–26, Boston, ABL; 1926–27, Baltimore, ABL.
Grant Dunlap
Forward
College of the Pacific
Occidental
1947–48, Birmingham, PBLA; 1950–51, Anderson, NBL.
Joe Evers
Forward
1913–14, Troy, NYSL; 1915–16, Carbondale, PSL; 1916–17, Hudson, NYSL,
Nanticoke, PSL; 1919–20, Troy, NYSL; 1920–21, Cohoes, NYSL; 1921–22,
Gloversville-Troy, NYSL; 1922–23, Troy-Schenectady, NYSL; 1927–28, Troy
(coach), MBL.
Frankie Frisch (BHF)
Guard/Forward
Fordham
1919–20, New York, IL.
Les Fuchs
Referee
John Marshall
1938–46, ABL.
Johnny Gee
Center/Forward
Michigan
1946–47, Syracuse, NBL.
Tom Gorman
Forward
1944–45, New York, ABL; 1945–46, Trenton, ABL.
Don Grate
Forward/Guard
Ohio State
1947–48, Indiana, NBL; 1949–50, Sheboygan.
Hank Greenberg (BHF)
Center/Forward
New York University
1931–32, Brooklyn Jewish Center, MBL; 1932–33, Brooklyn Jewels, MBL.
Dick Groat
Guard
Duke
1952–53, Fort Wayne, NBA.
Steve Hamilton
Forward/Center
Morehead State
1959–60, Minnesota, NBA.
Walter Hammond
Forward
Colgate
1919–20, Amsterdam, NYSL; 1920–21, Westfield, IL; 1920–21, 1922–23, Amsterdam, NYSL.
Bucky Harris (BHF)
Guard
1915–18, Pittston, PSL; 1917–18, Bridgeport, Jersey City, CSL; 1919–20,
Pittston, PSL; 1919–20, Paterson, Brooklyn, IL; 1920–21, Pittston, PSL; 1923–24, Glens Falls, NYSL.
Doug Harvey
Referee
San Diego State
1967–69, ABA.
Buddy Hassett
Guard
Manhattan
1933–34, Union City, ABL; 1934–35, Jersey, ABL.
Mark Hendrickson
Forward
Washington State
1996–99, Philadelphia, Sacramento, New Jersey, Cleveland, NBA.
Rick Herrscher
Guard
Southern Methodist University
1961–62, Hawaii, ABL.
Orel Hildebrand
Forward
Butler
1935–36, Indianapolis, MBC.
Waite Hoyt (BHF)
Forward
Middlebury
1925–26, Brooklyn, ABL.
Carl Husta
Forward/Guard
1925–30, Cleveland; 1930–31, Cleveland, Fort Wayne, ABL.
Ted Kearns
Guard/Forward
1925–26, Washington; 1926–27, Baltimore-Washington; 1927–28, Philadelphia;
1928–29, Trenton; 1929–30, Syracuse, ABL.
Al Kellett
Center
Penn State
1926–28, Philadelphia; 1928–29, Trenton-Chicago; 1929–30, Chicago; 1930–31, Brooklyn, ABL.
Fritz Knothe
Forward
Pennsylvania
1925–26, Passaic, MBL; 1926–27, Baltimore, ABL, Kingston, MBL; 1927–28,
Rochester, ABL, Kingston, MBL; 1928–29, Paterson, ABL.
Pip Koehler
Guard
Penn State
1927–28, Fort Wayne; 1929–31, Toledo, ABL.
Stan Landes
Referee
1953–54, NBA
Bert Lewis
Forward
1925–26, Buffalo, ABL.
Jerry Loeber
Referee
Rhode Island
1969–76, NBA.
Bill McCahan
Forward/Guard
Duke
1928–49, Syracuse, NBL; 1943–44, 1948–49, Wilmington, ABL.
Mel McGaha
Guard
Arkansas
1948–49, New York, NBL.
Ralph Miller
Guard
1925–30, Fort Wayne; 1930–31, Fort Wayne, Chicago, ABL.
Cotton Nash
Forward/Center
Kentucky
1964–65, Los Angeles, San Francisco; 1967–68, Kentucky, ABA.
Irv Noren
Forward
Pasadena College
1946–47, Chicago, NBL.
Ron Reed
Forward
Notre Dame
1966–67, Detroit, NBA.
Del Rice
Forward
1943–44, Rochester, WBT; 1945–46, Rochester, NBL.
Dick Ricketts
Forward
Duquesne
1955–56, St. Louis; 1955–57, Rochester; 1957–58, Cincinnati, NBA.
Harry Riconda
Forward
1926–27, Philadelphia; 1928–29, Paterson; 1929–30, New York, ABL.
Red Rolfe
Coach
Dartmouth
1946–47, Toronto, NBL.
Rusty Saunders
Forward
1925–26, Brooklyn, Washington; 1926–27, Washington; 1927–28, Brooklyn, Fort Wayne; 1928–31, Fort Wayne, ABL; 1940–41, Detroit; 1945–46, Indianapolis, NBL.
John Scalzi
Referee
Georgetown
1948–49, BAA; 1949–51, NBA.
Howie Schultz
Center/Forward
Hamline
1947–49, Anderson, NBL; 1949–50, PC; 1949–50, Fort Wayne, NBA; 1952–53,
Minnesota.
Danny Silva
Forward
1921–22, Worcester, IL.
John Simmons
Guard
New York University
1946–47, Boston, BAA.
Hank Soar
Head Coach
Providence
1947–48, Providence, BAA.
Keith Thomas
Guard/Referee
Kansas State
1947–48, Kansas City, PBLA; 1961–62, referee, ABL.
Bucky Walters
Center
1931–32, Philadelphia Moose, EBL; 1932–33, Philadelphia Broadcasters, EBL.
Ed Wineapple
Forward Providence
1929–30, Syracuse, ABL.
BASEBALL — HOCKEY
Bill Stewart
Referee/Coach
1928–37, 1940–44, NHL referee; 1937–38, Chicago, NHL, coach.
