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In the 1930s, Berwanger was a star football player at the University of Chicago ("the greatest college player I ever saw" said broadcaster Red Barber), and in 1935 won the first Downtown (New York City) Athletic Club Trophy to the Outstanding College Football Player East of the Mississippi River. A year later the trophy was renamed in honor of the club's athletic director, John Heisman. The trophy itself was also redesigned to show a player doing a running block -- modeled on a photo of Berwanger. The Heisman Trophy is still the most prestigious college football award. Berwanger was also the first college player to be drafted by the National Football League, but he turned down the offer because, he said, "I thought I'd have a better future by using my education rather than my football skills." He wasn't terribly impressed by his trophy, either: he let his aunt use it as a doorstop. During World War II, he was a flight instructor for the U.S. Navy, and after the war started a manufacturing company, which he sold in 1992. He died June 26 from lung cancer at age 88. From This is True for 23 June 2002 Suggestions for further reading:
 By: Robert C. GallagherRobert C Gallagher List Price: $12.95 Amazon Price: $10.36  By: Rudy J. RiskaJohn S. ClarkPeter J. Clark List Price: $24.95 Amazon Price: $18.96  By: Bill Pennington List Price: $13.50 Amazon Price: $9.99 Editorial Review: No sport in America can match the pagentry, nationwide appeal, and tradition of college football. It is a world in which a twenty-year-old kid can become a national sensation overnight, in which coaches are deified and rivalries burn white-hot. Frantic cheerleaders, playful mascots, and blaring marching bands breathe life into crisp autumn Saturdays as millions throng to campus stadiums all over the country to cheer their heroes. And in this world, there is no individual award so revered as the Heisman Trophy. Named for John Heisman, a former player and groundbreaking coach, a history of the award is a 67-year saga of American heroes that entranced an entire nation for one brilliant season. Heisman winners have gone on to become war heroes, Fortune 500 CEOs, and high-level politicians. All are extraordinary in many ways beyond their athletic abilities, and the portraits of the winners collected here exemplify the very best of the best. Every year since 1935-through times of depression and expansion, war and peace-one player has run, thrown, or kicked his way into the pantheon of American sport. From Niles -The Cornbelt Comet- Kinnick in the thirties and future NFL Hall of Famer Doc Blanchard in the forties, to Ernie Davis, the Jackie Robinson of college football, to modern day Sunday warriors such as Ricky Williams and Eddie George, the history of the Heisman gives us insight into the history of our nation. This is not just another bauble to adorn the shelves of athletically gifted individuals; the Heisman Trophy, as John Heisman himself once said, -is meant to exemplify the grandeur of a thousand men.- No sport in America can match the pagentry, nationwide appeal, and tradition of college football. It is a world in which a twenty-year-old kid can become a national sensation overnight, in which coaches are deified and rivalries burn white-hot. Frantic cheerleaders, playful mascots, and blaring marching bands breathe life into crisp autumn Saturdays as millions throng to campus stadiums all over the country to cheer their heroes. And in this world, there is no individual award so revered as the Heisman Trophy. Named for John Heisman, a former player and groundbreaking coach, a history of the award is a 67-year saga of American heroes that entranced an entire nation for one brilliant season. Heisman winners have gone on to become war heroes, Fortune 500 CEOs, and high-level politicians. All are extraordinary in many ways beyond their athletic abilities, and the portraits of the winners collected here exemplify the very best of the best. Every year since 1935-through times of depression and expansion, war and peace-one player has run, thrown, or kicked his way into the pantheon of American sport. From Niles "The Cornbelt Comet" Kinnick in the thirties and future NFL Hall of Famer Doc Blanchard in the forties, to Ernie Davis, the Jackie Robinson of college football, to modern day Sunday warriors such as Ricky Williams and Eddie George, the history of the Heisman gives us insight into the history of our nation. This is not just another bauble to adorn the shelves of athletically gifted individuals; the Heisman Trophy, as John Heisman himself once said, "is meant to exemplify the grandeur of a thousand men."  By: Jack Clary List Price: $27.95 Amazon Price: $27.95 Editorial Review: There was a time during the middle of the last century when football teams from the U.S. Military Academy and the U.S. Naval Academy were among the best in the nation. Proof of this point was that five of their players, from 1945-1963, were awarded college football's greatest individual achievement award, the Heisman Trophy. Field of Valor profiles these athletes who during a unique time in history committed themselves to excellence not only on the field of sport but also through their commitment to duty, honor and serving their country. The players, Felix (Doc) Blanchard and Glenn Davis from the 1944-46 teams at Army were the first from a service academy so honored. Twelve years later, Pete Dawkins, captain of West Point's undefeated 1958 team, won the award. Two years after Dawkins received his award, running back Joe Bellino of Navy won the 1960 Heisman and three years later, Roger Staubach, one of the most electrifying players in college football history, received his award. Each of them is in the College Football Hall of Fame (and in Staubach's case, the Pro Football Hall of Fame as well). Blanchard and Davis both retired as brigadier generals after compiling brilliant combat records during the Vietnam conflict. They have been living proof that there is indeed something special about a Heisman Trophy winner from the service academies. Also featured are six Heisman Trophy winners although not from military academies fought valiantly for their country in during WWII. One of this elite group, Nile Kinnick, was the only Heisman Trophy winner killed in combat. Their commitment to Duty, Honor, and Country certainly is reflective of the words pronounced by former West Point Superintendent Douglas MacArthur: "On the fields of friendly strife are sown the seeds that, upon other fields, on other days, will bear the fruits of victory." Air apparent: with footballs and Heisman Trophy talk filling the air, Timmy C... By: David K. Choo List Price: $5.95 Amazon Price: $5.95 Editorial Review: This digital document is an article from Hawaii Business, published by Hawaii Business Publishing Co. on September 1, 2003. The length of the article is 1445 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser. Citation Details Title: Air apparent: with footballs and Heisman Trophy talk filling the air, Timmy Chang is poised to become the Islands' most celebrated athlete ever. Author: David K. Choo Publication: Hawaii Business (Magazine/Journal) Date: September 1, 2003 Publisher: Hawaii Business Publishing Co. Volume: 49 Issue: 3 Page: S4(3) Distributed by Thomson Gale |
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