William Heffelfinger

William Heffelfinger
William “Pudge” Heffelfinger at Yale
Position (s): diverse	Jersey number (s): -
born December 20, 1867 in Minneapolis , Minnesota
died on April 2, 1954 in Blessing , Texas
Career information
Active : 1892
College : University of Minnesota , Yale University
Teams
Allegheny Athletic Association
Career statistics
Touchdown	1
Career highlights and awards
College Football Hall of Fame (1951)
College Football Hall of Fame

William "Pudge" Walter Heffelfinger (born December 20, 1867 in Minneapolis , Minnesota , †  April 2, 1954 in Blessing , Texas ) was an American football player . He is considered the first professional (paid) football player.

origin

Heffelfinger came from a family who had emigrated from German-speaking Switzerland to the USA. He was born and raised in Minneapolis, the son of a shoe manufacturer . Although he graduated from Central High School in 1884 , he already played football at the University of Minnesota .

Style of play

At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, American football was essentially a pure running game. Moving the cue ball forward with a pass was practically unknown, although passing play was not prohibited. Football was an extremely tough sport, in 1905 alone 18 players were killed. Particularly feared was a game formation that was introduced in 1892 by Lorin F. Deland , a coach at Harvard University , and banned again in 1894, the Flying Wedge . The blocking players of the team in possession of the ball hooked themselves under and ran towards the line of scrimmage , where the snapback passed the ball on to a running back , while the flying wedge in a wedge shape played the way for the player leading the ball. This brutal style of play was responsible for numerous injuries. This game formation was also used in the games between Yale and Harvard. Heffelfinger found an antidote to this style of play. He jumped at full speed, pulled his legs up and flew into the flying wedge. This procedure gave him the necessary respect from his opponents, increased the risk of injury to the attacking team , but also gave the 180 cm tall and 91 kg heavy Heffelfinger space that he could use himself for his game. Since he was also able to bring his speed and agility to the game, he became one of the dominant players of the time.

Player career

college

In 1888 Heffelfinger received a scholarship from Yale University in New Haven ( Connecticut ), one of the most prestigious universities in the USA. Heffelfinger played football for the Bulldogs at university . These played in the Intercollegiate Football Association together with the teams from Princeton University , Harvard University and Columbia University . In his first year, Heffelfinger's team managed to beat rival Princeton University 10-0. A year later, Harvard University suffered the same fate and the following year Princeton University was beaten again. After a trip to the Sheffield Scientific School , where he was class representative and wrote a thesis on industrial shoe manufacturing, he returned to Yale University in 1891. Heffelfinger was voted All American three times while in New Haven .

professional

In contrast to baseball , football was a purely amateur sport at the end of the 19th century. It was run at schools or colleges , where traditionally players are not allowed to be paid even today. In parallel to school and university sport , football was also played in so-called athletic clubs . But even there, gambling was not played for money, only for honor.

In 1891 Heffelfinger briefly joined the Chicago Athletic Association . The following year, he became the first player to be paid to play a game. On November 18, 1892, the Allegheny Athletic Association (AAA) played against the rival team of the Pittsburg Athletic Association (PAA). The club from Allegheny offered Heffelfinger 500 US dollars to when he would play for their team. He should also receive $ 25 travel expenses. Heffelfinger took the money, secured a fumble in the game in which the Pittsburgh team also used the Flying Wedge and carried it into the opposing end zone for the only touchdown of the game . The AAA won 4-0. The excitement about the appearance of the non-club player Heffelfinger was already great before the game with the opposing team and the public, but completely unjustified. The PAA team had also offered Heffelfinger money - but “only” 250 US dollars, which was not enough for him to put his amateur status at risk. Since it was already common practice to place bets on the game results at that time, these were all canceled. Both clubs have now agreed to play the game as a friendly. Although the AAA had to pay Heffelfinger a total of $ 525, it made a good profit at $ 621. The ban on professional football was broken, as other clubs were now also trying to make money with their games and offered players salaries between 50 and 500 US dollars per game.

Coaching career

Heffelfinger trained a total of three college teams . 1893 the team of the University of California , where he could win five of seven games, 1894 the Lehigh University (won 5 of 14 games) and 1895 the University of Minnesota . There the team won seven of their ten games with him as coach .

Honors

Heffelfinger is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame . Although he is not a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame , he is remembered there. The statement of the first game in which a player was paid can be viewed there.

Off the field

Heffelfinger was married and had two daughters and a son. He worked as a real estate agent and insurance agent in Minneapolis. Heffelfinger was friends with Theodore Roosevelt , whom he supported in 1904 in his second candidacy for the office of US president . Even William Howard Taft was supported by him in his election as US president. He was eight years County Commissioner in Hennepin County and applied for the Republican nomination for a congressional mandate in 1929 , but it went to William I. Nolan . He last played for Yale University in 1930, aged 63, in an all-star game of American football. Heffelfinger later produced two radio programs. He is buried in Old Hawley Cemetery in Blessing, Texas.

literature

• Jens Plassmann: NFL - American Football. The game, the stars, the stories (= Rororo 9445 rororo Sport ). Rowohlt, Reinbek near Hamburg 1995, ISBN 3-499-19445-7 .

Web links

• Pudge Heffelfinger at Yale University
• Pudge Heffelfinger in the Pro Football Hall of Fame
• Heffelfinger's political career in Time Magazine
• Coach statistics

Individual evidence

1. ↑ History of American Football on the NFL website
2. ^ History of American Football
3. ↑ Description of the Flying Wedge
4. ↑ Player salaries and career of Heffelfinger, burial place in the database of Find a Grave
5. ^ Settlement of the AAA in the Pro Football Hall of Fame