Football Hall of Famer Charley Trippi dead at 100
College and Pro Football Hall of Famer Charley Trippi, a do-it-all player for the University of Georgia and the Chicago Cardinals, died Wednesday at 100 years old.
Trippi was part of the Cardinals’ famed “Million Dollar Backfield,” assembled by owner Charles Bidwell, which won the 1947 NFL title.
Trippi, primarily a halfback on the squad, is the only player in the Pro Football Hall of Fame with at least 1,000 yards rushing, passing and receiving.
Cardinals owner Michael Bidwell said in a statement that Tippi “will always enjoy a special place in the history of the National Football League, the Cardinals franchise and especially in the hearts of our family.”
At Georgia, Trippi led the Bulldogs to victory in the 1943 Rose Bowl and in 1946 won the Maxwell Award as the nation’s most outstanding college football player.
His college career is even more remarkable considering he missed the 1944 season and part of 1945 due to military service in World War II.
“Charley Trippi was one of the greatest Bulldogs of all time!” tweeted Georgia Athletic Director Josh Brooks. “It was an honor to get to know him! God Bless the Trippi family.”
In his nine seasons with the Cardinals, he made the Pro Bowl twice and was named to the NFL 1940s All-Decade Team.
Trippi was the oldest living member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the oldest living No. 1 draft pick.
Trippi’s first wife, Virginia, died in 1971. He is survived by his second wife, Peggy, two children, three stepchildren, 15 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren, according to The New York Times.
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