Brown Bears | |
---|---|
Position | Quarterback |
Personal information | |
Born: | October 3, 1891 Fitchburg, Massachusetts, U.S. |
Died: | July 23, 1963 (aged 71) Massachusetts, U.S. |
Career history | |
College | Brown |
Career highlights and awards | |
|
George M. "Kid" Crowther (October 3, 1891 – July 23, 1963) was an American football player. He was named the consensus All-American at quarterback in 1912.
A native of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, Crowther enrolled at Brown University where he played three years of varsity football. He was Brown's starting quarterback from 1910 to 1912. [1] He scored 77 points on 14 touchdowns and a field goal during his career at Brown. Crowther was considered "a slippery runner with good speed." [1] Crowther did not wear a helmet and instead played with a white elastic band around his head. [1]
Various accounts indicate that he weighed between 130 and 135 pounds while playing football at Brown. [1] [2] He received the nickname "Kid" because of his small size. [2] In a game against Harvard in 1912, the Harvard coach suggested that the diminutive Crowther should be removed for the game "for his own safety," and Crowther responded with a 48-yard run for a touchdown in the game. [2] Crowther's run was Brown's only touchdown against Harvard; one newspaper described the play as follows: "The last period was played in twilight and it was then that Crowther, the Brown quarter back, ran half the length of the field for Brown's only touchdown." [3]
Crowther also handled kickoff and punt returns for Brown, and in 1911 he tied the Brown record for the longest kickoff return with a 110-yard return against UMass. [4] Crowther also had other long runs, including a 65-yard kickoff return against Bowdoin. [1] He also led Brown to a 30–7 win over Penn, Crowther reportedly "returned punts like a demon, and crisply directed four touchdown drives that had the fans at old Andrews Field delirious with joy." [1] At the end of the 1912 season, Crowthers was selected as a first-team All-American at the quarterback position by Walter Camp (for Collier's Weekly) and W.J. MacBeth. [5] [6] [7]
Crowther also played baseball at Brown and later in semi-professional leagues around New England. [1]
Crowther graduated from Brown in 1913. [1] He later recalled playing against Jim Thorpe in a Thanksgiving Day game against the Carlisle Indian School. He described Thorpe as the "best I ever played against." [8]
Crowther lived in Fitchburg, Massachusetts in his later years. [8] His wife, Elizabeth Crowther, died in September 1962. [9] Crowther died less than a year later in July 1963.
Crowther was posthumously inducted into the Brown University Hall of Fame in 1972. [1]
Brown Bears | |
---|---|
Position | Quarterback |
Personal information | |
Born: | October 3, 1891 Fitchburg, Massachusetts, U.S. |
Died: | July 23, 1963 (aged 71) Massachusetts, U.S. |
Career history | |
College | Brown |
Career highlights and awards | |
|
George M. "Kid" Crowther (October 3, 1891 – July 23, 1963) was an American football player. He was named the consensus All-American at quarterback in 1912.
A native of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, Crowther enrolled at Brown University where he played three years of varsity football. He was Brown's starting quarterback from 1910 to 1912. [1] He scored 77 points on 14 touchdowns and a field goal during his career at Brown. Crowther was considered "a slippery runner with good speed." [1] Crowther did not wear a helmet and instead played with a white elastic band around his head. [1]
Various accounts indicate that he weighed between 130 and 135 pounds while playing football at Brown. [1] [2] He received the nickname "Kid" because of his small size. [2] In a game against Harvard in 1912, the Harvard coach suggested that the diminutive Crowther should be removed for the game "for his own safety," and Crowther responded with a 48-yard run for a touchdown in the game. [2] Crowther's run was Brown's only touchdown against Harvard; one newspaper described the play as follows: "The last period was played in twilight and it was then that Crowther, the Brown quarter back, ran half the length of the field for Brown's only touchdown." [3]
Crowther also handled kickoff and punt returns for Brown, and in 1911 he tied the Brown record for the longest kickoff return with a 110-yard return against UMass. [4] Crowther also had other long runs, including a 65-yard kickoff return against Bowdoin. [1] He also led Brown to a 30–7 win over Penn, Crowther reportedly "returned punts like a demon, and crisply directed four touchdown drives that had the fans at old Andrews Field delirious with joy." [1] At the end of the 1912 season, Crowthers was selected as a first-team All-American at the quarterback position by Walter Camp (for Collier's Weekly) and W.J. MacBeth. [5] [6] [7]
Crowther also played baseball at Brown and later in semi-professional leagues around New England. [1]
Crowther graduated from Brown in 1913. [1] He later recalled playing against Jim Thorpe in a Thanksgiving Day game against the Carlisle Indian School. He described Thorpe as the "best I ever played against." [8]
Crowther lived in Fitchburg, Massachusetts in his later years. [8] His wife, Elizabeth Crowther, died in September 1962. [9] Crowther died less than a year later in July 1963.
Crowther was posthumously inducted into the Brown University Hall of Fame in 1972. [1]