Friday, November 18, 2022

A football game claimed the life of a player. The unknown story of Jack Trice..

 


via Wikipedia

On October 6, 1923, Trice and his Iowa State College teammates played against the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. On the night of the game, Trice got to stay at the same hotel as his teammates who stayed at the Radisson Hotel, but he could not eat with them in the dining room.[4]

During the second play of the game, Trice's collarbone was broken. Trice insisted he was all right and returned to the game. In the third quarter, while attempting to tackle a University of Minnesota ball carrier, Trice ended up on his back after a roll block (a play which is now banned) and was trampled by three Minnesota players.[2] Although he claimed to be fine, Trice was not able to stand and was removed from the game and sent to a Minneapolis hospital. The doctors declared him fit to travel and he returned by train to Ames with his teammates. On October 8, 1923, Trice died from hemorrhaged lungs and internal bleeding as a result of the injuries sustained during the game.[2]

There was a great deal of speculation surrounding the play that resulted in Trice's death. Iowa State teammate Johnny Behm told the Cleveland Plain Dealer in a 1979 interview that "one person told me that nothing out of the ordinary happened. But another who saw it said it was murder."[5]

Iowa State dismissed all classes after 3 p.m. on October 9, 1923, in honor of Trice.[6]

Trice's funeral was held at the Iowa State College's central campus in Ames on October 16, 1923, with 4,000 students and faculty members in attendance. His casket was draped in cardinal and gold (Iowa State's school colors) before he was buried.[7] Trice's casket was transported to Hiram, Ohio for burial at Fairview Cemetery.

As a result of his death, Iowa State did not renew its contract to play against Minnesota for 66 years. The teams would not play again until 1989.[2]

 Saw this on ESPN during their late night broadcast.  Another story I had never heard. 

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