Young Arnold Tucker (January 5, 1924 – January 10, 2019) was a

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

officer who graduated from the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

West Point, New York West Point is the oldest continuously occupied military post in the United States. Located on the Hudson River in New York, West Point was identified by General George Washington as the most important strategic position in America during the Ame ...

in 1947.

Football career

While lettering twice in football, Tucker was a part of three national championship squads (1944, 1945, 1946) on the gridiron. He earned first team all-America honors in 1946 after garnering second team laurels in 1945. After serving as Army's starting quarterback in 1945 and 1946, Tucker finished fifth in the 1946

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

balloting in 1946, behind teammates Glenn Davis and

Felix "Doc" Blanchard Felix Anthony "Doc" Blanchard (December 11, 1924 – April 19, 2009) was an American football player and serviceman who became the first junior to win the Heisman Trophy and Maxwell Award, and was the first football player to win the James E. ...

among others. During his two years as a starter, Tucker guided the Black Knights to a combined 18–0–1 record, while Army went 27–0–1 during his three years as a team member. Tucker passed for 618 yards and nine touchdowns in 1946 and also registered a school-record eight interceptions as a defensive back that year. He still shares the single-season Academy record for interceptions and stands second on Army's career list with 11. Tucker, who was selected to participate in the 1947 College All-star Game played in Chicago, also returned punts and kickoffs for the Black Knights. Tucker lettered twice and served as team captain during his senior year on the basketball team. A former University of Miami and Army star, Tucker played at Miami High in his youth. He won the

James E. Sullivan Award The AAU James E. Sullivan Award, presented by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), is awarded annually in April to "the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States". Representatives from the AAU created the AAU Sullivan Award with the int ...

as the nation's best amateur athlete in 1947 and was elected to the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vote ...

in 2008.

Personal life and death

Young Arnold Tucker was born in

Calhoun Falls, South Carolina Calhoun Falls is a town in Abbeville County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 1,724 at the 2020 census, down from 2,004 at the 2010 census. The town derives its name from John E. Colhoun (or Calhoun), a United States Senator from ...

. During a 29-year career the Army and Air Force, he served during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

, among other capacities, and retired as a lieutenant colonel in 1976. He was married to Patricia Small from 1947 until her death in 1998, and they had two a daughter and son; his son predeceased him in 2014. Tucker, a resident of

Palmetto Bay, Florida Palmetto Bay is a suburban incorporated village in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The population was 24,439 as of the 2020 US census. Palmetto Bay includes three neighborhoods that were former census-designated places, Cutler, R ...

, died in Miami on January 10, 2019, at the age of 95. Aside from a paid death notice from his family, and a passing mention in an

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

retrospective of notable athletes who died in 2019, his death was not widely reported until ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' published an obituary in 2022.

References

External links

Former Army QB elected to College Football Hall of Fame
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tucker, Arnold 1924 births 2019 deaths American Korean War pilots American football quarterbacks American men's basketball players Army Black Knights football coaches Army Black Knights football players Army Black Knights men's basketball players Coaches of American football from Florida College Football Hall of Fame inductees James E. Sullivan Award recipients Miami Hurricanes football players Miami Senior High School alumni People from Calhoun Falls, South Carolina People from Palmetto Bay, Florida Players of American football from Miami Sports coaches from Miami United States Air Force colonels