Byron W. Wentz (April 21, 1901 – May 25, 1963) was an American football player. He was one of the leading offensive stars during the early years of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

. Wentz attended

Penn State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State became ...

. There helped the Nittany Lions get to the

1923 Rose Bowl The 1923 Rose Bowl, played on January 1, 1923, was an American Football bowl game. It was the 9th Rose Bowl Game. The USC Trojans defeated the Penn State Nittany Lions 14-3. Leo Calland, a USC guard, was named the Rose Bowl Player of the Game when ...

. In 1925 Wentz made his NFL debut with the

Pottsville Maroons The Pottsville Maroons were an American football team based in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, in the northeastern part of the state. Founded in 1920, they played in the National Football League (NFL) from 1925 to 1928. In 1929 they relocated to Boston ...

. In 1925 Wentz helped the Maroons win the NFL Championship. However the title was stripped from the team due to a rules violation. Barney was also instrumental at during Pottsville's infamous win against the Notre Dame All-Stars featuring the

Four Horsemen The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are figures in the Christian scriptures, first appearing in the Book of Revelation, a piece of apocalypse literature written by John of Patmos. Revelation 6 tells of a book or scroll in God's right hand tha ...

, a team that was considered better than any amateur or pro team, in 1925. During an

All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list th ...

season in 1926, he led the NFL with 10

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

s and helped the Maroons finish 3rd in the standings with a 10-2 record. In a game against the

Akron Indians The Akron Pros were a professional football team that played in Akron, Ohio from 1908 to 1926. The team originated in 1908 as a semi-pro team named the Akron Indians, but later became Akron Pros in 1920 as the team set out to become a charter mem ...

he had 3 rushing touchdowns. He also was third-best in scoring with 60 points in 1926. Wentz finished his career with 17 touchdowns, 1

field goal A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. The entire ba ...

and 1 extra point kick for a total of 108 points in 40 Games with Pottsville. He died at Ashland in 1963.https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/W/WentBa20.htmM

References

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Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wentz, Barney 1901 births 1963 deaths People from Shenandoah, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Pennsylvania American football fullbacks Penn State Nittany Lions football players Pottsville Maroons players