Robert James "Hunchy" Hoernschemeyer (September 25, 1925 – June 18, 1980) was an American football player. A native of Cincinnati, he played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

as a halfback for the Indiana Hoosiers football in 1943 and 1944 and as a quarterback for the

Navy Midshipmen football The Navy Midshipmen football team represents the United States Naval Academy in NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) college football. The Naval Academy completed its final season as an FBS independent school (not in a conference) i ...

team in 1945. He led the NCAA in both total offense and

passing Passing may refer to: Social identity * Passing (sociology), presenting oneself as a member of another sociological group ** Passing (gender), presenting oneself as being cisgender ** Passing (racial identity), presenting oneself as a member ...

yards during the 1943 season. He played professional football for ten years in the

All-America Football Conference The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the ...

(AAFC) and National Football League (NFL). He played for the Chicago Rockets and

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...

from 1946 to 1948 and was among the AAFC leaders in multiple offensive categories and, when the league folded in 1950, Hoernschemeyer held the league record with 6,218 yards of total offense (4,109 passing yards and 2,109 rushing yards). He then played six years in the NFL with the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...

from 1950 to 1955. He was the Lions' leading rusher for four consecutive years and was a member of the club's

1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Black Saturday in Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, becomes m ...

and

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito i ...

NFL championship teams. He played in the

and

1953 Pro Bowl The 1953 Pro Bowl was the NFL's third annual all-star game which featured the league's outstanding performers from the 1952 season. The game was played on January 10, 1953, at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California in front ...

s and was selected as a second-team All-Pro player in 1952 and 1953. The

Professional Football Researchers Association The Professional Football Researchers Association (PFRA) is an organization of researchers whose mission is to preserve and, in some cases, reconstruct professional football history. It was founded on June 22, 1979 in Canton, Ohio by writer/hist ...

named Hoernschemeyer to the PRFA Hall of Very Good Class of 2008.

Early life

Hoernschemeyer was born in 1925 in Cincinnati, Ohio. He attended Cincinnati's Elder High School, where he became an all-city football player. During a 1942 game, he accounted for all 27 points scored by Elder, on touchdown runs of 21 and 41 yards, a touchdown pass, an interception return of 45 yards for a fourth touchdown and three extra points.

College football

Hoernschemeyer enrolled at Indiana University. He began playing for Bo McMillin's Indiana Hoosiers football team at age 17 in 1943. He led the NCAA in 1943 with 1,648 yards of total offense and 1,133 passing yards. In 1944, Hoernschemeyer was inducted into the United States Navy. He was assigned to the Bainbridge Navy Training Center in Maryland, but he was granted a "special order discharge" allowing him to return to Indiana in the fall of 1944, pending his entry into the United States Military Academy. He missed the first game of Indiana's 1944 season but returned to campus two days before the team's game against Illinois. He played only 18 minutes against Illinois. After returning to the starting lineup, he helped lead the 1944 Hoosiers to shutout victories over Michigan (20–0), Nebraska (54–0), Iowa (32–0), and Pittsburgh (47–0). In the summer of 1945, Hoernschemeyer entered the Naval Academy. Playing at the quarterback position, he helped lead the

1945 Navy Midshipmen football team The 1945 Navy Midshipmen football team represented the United States Naval Academy during the 1945 college football season. In their second season under head coach Oscar Hagberg, the Midshipmen compiled a 7–1–1 record, shut out three opponent ...

to a 7–1–1 record and a #3 ranking in the final AP Poll, with the only loss coming to #1 Army. He left the Naval Academy in February 1946 "due to academic deficiencies."

Professional football

AAFC

In July 1946, Hoernschemeyer signed to play with the Chicago Rockets in the

(AAFC). As a rookie, he ranked among the AAFC leaders with 1,266 passing yards (4th), 14 passing touchdowns (2nd), 375 rushing yards (9th), 366 punt and kick return yards (9th), and 3.4 yards per rushing attempt (5th). After playing the first two games of the 1947 season with the Rockets, Hoernschemeyer was traded to the

in a three-team deal that sent the league's 1946 MVP Glenn Dobbs from the Dodgers to the Los Angeles Dons and 1943

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 ...

winner Angelo Bertelli to the Rockets. Hoernschemeyer was again among the AAFC leaders in 1947 with 704 rushing yards (6th) and 926 passing yards (8th). On October 17, 1947, he broke two AAFC records in a game against the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

– an 84-yard run and 179 yards for the game. He continued to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1948. When the Dodgers merged with the New York Yankees in early 1949, Hoernschemeyer was assigned to the Chicago team by then known as the

Hornets Hornets (insects in the genus ''Vespa'') are the largest of the eusocial wasps, and are similar in appearance to their close relatives yellowjackets. Some species can reach up to in length. They are distinguished from other vespine wasps by th ...

. Playing at the halfback position for the Hornets in 1949, he was among the AAFC leaders with 1,519 yards of total offense (5th), 1,063 passing yards (5th), 456 rushing yards (10th), and 373 kick return yards (4th). When the AAFC folded, Hoernschemeyer, with five years experience, held the league record for total offense as a passer and rusher.

Detroit Lions

When the AAFC folded, Hoernschemeyer was selected by the

in a special draft of AAFC talent conducted in June 1950. In his first NFL season, he led the Lions with 471 rushing yards on 84 carries, and his average of 5.6 yards per carry was the third highest in the NFL. On Thanksgiving Day 1953, he set two Detroit club records, rushing for 198 yards and a 96-yard touchdown run against the New York Yankees. His 96-yard run remains tied for the sixth longest in NFL history. He led the Lions in rushing again in 1951 with 678 yards (fourth most in the NFL) on 132 carries. He helped lead the 1951 Lions to a 7–4–1 record and second place in the NFL National Division. For the second year in a row, his biggest play occurred on Thanksgiving Day, this time an 85-yard run against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

that proved to be the longest run of the year in the NFL. After the 1951 season, he was selected to play in the

1952 Pro Bowl The 1952 Pro Bowl was the NFL's second annual all-star game which featured the league's outstanding performers from the 1951 season. The game was played on January 12, 1952, at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California in fron ...

. In his third NFL season, he helped the 1952 Detroit Lions win the NFL championship. For the third consecutive season, he led the team in rushing yards (457). In the post-season, he rushed 18 times for 76 yards and a touchdown. After the 1952 season, Hoernschemeyer was selected as second-team All-Pro by both the Associated Press and United Press. He was also selected to play in the

. In 1953, he led the Lions in rushing (482 yards) for the fourth consecutive year, helping the Lions win their second consecutive NFL championship. He was selected by the United Press as a second-team All-Pro player in 1953. Hoernschemeyer remained with the Lions during the 1954 and 1955 seasons, but his production declined to 242 rushing yards in 1954 and 109 rushing yards in 1955. He suffered a shoulder separation against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

on November 13, 1955, ending his NFL career at age 30.

Later years

After retiring from football, Hoernschemeyer and former Lions teammate, Jug Girard, operated a bar known as the Lions Den on Detroit's east side. He owned the bar until 1966. In 1968, he began working for the Ford Motor Company where he remained until his death. Hoernschemeyer and his wife, Marybelle had a son and four daughters. In June 1980, after a 62-day hospitalization and a two-year fight with cancer, he died at St. Johns Hospital in Detroit at age 54.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hoernschemeyer, Robert 1925 births 1980 deaths American football quarterbacks American football running backs Brooklyn Dodgers (AAFC) players Chicago Hornets players Chicago Rockets players Detroit Lions players Indiana Hoosiers football players Navy Midshipmen football players Western Conference Pro Bowl players Players of American football from Cincinnati Elder High School alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II