James E. "Ching" Hammill III (September 28, 1902 – November 25, 1925) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

back. After playing

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 ...

for

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

he played four seasons professionally, for a team in

Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnoc ...

from 1922 to 1924, and both the Providence Steam Roller 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 ...

(NFL) and All-New Britain in 1925 before his death in November of that year.

Early life and education

Hammill was born on September 28, 1902, in

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the List of cities by population in New England, fifth-most populous ...

. He entered Bridgeport High School in 1917, making the varsity team as a

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ara ...

. He received more playing time under coach Fred Hunt in 1918, who "saw Hammill's abilities as a football player." His school won most of their games that year, with Hammill "running wild" in the majority of them. Following the season, Hammill was a unanimous selection for the all-state team. He was team captain as a junior in 1919, earning a second unanimous all-state selection. He transferred to Hebron Academy the following year, playing one season. Though Hammill initially committed to

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

, he changed his mind and instead enrolled at the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from Hart ...

. After the season, he was named all-New England at the

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

position. He left the school after just one year.

Professional career

After leaving Connecticut, he signed a contract to play professional football with a team in Bridgeport. He scored the game-winning

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 ...

over a team called "Williams", which helped them head "straight for a state championship." A 1922 article in '' The Bridgeport Telegram'' said his "greatest feat on the gridiron this season was his 53 yard run back of a punt which he scored a touchdown." He returned to Bridgeport for the 1923 and 1924 seasons. Hammill made one of his longest career plays in 1924 against the "West Sides", scoring on a 65-yard rush. In 1925, Hammill was signed by the Providence Steam Roller of the

(NFL), making his debut against the Frankford Yellow Jackets on October 3, starting at the quarterback position. He and

Cy Wentworth Marvin Palmer Morris "Cyclone, Cy" Wentworth (January 24, 1904 – October 10, 1982) was a Canadian hockey player. He played in the National Hockey League between 1927 and 1940 with the Chicago Black Hawks, Montreal Maroons, and Montreal Canadien ...

were described by ''

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...

'' as seeming to be "the only men in Providence's galaxy who could tear through Frankford's first and secondary defense for any sort of gains." The Steam Roller lost, 0–7. In November 1925, he also played for All-New Britain of

New Britain, Connecticut New Britain is a city in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It is located approximately southwest of Hartford. According to 2020 Census, the population of the city is 74,135. Among the southernmost of the communities encompassed wit ...

Death

On November 25, 1925, less than two months after making his NFL debut, Hammill died of injuries suffered in an accident at his job. A report in ''The Journal'' said the following: A game was held in December between the Bridgeport High School basketball team and former alumni, with the earnings going to the benefit of his family. A sportswriter in the ''

Hartford Courant The ''Hartford Courant'' is the largest daily newspaper in the U.S. state of Connecticut, and is considered to be the oldest continuously published newspaper in the United States. A morning newspaper serving most of the state north of New Haven ...

'' posthumously called him:

maybe the best player Connecticut ever had ... He could run, pass and kick. And what a tackler he was! He had as tricky a running style as I've ever seen on a football field and he had football sense that was uncanny. He would be hemmed in by tacklers and somehow he would get away and keep running.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hammill, Ching 1902 births 1925 deaths Players of American football from Connecticut American football quarterbacks American football running backs UConn Huskies football players Providence Steam Roller players Sportspeople from Bridgeport, Connecticut Industrial accident deaths Accidental deaths in Connecticut