John Don Looney (September 2, 1916 – April 5, 2015) was a professional
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 wi ...
end
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End
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in 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). He was born in
Sulphur Springs, Texas
Sulphur Springs is a city in and the county seat of Hopkins County, Texas, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population was 15,449. Sulphur Springs is located along the western edge of Northeast Texas.
History
Sulphur Springs was named ...
. He was drafted in the eighth round of the 1940 NFL Draft. He played three seasons for the
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...
(1940) and the
Pittsburgh Steelers (1941–1942). He was the first receiver in NFL history to have over 100 yards receiving in each of his first two games, a feat which was not equaled until the
2008 NFL season by another Eagles
wide receiver,
DeSean Jackson
DeSean William Jackson (born December 1, 1986) is an American football wide receiver for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears, where he was recognized as a con ...
. Looney served in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
for the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
after the 1942 season.
At the time of his death, Looney was the second oldest living former NFL player. He was the father of NFL running back
Joe Don Looney, who died in a one-person motorcycle accident after his NFL career ended. Looney was survived by his longtime partner, Linda Roark, whom he met in 1992.
References
External links
*
1916 births
2015 deaths
American football ends
National Football League officials
Philadelphia Eagles players
Pittsburgh Steelers players
TCU Horned Frogs football players
United States Army personnel of World War II
People from Sulphur Springs, Texas
Players of American football from Hopkins County, Texas
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