Henry Holman Ketcham (June 17, 1891 – November 1986) was an American college football player who was a

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

and

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

positions for the

Yale Bulldogs football The Yale Bulldogs football program represents Yale University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA). Yale's football program is one of the oldest in the world, having begun compe ...

team of Yale University. Ketcham was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American in 1911 and 1912, and as a second-team selection in 1913. He was inducted into 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 vot ...

in 1968.

Biography

Ketcham was born in

Englewood, New Jersey Englewood is a city in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, which at the 2020 United States census had a population of 29,308. Englewood was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from port ...

. After attending the Hotchkiss School, he enrolled at Yale University, where he was a member of Skull and Bones. He played every game for Yale's varsity football team in 1911, 1912, and 1913. He helped lead Yale to a 7–2–1 record in 1911 and a 7–1–1 record in 1912 and was a consensus All-American in both of those years. In 1913, Ketcham was selected as the captain of Yale's football team. In a departure from past tradition at Yale, Ketcham appointed Howard Jones as the school's first salaried football coach. Ketcham later recalled: "I played every varsity game for three years and was taken out only once for a slight injury … I am generally credited with having developed the term 'roving center'. Except for today's platoon systems, football hasn't changed materially. We had the on-side kick, the ball was a bit larger in circumference and the drop kick was more popular than the place kick."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ketcham, Hank 1891 births 1986 deaths American football centers American football guards Yale Bulldogs football players All-American college football players College Football Hall of Fame inductees People from Englewood, New Jersey Players of American football from New Jersey