Jack Kenneth Matheson (June 9, 1920 – February 14, 1997) 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 ...

player. A native of

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

, he played college football at Western Michigan College of Education (later renamed Western Michigan University). He later played professional football at the

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 ...

and end positions 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) for five seasons for 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 ...

(1943-1946) and

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

(1947). He appeared in 42 NFL games, 32 of them as a starter, and totaled 73 receptions for 944 yards. During his four seasons with the Lions, he set the club's career record (later broken) with 73 receptions, breaking a record previously held by

Lloyd Cardwell Lloyd Raymond Cardwell (April 19, 1913 – November 10, 1997) was an American football player and coach. He played college football for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and professionally in the National Football League (NFL) with the Detroit Lions for se ...

. He also set the Lions' single-season record with 23 receptions in 1944, though his mark was eclipsed the following year by John Greene. While playing professional football, Matheson also worked as a toolmaker. Matheson died at age 76 in 1997 in

Okeechobee County, Florida Okeechobee County () is a county located in the Florida Heartland region of the state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,644. The county seat is Okeechobee. Okeechobee County comprises the Okeechobee, FL Micropolitan St ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matheson, Jack 1920 births 1997 deaths American football guards American football ends Chicago Bears players Detroit Lions players Western Michigan Broncos football players Players of American football from Detroit