Joseph N. Bukant (October 31, 1915 – February 9, 2007) 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 ...

fullback Fullback or Full back may refer to: Sports * A position in various kinds of football, including: ** Full-back (association football), in association football (soccer), a defender playing in a wide position ** Fullback (gridiron football), in Americ ...

who played for five seasons 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). 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

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...

, he was drafted by 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 plays ...

in the third round of the 1938 NFL Draft. He played for the Eagles from 1938 to 1940, and for the

Chicago Cardinals The professional American football team now known as the Arizona Cardinals previously played in Chicago, Illinois, as the Chicago Cardinals from 1898 to 1959 before relocating to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 1960 through 1987 seasons. Roots ca ...

from 1942 to 1943.

College career

Bukant played

for the

Washington University Bears The Washington University Bears are the athletic teams of Washington University in St. Louis, located in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Washington University is currently a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the NCAA Di ...

, where he earned two-time all-Midwest and all-

Missouri Valley Conference The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the third-oldest collegiate athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the midwest. History The MVC was established ...

honors. Bukant also earned AP honorable mention All-American in 1935. He also

lettered Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

. He was inducted into the Washington University Bears Hall of Fame in 1993.

Professional career

Bukant was drafted by the

in the third round of the 1938 NFL Draft. He was signed to a contract by the team on July 21, 1938. In his three seasons with the Eagles, he played in all 33 games. As a

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

, he started one game and had 48 rushing attempts for 119 yards, as well as one completed pass for 14 yards. In his second season in

1939 This year also marks the start of the Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Third Reich *** Jews are forbidden to ...

, he had three starts, 59 rushes for 136 yards, and three touchdowns. He also punted once for 54 yards. In

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *January ...

, he started in four games, rushed 18 times for 50 yards and a touchdown, caught one pass for 13 yards, punted fifteen times for a total of 568 yards, and intercepted a pass for 10 yards. After being inactive with an injury throughout the entire 1941 season, Bukant was traded to the

on July 26, 1942, in exchange for halfback

Hugh McCullough Hugh Warner McCullough (May 18, 1916February 11, 1999) was an American football player who played five seasons in the National Football League (NFL). During his time in the NFL, McCullough played for the Pittsburgh Pirates (later renamed the Pitt ...

. In Chicago, Bukant was reunited with his college coach

Jimmy Conzelman James Gleason Dunn Conzelman (March 6, 1898 – July 31, 1970) was an American football player and coach, baseball executive, and advertising executive. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1964 and was selected in 1969 as a qua ...

. In 1942, Bukant rushed 17 times for 34 yards and went 4-of-15 passing for 56 yards and two interceptions. In 1943, he had 42 rushes for 87 yards and went 14-of-40 passing for 109 yards, one touchdown, and five interceptions. He also had five punts for 181 yards.

Military career

After the

1943 NFL season The 1943 NFL season was the 24th regular season of the National Football League. Due to the exodus of players who had left to serve in World War II, the Cleveland Rams were granted permission to suspend operations for this season, while the Ph ...

ended, Bukant joined the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

in order to serve 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 opposin ...

. After training at the

Great Lakes Naval Training Center Naval Station Great Lakes (NAVSTA Great Lakes) is the home of the United States Navy's only boot camp, located near North Chicago, in Lake County, Illinois. Important tenant commands include the Recruit Training Command, Training Support Center ...

, where he played for the Great Lakes Bluejackets service team, he was transferred to the

United States Naval Training Center Bainbridge United States Naval Training Center Bainbridge (USNTC Bainbridge) was the U.S. Navy Training Center at Port Deposit, Maryland, on the bluffs of the northeast bank of the Susquehanna River. It was active from 1942 to 1976 under the Commander of ...

, Maryland in June 1944. He was transferred again to

Camp Peary Camp Peary is an approximately 9,000 acre U.S. military reservation in York County near Williamsburg, Virginia. Officially referred to as an Armed Forces Experimental Training Activity (AFETA) under the authority of the Department of Defense, ...

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 15,425. Located on the Virginia Peninsula ...

, in August 1944, where he played on the service team in 1944.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bukant, Joe 1915 births 2007 deaths People from Sangamon County, Illinois Players of American football from Illinois American football fullbacks Washington University Bears football players Philadelphia Eagles players Chicago Cardinals players United States Navy personnel of World War II