Joe Kendall (American Football)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Joseph Nathaniel Kendall (October 2, 1909 – November 25, 1965) was an American
gridiron football Gridiron football,"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Ret ...
player, best known for 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 the Kentucky State Industrial College for Colored Persons (now
Kentucky State University Kentucky State University (KSU and KYSU) is a Public university, public Historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Frankfort, Kentucky. Founded in 1886 as the State Normal School for Colored Persons ...
) in the mid-1930s. Nicknamed "Tarzan" for his athletic prowess, he was inducted to 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 vote ...
in 2007.


Biography

Kendall was born in
Owensboro, Kentucky Owensboro is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in the state by population. Owensboro is located on U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 165 about southwest of Lou ...
, in 1909, and attended high school there. A dominant figure in black college football in the 1930s, Kendall first played for West Kentucky Industrial College, a
junior college A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...
, during the 1932 season. He then played for the Kentucky State Thorobreds during the 1933–1936 seasons. His nickname of " Tarzan" appeared in print by October 1934. While Kendall played as a halfback, football of the era included much more passing by halfbacks than in modern collegiate or professional football; various newspaper reports of the era highlighted Kendall's skill as a passer. Kendall helped lead the 1934 Kentucky State Thorobreds to an undefeated season and consensus black college football national championship selection; the program was also named champion by some selectors in 1933 and 1935. In December 1935, the Thorobreds defeated Florida A&M in that season's Orange Blossom Classic; coverage of the game highlighted "Kendall with his sure arm, shooting bullet-like passes all over the field." Kentucky State had an overall record during Kendall's playing years. He was a first-team All-America selection by
Chester L. Washington Chester Lloyd Washington Jr. (April 13, 1902 – August 31, 1983) was an American journalist, newspaper publisher and editor. He was owner of Central News-Wave Publications, which at one time published over a dozen newspapers. Biography Washi ...
, sports editor of the '' Pittsburgh Courier'', for the 1934 to 1936 seasons. In September 1938, Kendall played on an all-star team against the
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 ...
in an exhibition game at Soldier Field. Following his playing career, Kendall served as a high school teacher, principal, and sports coach. He first taught in Harlan, Kentucky, interrupted by service in the United States Army during World War II. He then taught in Owensboro from 1948 until his death. Kendall died on November 25, 1965, at Owensboro Daviess County Hospital, a month after sustaining injuries in an automobile accident on
U.S. Route 60 U.S. Route 60 is a major east–west United States highway, traveling from southwestern Arizona to the Atlantic Ocean coast in Virginia. The highway's eastern terminus is in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where it is known as Pacific Avenue, in the ...
near Garfield, Kentucky. He was survived by his wife, four sons, and three daughters. A park in Kendall's hometown of Owensboro was co-named in his honor in 1973. Kendall was inducted into the Kentucky State Athletics Hall of Fame in 1975, and was inducted to 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 vote ...
in 2007, becoming the first inductee from Kentucky State. He was inducted to the
Black College Football Hall of Fame The Black College Football Hall of Fame (BCFHOF) is an American hall of fame for college football players, coaches and contributors from historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). It was founded in 2009 in Atlanta, centrally located ...
in 2011.


References


External links

*
Kendall-Perkins Park
at owensboroparks.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Kendall, Joe 1909 births 1965 deaths Sportspeople from Owensboro, Kentucky Players of American football from Kentucky Kentucky State Thorobreds football players 20th-century African-American sportspeople Educators from Kentucky High school football coaches in Kentucky College Football Hall of Fame inductees