Joseph E. "Truck" Truskowski (c. 1906 – July 1959) was an American football, basketball and baseball player and coach. He played

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 ...

, basketball and baseball at the University of Michigan. He later served as the head baseball coach at

Iowa State Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...

from 1936 to 1937 and at Wayne State in 1941 and from 1946 to 1959.

Early years

Truskowski was born in Detroit in approximately 1906. He attended Detroit's Northwestern High School where he was a star athlete from 1923 to 1925.

Athletic career

Truskowski played three years each at the end position for the Michigan football team and as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

for the

Michigan basketball The Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team is the intercollegiate men's basketball program representing the University of Michigan. The school competes in the Big Ten Conference in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association ...

team. At the end of the 1928 season, he was selected as the captain of the

1929 Michigan Wolverines football team The 1929 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan in the 1929 Big Ten Conference football season. The team compiled a 5–3–1 record (1–3–1 against Big Ten opponents), tied ...

. As a senior captain in 1929, he started games at three positions -- left end, quarterback, and right halfback. In basketball, Truskowski was a starting forward on the

1928–29 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team The 1928–29 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team represented the University of Michigan in intercollegiate college basketball during the 1928–29 season. The team played its home games at Yost Arena on the school's campus in Ann Arbo ...

that won the Big Ten championship. He was also the leading scorer on the 1929–30 team with 113 points in 14 games. Truskowski also played as a catcher for the

Michigan Wolverines baseball The Michigan Wolverines baseball team represents the University of Michigan in NCAA Division I college baseball. Along with most other Michigan athletic teams, the baseball team participates in the Big Ten Conference. They play their home games ...

team and was the third player in Michigan history (after Harry Kipke and Bennie Oosterbaan) to win three varsity letter in the same academic year. In all, Truskowski won a total of eight varsity letters at Michigan. While a student at Michigan, he joined Theta Kappa Nu Fraternity.

Coaching career

Following his collegiate athletic career, Truskowski worked as a coach. He was the head football coach at Olivet College in 1931. He was hired assistant football coach at Iowa State University in March 1932. He was also the head coach of the

Iowa State Cyclones baseball Iowa State Cyclones baseball was the intercollegiate baseball program at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. The program existed from 1892 to 2001. Due to budget cuts, Iowa State athletic director Bruce Van De Velde announced the end of the base ...

team from 1935 to 1937. Truskowski led Iowa State's baseball team to consecutive Big Six championships in 1935 and 1936. In 1937, Truskowski left Iowa State to become an assistant football coach and head basketball coach at Wayne State University. Truskowski joined the Navy in 1942 and returned to Wayne State in 1945. He also served as the head baseball coach at Wayne State in 1941 and again from 1946 to 1959. Truskowski changed his name to Joe Truske. He died from a heart attack at his summer home in

Lion's Head, Ontario Lion's Head is a community in the municipality of Northern Bruce Peninsula, Bruce County, Ontario, Canada. It is located at the midway point of the Bruce Peninsula, about halfway between Owen Sound and Tobermory, just east of Ferndale on Bruce ...

, in July 1959.

Head coaching record

Football

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Truskowski, Joseph 1900s births 1959 deaths All-American college men's basketball players American football ends American men's basketball players Forwards (basketball) Iowa State Cyclones baseball coaches Iowa State Cyclones football coaches Michigan Wolverines baseball players Michigan Wolverines football players Michigan Wolverines men's basketball players Olivet Comets football coaches Wayne State Warriors baseball coaches Wayne State Warriors football coaches Northwestern High School (Michigan) alumni Coaches of American football from Michigan Players of American football from Detroit Baseball coaches from Michigan Basketball players from Detroit