John F. Kowalik, Sr. (May 10, 1910 – January 7, 1978) was an American football player. Kowalik was born in 1910. 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 ...

for the University of Michigan from 1931 to 1933. During Kowalik's three seasons as a starter, the Michigan football team compiled a record of 24–1–02, including consecutive national championships for the

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

and 1933 teams. He was a teammate of future President of the United States

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...

on the 1932 and 1933 Michigan teams. While at Michigan, Kowalik was a member of the

Alpha Tau Omega Alpha Tau Omega (), commonly known as ATO, is an American social fraternity founded at the Virginia Military Institute in 1865 by Otis Allan Glazebrook. The fraternity has around 250 active and inactive chapters and colonies in the United Stat ...

fraternity and the Druids. He graduated from Michigan in 1934 with a bachelor of science degree in education. After graduating from Michigan, Kowalik played professional football for the

Ottawa Rough Riders The Ottawa Rough Riders were a Canadian Football League team based in Ottawa, Ontario, founded in 1876. Formerly one of the oldest and longest-lived professional sports teams in North America, the Rough Riders won the Grey Cup championship nine ...

in 1934. Kowalik and his wife, Frances (LaRowe), had a son, John, Jr., and three daughters, Carolyn, Mary, and Janet. John Jr. played college football as a halfback for the University of Michigan from 1960 to 1962. Kowalik lived in Franklin, Michigan, in his later years. He was employed as the automotive sales manager for Precision Casting Co. He died in January 1978 at Grace Hospital in Detroit.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kowalik, John 1910 births 1978 deaths Players of Canadian football from Michigan Michigan Wolverines football players Ottawa Rough Riders players People from Franklin, Michigan Players of American football from Oakland County, Michigan