Joseph E. "Truck" Truskowski (c. 1906 – July 1959) 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 ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

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 , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. 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 End, END, Ending, or variation, may refer to: End *In mathematics: ** End (category theory) ** End (topology) **End (graph theory) ** End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) **End (endomorphism) *In sports and games **End (gridiron footbal ...

position for the

Michigan football The Michigan Wolverines football team represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins in college football history. The team is known for its ...

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 team. At the end of the 1928 season, he was selected as the captain of the 1929 Michigan Wolverines football team. 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 Harry George Kipke (; March 26, 1899 – September 14, 1972) was an American football, basketball, and baseball player and coach. He was the head football coach at Michigan State College in 1928 and at the University of Michigan from 1929 to 1937 ...

and

Bennie Oosterbaan Benjamin Oosterbaan ( ; February 24, 1906 – October 25, 1990) was a three-time first team All-American football end for the Michigan Wolverines football team, two-time All-American basketball player for the basketball team, and an All-Big Ten C ...

) 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 Olivet College is a private Christian liberal arts college located in Olivet, Michigan. The college is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It was founded in 1844 by missionaries from Oberlin College, and it followed Oberlin in becom ...

in 1931. He was hired assistant football coach at

Iowa State University 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 ...

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 Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

. 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