Mercer McCall "Mack" Tharpe (July 12, 1903 – February 21, 1945) was a

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 ...

player and coach, bomber pilot, and insurance salesman. He was killed in action during the

Second World War 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 ...

Georgia Tech

Tharpe was a prominent tackle for William Alexander's

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets Football Program represents the Georgia Institute of Technology in the NCAA Division 1 Collegiate Competitors in the sport of American football. The Yellow Jackets college football team competes in the NCAA Div ...

team, selected All-Southern in 1926. He returned to his alma mater to coach in 1928, promoted to line coach in 1934. In 1931, he sought a scouting report on North Carolina, and

Robert Neyland Robert Reese Neyland (; February 17, 1892 – March 28, 1962) was an American football player and coach and officer in the United States Army, reaching the rank of brigadier general. He served three stints as the head football coach at the Univ ...

had Bobby Dodd explain the defense to him. Along with Alexander he is the namesake of the Alexander-Tharpe fund. Tharpe was inducted into the Georgia Tech Athletics Hall of Fame in 1961.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tharpe, Mack 1903 births 1945 deaths American football tackles Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football coaches Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football players People from Moultrie, Georgia All-Southern college football players United States Army Air Forces personnel killed in World War II Players of American football from Georgia (U.S. state)