Paul Vincent "Pitchin' Paul" Governali (January 5, 1921 – February 14, 1978) was a professional

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 wi ...

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

. An

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, he was the 1942 recipient of the

Maxwell Award The Maxwell Award is presented annually to the college football player judged by a panel of sportscasters, sportswriters, and National Collegiate Athletic Association head coaches and the membership of the Maxwell Football Club to be the best al ...

for College Player of the Year and the first runner-up for the Heisman Trophy. At

, he passed for 1,442 yards in nine games that season, threw 19 passes for touchdowns, and completed 52 percent of his passes, all new collegiate records. He was also among the leading punters in the nation. He still holds the Columbia record for touchdown passes in one game (five). After graduating in 1943, he passed up offers from both professional baseball and football teams to enlist in the

US Marines The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

, where he served for three years. He went on to play for the

Boston Yanks The Boston Yanks were a National Football League team based in Boston, Massachusetts, that played from 1944 to 1948. The team played its home games at Fenway Park. Any games that conflicted with the Boston Red Sox baseball schedule in the Ameri ...

and New York Giants (1946-1948). After a lackluster 1948 season, Governali retired from professional football and returned to Columbia, where he worked as an assistant coach while pursuing his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...

in education, which he received in 1951. He returned to coaching football at

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

for five years from 1956 to 1960. The Aztecs had a lackluster record during those years and Governali was succeeded by Don Coryell, who led them to their best years. Governali was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1986. Paul Governali also had a minor stint as an actor, portraying a professional football player in the 1948 movie titled, "Triple Threat."https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0332850/?ref_=tt_cl_t15 Paul Governali was married to Edna Governali with whom they had 4 children: Paul, Jeannie, Nicole, and Sam.

Head coaching record

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Governali, Paul 1921 births 1978 deaths American football quarterbacks Boston Yanks players Columbia Lions football coaches Columbia Lions football players Maxwell Award winners New York Giants players San Diego State Aztecs football coaches All-American college football players College Football Hall of Fame inductees Sportspeople from the Bronx Players of American football from New York City United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II

Head coaching record

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