Stanislaus Clarence Kostka (July 8, 1912 – February 3, 1997) 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 ...

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 ...

at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

and was a member of the

1934 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team The 1934 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 1934 college football season. In their third year under head coach Bernie Bierman, the Golden Gophers compiled an undefeated 8–0 record, shut out fou ...

that won a

national championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

. Kostka played professionally 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 ...

for the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude Franco-Italian Agreement of 1935, an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * ...

. He served as the head football coach at North Dakota Agricultural College—now known as North Dakota State University in 1941 and from 1946 to 1947, compiling a record of 8–17. He was also the head

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 ...

coach at North Dakota Agricultural in 1947, tallying a mark of 5–3. Kostka served as a lieutenant commander in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during

World War II 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 ...

. Kostka, a squarely built 6-foot, 225-pounder who only played one year, received offers from the Bears, Packers, Giants, Steelers, and Brooklyn. "A team would send me a wire and say they'd give me $3,500," he recalled. "I'd send a wire back and say Green Bay or the Chicago Bears said they'd give me $4,000. I kept that up". Kostka eventually culminated the bargaining by signing a $5,000 contract,''Stumbling on Wins in Football''
/ref> along with a $500 bonus, with Brooklyn. "That was a big deal then," said Kostka. "I think like Nagurski was in the league about three years and making $400 or less. Most of the guys were making $50 a ball game." Kostka was born in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota and died in

Fargo, North Dakota Fargo ( /ˈfɑɹɡoʊ/) is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, United States. According to the 2020 census, its population was 125,990, making it the most populous city in the state and the 219th-most populous city in ...

at the age of 84.

Head coaching record

Football

References

External links

* * 1912 births 1997 deaths American football fullbacks American football linebackers Brooklyn Dodgers (NFL) players Minnesota Golden Gophers football players North Dakota State Bison baseball coaches North Dakota State Bison football coaches United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy officers Sportspeople from Saint Paul, Minnesota Coaches of American football from Minnesota Players of American football from Saint Paul, Minnesota {{1940s-collegefootball-coach-stub