Cecil Paul "Tex" Irvin (October 9, 1906 – February 11, 1978) 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 ...

tackle who played five seasons 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 ...

(NFL) with the

Providence Steam Roller The Providence Steam Rollers (also referred to as the Providence Steam Roller, the Providence Steamroller and the Providence Steamrollers) were a professional American football team based in Providence, Rhode Island in the National Football Leagu ...

and

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

. He first enrolled at the Schreiner Institute before transferring to

Davis & Elkins College Davis & Elkins College (D&E) is a private college in Elkins, West Virginia. History The school was founded in 1904 and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. It was named for Henry G. Davis and his son-in-law Stephen B. Elkins, who were b ...

. He was also nicknamed "Honk".

Early years

Irvin first played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

for the De Leon High School Bearcats for one year. He then played for the Stamford High School Bulldogs for one year. He played his final two years of high school football for the Cisco High School Lobos.

College career

Irvin first 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 ...

in 1926 at the Schreiner Institute. Irvin then transferred to play four years as a tackle and fullback for the Davis & Elkins Senators of

. He earned All-American honors in 1929. He graduated from Davis & Elkins College in 1931.

Professional career

Irvin played in ten games, starting nine, for the

during the 1931 season. He played in 46 games, starting 20, for the

from 1932 to 1935.

Personal life

Irvin returned to

De Leon, Texas De Leon ( ) is a city located in Comanche County, Texas, Comanche County in the U.S. state of Texas. Its population was 2,246 in the 2022 census. It is commonly associated with being named after the Spanish explorer Ponce de León, but the town is ...

to work for the Humble Pipeline Company after retiring from football. He spent time 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 ...

and served as a coach for several football programs for the military. His first stint came as a line coach at

Southwestern University Southwestern University (Southwestern or SU) is a private liberal arts college in Georgetown, Texas. Formed in 1873 from a revival of collegiate charters granted in 1840, Southwestern is the oldest college or university in Texas. Southwestern o ...

Georgetown, Texas Georgetown is a city in Texas and the county seat of Williamson County, Texas, United States. The population was 67,176 at the 2020 census. It is 30 miles (48 km) north of Austin. Founded in 1875 from four existing colleges, the oldest of ...

, where the Navy had set a training program. Many players from Texas colleges who had entered the military were stationed at Georgetown and assigned to continue their college work at Southwestern. Irvin was later transferred to the Pacific and coached in the Central Pacific Area Football League. He returned to work in De Leon for Humble after the war. He was transferred several times while working for Humble but returned to De Leon after his retirement. Irvin was inducted into the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame in 1969.

References

External links

Just Sports Stats
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Irvin, Tex 1906 births 1978 deaths Players of American football from Texas American football tackles American football fullbacks Schreiner Mountaineers football players Davis & Elkins Senators football players Providence Steam Roller players New York Giants players United States Navy personnel of World War II Southwestern Pirates football coaches People from De Leon, Texas