A Memorial Day tribute to NFL's fallen heroes

By Ken Crippen
Executive director Pro Football Researchers' Association

As we spend the weekend having picnics and barbeques, as we watch the parades, let’s not forget those who have served this country and have given the ultimate sacrifice. Regardless of your opinions on wars fought on foreign lands, NFL players have given their lives for our country. Below, we pay tribute to these fallen heroes.
 
 
WORLD WAR II (Player)

Player	Teams	Death Date	Circumstances
Cpl. Nick Basca	1941 Philadelphia Eagles	November 11, 1944	Killed in France.
Lt. Charlie Behan	1942 Detroit Lions	May 18, 1945	Killed in Okinawa.
Maj. Keith Birlem	1939 Chicago Cardinals, 1939 Washington Redskins	May 7, 1943	Killed while trying to land a combat-damaged bomber in England.
Lt. Al Blozis	1942-1944 New York Giants	January 31, 1945	Killed in Colmar, France.
Lt. Chuck Braidwood	1930 Portsmouth Spartans, 1931 Cleveland Indians, 1932 Chicago Cardinals, 1933 Cincinnati Reds	January 8, 1945	Killed in South Pacific.
Lt. Young Bussey	1941 Chicago Bears	January 7, 1945	Killed in Lingayen Gulf, Phillippines.
Capt. Eddie Doyle	1924 Frankford Yellowjackets, 1925 Pottsville Maroons	November 8, 1942	Killed in Morocco.
Lt. Col. Grassy Hinton	1932 Staten Island Stapletons	December 10, 1944	Killed in plane crash in East Indies.
Capt. Smiley Johnson	1940-1941 Green Bay Packers	February 26, 1945	Killed on Iwo Jima.
Lt. Eddie Kahn	1935-1936 Boston Redskins, 1937 Washington Redskins	February 17, 1945	Died from wounds suffered during Leyete (Phillippines) invasion.
Sgt. Alex Ketzko	1943 Detroit Lions	December 23, 1944	Killed in France.
Capt. Lee Kizzire	1937 Detroit Lions	December 5, 1943	Shot down near New Guinea.
Lt. Jack Lummus	1941 New York Giants	March 8, 1945	Killed on Iwo Jima.
Pvt. Jim Mooney	1930 Newark Tornadoes, 1930-1931 Brooklyn Dodgers, 1933-1934 Cincinnati Reds, 1935 Chicago Cardinals	August 12, 1944	Killed by sniper in France.
Lt. Don Wemple	1941 Brooklyn Dodgers	June 23, 1943	Killed in a plane crash in India.
Capt. Waddy Young	1939-1940 Brooklyn Dodgers	January 9, 1945	Killed in a plane crash in Tokyo, Japan.

 
Bob Mackert appears on a few lists of player deaths. Those lists seem to confuse Bob Mackert with Roy Mackert. Roy played for the 1925 Rochester Jeffersons and served in the Army until 1918. Roy died February 12, 1942. Bob Mackert went missing in July 1944 and was later declared dead. Bob Mackert never played in the NFL.
 
Frank Maher appears on some lists as being killed during World War II. Frank died April 11, 1992 in Toledo, OH.
 
 
WORLD WAR II (Non-Combat)

Player	Teams	Death Date	Circumstances
Capt. Bill McCaw	1923 Racine Cardinals, 1926 Louisville Colonels	April 19, 1942	Heart attack while broadcasting at a radio station in Bloomington, IN.
Chief Spc. Gus Sonnenberg	1923 Columbus Panhandles, 1923 Buffalo All-Americans, 1925-1926 Detroit Panthers, 1927-1928, 1930 Providence Steamroller	September 13, 1944	Died of leukemia at Bethesda Naval Hospital.
Lt. Len Supulski	1942 Philadelphia Eagles	August 31, 1943	Killed in a plane crash near Kearney, Nebraska.
Lt. Chet Wetterlund	1942 Detroit Lions	September 5, 1944	Killed in a plane crash off New Jersey coast.

 
 
WORLD WAR II (Non-Player)

Person	Teams	Death Date	Circumstances
Lt. Jack Chevigny	1932 Chicago Cardinals (Head Coach)	February 19, 1945	Killed on Iwo Jima.
Lt. John O’Keefe	PhiladelphiaEagles (Front Office)	-	Killed while flying a patrol mission in Panama Canal Zone.

 
 
KOREA

{None}

 
 
VIETNAM

Player	Teams	Death Date	Circumstances
Lt. Bob Kalsu	1968 Buffalo Bills	July 21, 1970	Killed at Base Ripcord.
Maj. Don Steinbrunner	1953 Cleveland Browns	July 20, 1967	Shot down over Kontum, South Vietnam

 
 
AFGHANISTAN

Player	Teams	Death Date	Circumstances
Cpl. Pat Tillman	1998-2001 Arizona Cardinals	April 22, 2004	Friendly fire.

 
 
 
 
Ken Crippen is the executive director of the Professional Football Researchers Association, a non-profit educational organization dedicated to preserving football history. You can follow him on Twitter: @KenCrippen.

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Read more: Afghanistan, Al Blozis, Alex Ketzko, Bill McCaw, Bob Kalsu, Charlie Behan, Chet Wetterlund, Chuck Braidwood, Don Steinbrunner, Don Wemple, Eddie Doyle, Eddie Kahn, Grassy Hinton, Gus Sonnenberg, Jack Chevigny, Jack Lummus, Jim Mooney, John O’Keefe, Keith Birlem, Korea, Lee Kizzire, Len Supulski, Memorial Day, NFL, Nick Basca, Pat Tillman, Smiley Johnson, Vietnam, Waddy Young, World War II, Young Bussey