John Joseph Grigas (August 19, 1920 – May 19, 2000) was an American football player. He played college football for the Holy Cross Crusaders football team and professional football in the National Football League (NFL) from 1943 to 1947. He led the NFL in all-purpose yards in 1944.
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| Position: | Fullback, Halfback | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | August 19, 1920 Chelsea, Massachusetts | ||||||||
| Died: | May 19, 2000 (aged 79) Shrewsbury, Massachusetts | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 204 lb (93 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| College: | Holy Cross | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1943 / round: 2 / pick: 14 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of retirement | |||||||||
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Early years
Grigas was born Chelsea, Massachusetts, in 1920 and attended Chelsea High School.[1]
Holy Cross
Grigas enrolled at the College of the Holy Cross in 1939 and played college football for the Crusaders football team from 1940 to 1942. He was later inducted into the Holy Cross Varsity Club Hall of Fame.[2]
1941 season
On September 27, 1941, Grigas gained national attention after he rushed for 192 yards on 26 carries and scored all three Holy Cross touchdown in a 19-13 victory over LSU at Baton Rouge, Louisiana.[3] He ranked third nationally behind Frank Sinkwich and Bill Dudley with 709 rushing yards in 1941.[4] At the end of his junior season, Grigas was selected by the International News Service as a second-team back on its 1941 College Football All-America Team,[5] and by the Newspaper Enterprise Association as a third-team All-American.[6]
1942 season
On November 28, 1942, Grigas was responsible for four touchdowns (two rushing, two passing) in a 55-12 upset victory over undefeated Boston College.[7] He played in the 1942 Blue–Gray Football Classic and was credited by the Associated Press with "brilliant play" in the game.[8]
Professional football
Grigas was selected by the Chicago Cardinals in the second round, 14th overall pick, of the 1943 NFL Draft.[1]
During the 1944 season, he appeared in nine games for the Card-Pitt (a temporary wartime merger of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Chicago Cardinals) and ranked first in the NFL with 1,154 all-purpose yards and 471 kickoff return yards, second with 1,300 yards of total offense and 610 rushing yards, and eighth with 690 passing yards.[9] On November 12, 1944, he outgained the entire Detroit Lions team 123 rushing yards to 78 and 177 passing yards to 41, but the Lions still won, 21-7.[10] Grigas could have accumulated even more impressive statistics in 1944, but he quit the team before the final game, leaving the team with a letter citing his mental exhaustion at playing with a team that had gone 0-9 in the first nine games.[11]
References
- ^ a b "John Grigas". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 19, 2016.
- ^ "John J. Grigas Bio". Holy Cross. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
- ^ "Players Fight as L.S.U. Loses: Holy Cross Wins by 19-13; Grigas Hero". Des Moines Register. September 28, 1941. p. 8.
- ^ "O'Brien's Pass Record Threatened By Wash. of St. Louis Ace". The Big Spring Daily Herald. November 20, 1941. p. 11.
- ^ "1941 INS All-America team". The Cincinnati Enquirer. December 2, 1941.
- ^ "Here is 1941 NEA All-America Team". Hope Star. November 29, 1941. p. 4.
- ^ "Holy Cross Routs B.C., 55-12". Brooklyn Eagle. November 29, 1942. pp. B1, B3.
- ^ "South All-Stars Trim North, 24-0: Grigas Shines for Yanks". Democrat and Chronicle. December 27, 1942. p. 30.
- ^ "1944 NFL Leaders and Leaderboards". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 19, 2016.
- ^ "Grigas Outgains Whole Lion Team, but Card-Pitts Lose, 21-7". Detroit Free Press. November 13, 1944. p. 12.
- ^ "Pro Gridders Draw Checks, Go Home". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. December 5, 1944. p. 14.