Eugene Mayer

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Eugene Noble "Buck" Mayer (c. 1892 - October 21, 1918) was an All-American football player for the University of Virginia. He was the first football player from a Southern school to be recognized as a consensus first-team All-American.

A native of Norfolk, Virginia, Mayer played halfback for the Virginia Cavaliers from 1912 to 1915.[1] Mayer also competed for Virginia in track and field. He threw the 16-pound shot put 42 feet, 3 inches, ran the 100-yard dash in 10.1 seconds, and had a career best of 22 feet, 9 inches in the broad jump.[2] In 1915, Mayer was selected as a first-team All-American by International News Service sports editor Frank G. Menke and Eastern football expert Parke H. Davis. He was the first player from a Southern school to be a consensus first-team All-American.[1][3] He led Virginia to an 8-1 record in 1915, scoring five touchdowns in a 74-0 win over Richmond.[1] During Mayer's four years at the University of Virginia, the football team compiled a record of 39-6. He set school records for most points scored in a game (36), most touchdowns in a season (21 in 1914), most career touchdowns (48), and career points scored (312).[4]

In addition to athletics, Mayers was an excellent student who earned at Rhodes scholarship.[5] He graduated from the University of Virginia in 1916 with a law degree.[2]

After graduating, Mayer began practicing law in Charleston, West Virginia.[6] In 1918, during World War I, Mayer enlisted in a machine gun company. He died of pneumonia at Camp Johnston in Jacksonville, Florida, in October 1918.[6][7] He was 26 years old at the time of his death,[6] and was survived by his wife and one child.[7]

Mayer was posthumously inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1980.[4]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Great Virginia Players". University of Virginia Cavaliers. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Eugene Noble "Buck" Mayer". Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. 
  3. ↑ Patrick Garbin. "Bob McWhorter: 'Everybody's All-American'". Patrick Garbin. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Clay Shampoe (2005). The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame, p. 48. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0-7385-1776-3. 
  5. ↑ "untitled". The Columbus Enquirer-Sun. 1918-10-26. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "Football Player Dead". The Washington Post. 1918-10-23. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Virginia Obituary". The Wall Street Journal. 1918-10-24. 
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.