Willie Thrower (March 22, 1930-February 20, 2002) was a professional American football player. Born near Pittsburgh in New Kensington, Pennsylvania, he was the first African American player to appear in a "modern-era" (Post World War II) professional game at the quarterback position in the National Football League for the Chicago Bears in 1953.
In college he quarterbacked Michigan State to a national championship in 1952.
On Oct. 18, 1953, Throwe...
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Willie Thrower (March 22, 1930-February 20, 2002) was a professional American football player. Born near Pittsburgh in New Kensington, Pennsylvania, he was the first African American player to appear in a "modern-era" (Post World War II) professional game at the quarterback position in the National Football League for the Chicago Bears in 1953.
In college he quarterbacked Michigan State to a national championship in 1952.
On Oct. 18, 1953, Thrower became the NFL's first Post-WWII African-American quarterback when he appeared in a game for the Chicago Bears. It would be 15 years before another African-American quarterback would take a snap in a pro game; he was cut by the Bears the next year. Contrary to what was published in the popular press, Thrower did not play for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers or the Toronto Argonauts in the Canadian Football League. He probably played with one of the many semi-pro teams in the Toronto and central Ontario region (these teams, though seldom remembered,...
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