American Football Database
American Football Database
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John Tanner
Wingback
Personal information
Date of birth: December 3, 1897
Place of birth: Owensboro, Kentucky
Date of death: December 23, 1976(1976-12-23) (aged 79)
Place of death: Owensboro, Kentucky
Career information
College: Centre
No regular season or postseason appearances
Career history
* Toledo Maroons ( 1922)
Career highlights and awards
  • N/A
Stats at pro-football-reference.com

John Portor "Hump" Tanner (December 3, 1897 – December 23, 1976) was a professional American football player in the early National Football League with the Toledo Maroons, Cleveland Indians and Cleveland Bulldogs. He began his football playing at Owensboro High School. He then played at the college level for Centre College.[1]

He played for the Praying Colonels in the infamous 1921 Centre vs. Harvard football game. The Colonels (under coach Charley Moran) shocked Harvard University and became the first school ever from outside the East to beat one of the Ivy League's "Big Three" of Harvard, Yale, and Princeton.

Tanner was a teammate as well as close friend of Jim Thorpe, who was considered the greatest athlete of his era.

References[]

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