Albert Leon Bedner (July 9, 1898 – July 12, 1988) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who played three seasons in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) with the

Frankford Yellow Jackets The Frankford Yellow Jackets were a professional American football team, part of the National Football League from 1924 to 1931, although its origin dates back to as early as 1899 with the Frankford Athletic Association. The Yellow Jackets wo ...

and

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

Lafayette College Lafayette College is a private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 18 ...

Early life

Albert Leon Bedner was born on July 9, 1898, in

Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Wilkes-Barre ( , alternatively or ) is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It ...

. He played

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

for four years at Wilkes-Barre High School in Wilkes-Barre. He was inducted into the

Luzerne County Luzerne County is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and is water. It is Northeaste ...

Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.

College career

Bedner played

from 1917 to 1920 and was a four-year

letterman Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

. He also participated in wrestling, boxing, and track in college. He earned honorable mention

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors in football in 1919.

Professional career

Bedner played for Mt. Carmel’s of the Coal region League in 1921, Thomas A.C. of Bethlehem in 1922, and Shenandoah in 1923. Bedner signed with the

of the

(NFL) in 1924 and played in six games for the team during the 1924 season. He was released in 1924. Bedner signed with the NFL's

in 1925. He appeared in nine games, starting two, for the Giants during their inaugural 1925 season. He played in eight games in 1926.

Personal life

Bedner served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

. He sold real estate and insurance after his football career. He died on July 12, 1988, in Wilkes-Barre.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bedner, Al 1898 births 1988 deaths American football guards American football tackles Lafayette Leopards football players Frankford Yellow Jackets players New York Giants players Players of American football from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania United States Navy personnel Lafayette Leopards men's track and field athletes Track and field athletes from Pennsylvania College wrestlers in the United States American male sport wrestlers American male boxers College boxers in the United States Boxers from Pennsylvania