John Popovich (March 6, 1918 – February 3, 2004) was an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

player and coach. He played 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) from 1944 to 1945, for the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

and "

Card-Pitt Card-Pitt was the team created by the temporary merger of two National Football League (NFL) teams, the Chicago Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers, during the 1944 season. It was the second such merger for the Steelers, who had combined with ...

", a team that was the result of a temporary merger between the

Chicago Cardinals The professional American football team now known as the Arizona Cardinals previously played in Chicago, Illinois, as the Chicago Cardinals from 1898 to 1959 before relocating to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 1960 through 1987 seasons. Roots ca ...

and the Steelers. The merger was result of the manning shortages experienced league-wide due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Popovich was signed to "Card-Pitt" midway through the season, after he returned from the

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

due to a medical discharge. Popovich served as the head football coach at Waynesburg College—now known as

Waynesburg University Waynesburg University is a private Christian university in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, United States. It was established in 1850 and offers undergraduate and graduate programs in more than 70 academic concentrations. The university enrolls aroun ...

—in

Waynesburg, Pennsylvania Waynesburg is a borough in Greene County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The population was 4,001 at the 2020 census. It is located about south of Pittsburgh. The region around Waynesburg is underlaid with several layers o ...

from 1955 to 1958, compiling a record of 12–16–4.

Head coaching record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Popovich, John 1918 births 2004 deaths American football halfbacks Card-Pitt players Pittsburgh Steelers players Saint Vincent Bearcats football players Waynesburg Yellow Jackets football coaches Players of American football from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania Coaches of American football from Pennsylvania American people of Rusyn descent United States Army personnel of World War II