John Punualii Naumu (September 30, 1919 – September 23, 1982) 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 who played at the halfback position. He played college football for

Stanford Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and th ...

and professional football for the

Los Angeles Dons The Los Angeles Dons were an American football team in the newly formed football league the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) from 1946 Los Angeles Dons season, 1946 to 1949 Los Angeles Dons season, 1949, and played their home games in the L ...

Early years

Naumu was born in 1919 in

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

. He attended

President William McKinley High School President William McKinley High School, more commonly referred to as McKinley High School, is a comprehensive public high school in the Honolulu District of the Hawaii State Department of Education. It serves grades nine through twelve. McKinl ...

in Honolulu.

Military and college football

He played college football for

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

from 1939 to 1941. His college career was interrupted by service in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

during

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 ...

. After the war, he rejoined the Hawaii football team in January 1945 and during the 1945 season. In 1946, he transferred to the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

. He played at the halfback position for

USC USC may refer to: Education United States * Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, Santurce, Puerto Rico * University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina ** University of South Carolina System, a state university system of South Carolina * ...

in 1946 and 1947.

Professional football

He played professional football in the

All-America Football Conference The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a major professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many ...

for the

during their 1948 season. He appeared in eight games.

Later years

Naumu served in the Hawaii National Guard with the rank of colonel. He was also vice president of Honolulu Federal Savings & Loan. He died in 1982 in Honolulu at age 62 after collapsing while playing racquetball.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Naumu, Johnny 1919 births 1982 deaths Los Angeles Dons players Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football players USC Trojans football players Players of American football from Hawaii American football halfbacks United States Army personnel of World War II Hawaii National Guard personnel National Guard (United States) colonels President William McKinley High School alumni Pacific Islander American players of American football