Rocco A. Pirro (June 30, 1916 – January 26, 1995) was an American football player and politician.

Football career

He was a fullback for

The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by U. ...

and played in the

1940 Sun Bowl The 1940 Sun Bowl was a post-season college football bowl game between The Catholic University of America (CUA) Cardinals and the Bulldogs from the Arizona State Teachers College at Tempe (now Arizona State University) on January 1, 1940. Despi ...

, where he was described as "5-foot 10-inch and 185-pound Arizona jackrabbit." Pirro was a professional

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

Guard who played from 1940 to 1941 with 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 club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Stee ...

and from 1946 to 1949 with the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division ...

Political and business career

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Pirro served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. Pirro worked as executive director of the Solvay-Geddes Youth Center and the

Onondaga County, New York Onondaga County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 476,516. The county seat is Syracuse. Onondaga County is the core of the Syracuse, NY MSA. History The name ''Onondaga'' derives from ...

Youth Board. Pirro served on the

Geddes, New York Geddes is a town in Onondaga County, New York, United States. The population was 17,118 at the 2010 census. The Town of Geddes is west of the neighborhood of Far Westside of Syracuse. The town is a western suburb of Syracuse. History The to ...

Town Board and as town supervisor. He was involved with the Republican Party. He was a member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

(120th D.) in

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of President of the United States, United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom K ...

. In November 1974, he ran for re-election, but was defeated by Democrat/Conservative Melvin N. Zimmer.

Death

Pirro died on January 26, 1995, in Syracuse, New York, at the Van Duyn Home and Hospital.'Rocco Pirro,' Syracuse Herald American, January 28, 1995

References

External links

Pro-Football-ReferenceSyracuse Hall of Fame Rocco "Rocky" PirroFanbase profile
1916 births 1995 deaths Buffalo Bills (AAFC) players Catholic University Cardinals football players Catholic University of America alumni Pittsburgh Steelers players American football offensive guards Players of American football from Syracuse, New York Military personnel from New York (state) Town supervisors in New York (state) Republican Party members of the New York State Assembly 20th-century American politicians People from Onondaga County, New York United States Navy personnel of World War II {{NewYork-NYAssembly-stub