Ace Parker | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Parker pictured in theChanticleer 1936, Duke yearbook | |||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1912-05-17)May 17, 1912 Portsmouth, Virginia, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Died | November 6, 2013(2013-11-06) (aged 101) Portsmouth, Virginia, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Football career | |||||||||||||||||||
| No. 7, 31, 88 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Positions | Quarterback Tailback Safety | ||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 178 lb (81 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||||
| High school | Woodrow Wilson (Portsmouth, Virginia) | ||||||||||||||||||
| College | Duke (1934–1936) | ||||||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1937: 2nd round, 13th overall pick | ||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||||
Playing | |||||||||||||||||||
Coaching | |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Career NFL + AAFC statistics | |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
Baseball player Baseball career | |||||||||||||||||||
| Shortstop | |||||||||||||||||||
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |||||||||||||||||||
| MLB debut | |||||||||||||||||||
| April 24, 1937, for the Philadelphia Athletics | |||||||||||||||||||
| Last MLB appearance | |||||||||||||||||||
| September 4, 1938, for the Philadelphia Athletics | |||||||||||||||||||
| MLB statistics | |||||||||||||||||||
| Batting average | .179 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Home runs | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| RBI | 25 | ||||||||||||||||||
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | |||||||||||||||||||
Clarence McKay "Ace"Parker (May 17, 1912 – November 6, 2013) was an Americanfootball andbaseball player and coach. He played professional football as aquarterback,tailback andsafety in theNational Football League (NFL) for theBrooklyn Dodgers (1937–1941) and theBoston Yanks (1945) and in theAll-America Football Conference (AAFC) for theNew York Yankees. He was anAll-American selection atDuke University in 1936. Parker also played in theMajor League Baseball (MLB) during 1936 and 1937 with thePhiladelphia Athletics.[1] He served as the head baseball coach at Duke from 1953 to 1966. Parker was inducted into theCollege Football Hall of Fame as a player in 1955 and thePro Football Hall of Fame in 1972.
Parker was the son of Ernest and Mabel Parker and grew up in Portsmouth, Virginia. He attended Woodrow Wilson High School in Portsmouth, Virginia, graduating with the class of 1933 and starring in five sports. He enrolled atDuke University as a freshman in 1933, where he was a member of theSigma Chi fraternity.[2]
At Duke, Parker competed in three sports: football, basketball and baseball. From 1934 to 1936, he starred atrunning back, doing most of the running and passing for Duke. He was second-team All-American in 1935 and consensus All-American first-team in 1936. He placed sixth in theHeisman Trophy voting in 1936. Parker was a great open-field runner and one of the best punters in college football at the time. His 105-yard kickoff return against North Carolina is still a Duke school record. Parker also stood out as a baseball player at Duke, playing in 1935–1936.
In his senior season at Duke, he served as team captain for theDuke Blue Devils who went 9–1, captured the league title with a 7–0 record, and finished the season ranked 11th in theAssociated Press national poll.[2]
He was elected into theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 1955. He was inducted into theNorth Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1963, the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1972, and was an inaugural member of the Duke University Sports Hall of Fame, inducted in 1975.
Parker was drafted by theBrooklyn Dodgers as the third pick of the second round in the1937 NFL draft.[3]Sammy Baugh was the only passer drafted ahead of Parker. Parker, who played for thePhiladelphia Athletics of Major League Baseball beginning in 1937, originally had no intention of playing in theNFL. Baseball was the glamour pro sport at the time and the NFL had a rough, vulgar reputation. But perhaps because of his .117 batting average that year, he asked for and received permission from the A's to play football.
Parker thus became a true two-sport phenomenon, playing both Major League Baseball and NFL football in both 1937 and 1938. Parker, playing various infield positions, batted .179 over two seasons with the A's, scoring 20 runs with 25 RBI over 94 games. Parker was the firstAmerican League player (and second player overall, behindNational LeaguerEddie Morgan) of only a handful ofMajor League Baseball players to hit a home run as apinch-hitter in their firstat bat.[4]
When Parker joined the Dodgers in 1937, Brooklyn had been a perennial NFL cellar-dweller in the East Conference since 1930. With his running, passing, and punting ability, he brought them instant credibility. He led the team in passing in 1937 and every year he played. In 1938, he led Brooklyn to a .500 record and led the NFL in passing yards with 865.
When legendary coachJock Sutherland joined the Dodgers in 1940, Parker's career took off. In 1940, he threw for 817 yards and 10 touchdowns, rushed for 306 yards, caught 3 passes, including 2 for touchdowns, and led the league in points after touchdowns. That year, Parker was twelfth in the league in receiving touchdowns, second in the league in touchdown passes, and led the league in extra points and defensive interceptions. The Dodgers finished only one game out of first, with an 8–3 record, and Parker was named theNFL MVP.
In 1941, Parker continued to shine, but the Dodgers again finished second to theNew York Giants, despite beating their New York rivals twice during the season. Parker's NFL career went on hold in 1942, as he, like many NFL players, left football to enlist in the Armed Services. After serving for over two years, Parker returned to the NFL, this time with the short-lived Boston Yanks, but at age 33, he took on a minor role.
He rejoined the former owner of the Dodgers,Dan Topping, in 1946 as part of the New York Yankees of the newAll-America Football Conference (AAFC). Coached by formerWashington Redskins coachRay Flaherty and led by Parker, the Yankees won the AAFC East, giving Parker his only division title in pro football. The Yankees met the powerfulCleveland Browns in the championship game. The Yankees played well, but eventually succumbed to the Browns. Parker was 8 of 18 passing, for only 81 yards and an interception. Parker retired after the game, completing a fine career at age 34.
After his playing days, Parker became the head baseball coach (1953–1966) and assistant football coach (1947–1965) atDuke University. He was manager of theDurham Bulls from 1949 to 1952, serving as player-manager for the first three seasons and finishing with a record of 303–266 (.533). He was Piedmont League manager of the year in 1949 and 1951. He was also a founding member of the Elizabeth Manor Golf and Country Club in Portsmouth, Virginia.
On August 13, 2008, Parker was part of the inaugural class inducted into the Hampton Roads Sports Hall of Fame, honoring athletes, coaches and administrators who made contributions to sports in Southeastern Virginia.
Parker died the morning of November 6, 2013 at the age of 101. He is the first member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame to have lived past their 100th birthday.[5] He is also the only member of the Hall to have played exclusively with franchises that no longer exist.
He was inducted into thePro Football Hall of Fame and theVirginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1972.
At the time of his death, Parker was the oldest living member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the oldest living former professional football player and the last living person to play on the same major league baseball field asBaseball Hall of Fame memberRogers Hornsby. On May 7, 1937, Parker appeared for thePhiladelphia Athletics while Hornsby played one of his last games for theSt. Louis Browns.[6] Before his death, Parker and Hall of FamerBobby Doerr were the last men to play on the same field as baseball immortalLou Gehrig.[7]