| No. 18, 87, 41 | |||||||||||||
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| Position: | Halfback | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born: | (1922-09-06)September 6, 1922 Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Died: | October 17, 2008(2008-10-17) (aged 86) | ||||||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight: | 178 lb (81 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school: | George Washington Community (Indianapolis, Indiana) | ||||||||||||
| College: | Butler Purdue | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1944: 3rd round, 27th pick | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
As a player: | |||||||||||||
As a coach: | |||||||||||||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
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Boris Stephan "Babe" Dimancheff (September 6, 1922 – October 17, 2008) was an American professionalfootball player who was ahalfback in theNational Football League (NFL) for theBoston Yanks (1945–1946), theChicago Cardinals (1947–1950), and theChicago Bears (1952). He playedcollege football for thePurdue Boilermakers.
Dimancheff attendedGeorge Washington Community High School, where he lettered in football, basketball and track. He was a captain of both the football and basketball teams. In 1940, he received the Dyer Medal Award for Best Character and Athlete in the City of Indianapolis. As a senior, he was named All-state and All-city in both football and basketball.
He moved on to play football atButler University, where he played lefthalfback and was named the freshman team captain. In his second year he received All-Conference honors, before military service inWorld War II interrupted his college career.
He returned to play atPurdue University, starting atfullback during the 1943 and 1944 seasons. He starred in a powerful backfield, alongsideTony Butkovich. In 1943, he led the Boilermakers to a perfect season, theBig Ten Conference title and a #3AP ranking. His senior season (1944) was his best year as he was selected as the team captain, named to theInternational News Service's All-American team, named All-Big Ten (1st team) and was selected as the Most Valuable Player in the Big 9 Conference. He played in theEast–West Shrine Game in 1944.[1]
In 2007, he was inducted into theIndiana Football Hall of Fame. In 2009, he was inducted into the Purdue Athletics Hall of Fame.
Dimancheff was selected by theBoston Yanks in the third round (27th overall) of the1944 NFL draft. He began his playing career in 1945 as ahalfback.
In 1947, he played for theChicago Cardinals and led them to win the NFL championship. The next year, he helped the team reach the NFL championship game again, where they lost to thePhiladelphia Eagles. At one time he held the franchise records for Most Yardage Gained on Kickoff returns and Longest Kickoff return. He finished his career with theChicago Bears in 1952.
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Won theNFL championship | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Rushing | Receiving | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 1945 | BOS | 5 | 2 | 30 | 69 | 2.3 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 15.0 | 15 | 0 |
| 1946 | BOS | 8 | 6 | 57 | 238 | 4.2 | 24 | 0 | 5 | 121 | 24.2 | 45 | 1 |
| 1947 | CRD | 12 | 2 | 30 | 116 | 3.9 | 14 | 0 | 22 | 438 | 19.9 | 80 | 4 |
| 1948 | CRD | 12 | 0 | 27 | 117 | 4.3 | 26 | 1 | 13 | 260 | 20.0 | 52 | 3 |
| 1949 | CRD | 10 | 1 | 38 | 151 | 4.0 | 22 | 3 | 10 | 130 | 13.0 | 50 | 1 |
| 1950 | CRD | 7 | 0 | 8 | 5 | 0.6 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 53 | 10.6 | 17 | 0 |
| 1952 | CHI | 9 | 2 | 17 | 106 | 6.2 | 77 | 1 | 5 | 69 | 13.8 | 41 | 1 |
| 63 | 13 | 207 | 802 | 3.9 | 77 | 5 | 61 | 1,086 | 17.8 | 80 | 10 | ||
Following his NFL career he moved into the coaching ranks, In 1951, he became the backfield coach at Butler University. In 1953 he coached at Purdue University.
From 1954 to 1956 he coached atHamtramck High School, inHamtramck, Michigan. There he led the Maroons to two state titles. His star player wasWillie Fleming.
After winning his second state title, Dimancheff returned to the NFL, where he spent 12 seasons as a coach and director of player personnel. In 1957, he began as the backfield and receivers coach for thePittsburgh Steelers and was also the team's director of player personnel. He spent the 1957 through 1959 seasons with the Steelers.
In 1960, he joined theDallas Cowboys for their inaugural season, becoming the first backfield coach in franchise history. After two years in Dallas, he accepted theoffensive coordinator position atWake Forest University. By 1964, he was the head coach and general manager of the Canton Bulldogs of theUnited Football League. In 1965, he moved with the franchise to Philadelphia and coached the Bulldogs for one season in theContinental Football League.
By 1966, Dimancheff was back in the NFL as the receivers coach and director of player personnel forGeorge Halas and theChicago Bears.[2] Dimancheff spent seven seasons in Chicago before moving on to theWorld Football League (WFL) and a job as the offensive coordinator for theSouthern California Sun. When the league folded after the 1975 season, he remained in Southern California.