 Simonetti during his college career atTennessee | |||||
| No. 49 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Tackle | ||||
| Personal information | |||||
| Born | (1919-11-20)November 20, 1919 Roswell, Ohio, U.S. | ||||
| Died | August 14, 1973(1973-08-14) (aged 53) Dennison, Ohio, U.S. | ||||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||
| Weight | 225 lb (102 kg) | ||||
| Career information | |||||
| College | University of Tennessee | ||||
| Career history | |||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||
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| Career statistics | |||||
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Leonard Patrick "Meatball" Simonetti (November 20, 1919 – August 14, 1973) was an Americanfootballtackle who played three seasons in theAll-America Football Conference (AAFC) between 1946 and 1948 for theCleveland Browns. Simonetti was a standout as afullback at hisOhio high school before switching to tackle while at theUniversity of Tennessee in the late 1930s and early 1940s. After a stint in theU.S. Army duringWorld War II, Simonetti signed with the Browns. Cleveland won the AAFC championship in 1946, repeating in 1947 and 1948. Simonetti was sent to theBaltimore Colts in 1949, but did not play for the team. After leaving football, he became a weighmaster in Ohio. He died of a heart attack in 1973.
Simonetti played high school football atNew Philadelphia High School inNew Philadelphia, Ohio, where he was an all-Ohiofullback on teams coached byJohn Brickels.[1] He enrolled at theUniversity of Tennessee and continued to play football for theVolunteers between 1939 and 1941.[1] The team finished the 1940 season with an 8–2win–loss record and advanced to theSugar Bowl onNew Year's Day in 1941, losing 19–13 toBoston College.[1][2] Simonetti enlisted in theU.S. Army duringWorld War II and served in thePhilippines.[1]
Brickels, Simonetti's old high school coach, in 1945 became an assistant for theCleveland Browns, a new team in theAll-America Football Conference (AAFC).[1] Brickels recruited Simonetti to play for the team when Simonetti was still serving in thePacific War.[1] Simonetti joined the Browns when the team started play in 1946, but was a reserve and did not appear in any games during the regular season.[3] Cleveland finished the year with a 12–2 record and advanced to the AAFC championship. Team captainJim Daniell, however, was dismissed from the team the week before the title game after getting arrested following an altercation with Cleveland police.[3][4] Cleveland head coachPaul Brown got permission from the league to use Simonetti in the game as Daniell's replacement.[3] The Browns beat theNew York Yankees, 14–9.[4]
Simonetti saw more playing time in 1947 after tackleLou Rymkus suffered an eye infection.[3] The Browns finished the regular season with a 12–1–1win-loss-tie record and again won the championship.[5] Simonetti stayed with the team for a final season in 1948, when the Browns won all of their games and a third straight championship.[6] After the season, Simonetti was commissioned as deputy sheriff ofTuscarawas County, Ohio.[7] He was sold to theBaltimore Colts in January 1949 along withBen Pucci andDon Stanton.[8] He left football, however, before playing a game for the team.[9]
After his football career, Simonetti worked as a weighmaster for the state of Ohio inBolivar.[1] He was injured in a car accident in 1971 and died two years later of a heart attack.[1] He and his wife Florence had one child.[1]
