| Profile | |
|---|---|
| Position | Quarterback |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1891-11-17)November 17, 1891 Wilmette, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | March 16, 1975(1975-03-16) (aged 83) Vallejo, California, U.S. |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) |
| Weight | 167 lb (76 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Dartmouth |
| Career history | |
| 1916–1917 | Canton Bulldogs |
| 1920 | Chicago Tigers |
| 1921 | Cleveland Indians |
| Awards and highlights | |
| |
Milton Pomeroy Ghee Jr. (November 17, 1891 – March 16, 1975) was an Americanfootballquarterback. Born inWilmette, Illinois, Ghee attended Oak Park High School before enrolling atDartmouth College. He played college football for Dartmouth where he was selected as anAll-American in 1914. Ghee played professional football in the early days of the professional game. From 1916 to 1917, he played for theCanton Bulldogs the includedJim Thorpe. The Bulldogs won the professional league championship in both years. According to one historical account of the 1916 Bulldogs, "the Dartmouth All-America was a fine passer who deserved his acclaim, but he needed some time to acclimate himself to his new teammates."[1] In 1917, Ghee threw for 17 touchdown passes and was picked for the All-Pro Team by a Cleveland newspaper.[2] He helped the Bulldogs win the 1917 championship, hittingGreasy Neale with a short touchdown pass for a 7-0 win over theDetroit Heralds in a Thanksgiving Day match with 8,000 fans in attendance.[3]
A historical account published bySports Illustrated in 1964 credits Ghee and Greasy Neale with pioneering the use of thehuddle during the 1917 season. He traced the practice to a 1917 game between Canton and Youngstown. With Canton at Youngstown's 22-yard line on a third down with one to go, Ghee noted, "In the huddle, our quarterback, Milt Ghee, an All-America from Dartmouth, said, 'Greasy, what will we do?'"[4] In 1917, quarterbacks called the plays while information, and the huddle was not generally adopted until a decade later. According to Neale, "We used the huddle in 1917 because that was the only way we could figure out what we were going to do since we never practiced before the game."[4]
Ghee also played in the APFA for theChicago Tigers in 1920 and theCleveland Indians team (coached by Jim Thorpe in 1921. Ghee was 5-feet, 7-inches tall and weighed 167 pounds.