Frank Liebel
 | |||||||||
| No. 22, 88, 51 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | End | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | November 19, 1919 Erie, Pennsylvania | ||||||||
| Died: | December 26, 1996(aged 77) | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 211 lb (96 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Erie (PA) Academy | ||||||||
| College: | Norwich | ||||||||
| Undrafted: | 1942 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Frank Edward Liebel(November 19, 1919 – December 26, 1996) was a professionalAmerican footballend/defensive backin theNational Football League.He is also a member of thePennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.[2]
Early life and education
[edit]Frank was born on November 19, 1919, inErie, Pennsylvania,to Frank J. Liebel (1896-1957) and Clara Rafferty (1900-1967).[3]His grandfather, Edward Constantine Liebel (1875-1969) was born inLeimersheim,Germany,and was the nephew ofReinhard Liebel(1841-1905), himself the uncle ofMichael Liebel, Jr.(1870–1927) (Mayor of Erie, Pennsylvania,from 1906 to 1911, and aDemocraticmember of theUnited States House of RepresentativesfromPennsylvania,from 1915 to 1917),[4]all of Erie, Pennsylvania. Together Frank and Clara had four children:[3]
- William Liebel (1915-1972)
- Frank Edward Liebel (1919-1996)
- Robert Martin Liebel (1922-1999)
- Betty Liebel (1924-2001)
He attended Erie Academy for high school and Norwich University for college, graduating in 1943.[5]
Career
[edit]Liebel his NFL career began with the New York Giants, signing with them as a free agent in 1942, a year before he graduated from Norwich.[2]
He played seven seasons for theNew York Giants(1942–1947) and theChicago Bears(1948). He led the league in 1945 in yard per reception (27.0) and receiving touchdowns (10) for his 22 receptions. He also was Named to the All-NFL 2nd Team in both 1945 and 1946.
During the1944 NFL Championship Game,Liebel was on the Giants’ sideline when they lost toGreen Bay,and again in 1948, this time with theChicago Cardinals,for the1948 NFL Championship Gamewith the Cardinals when they fell toPhiladelphiain the final.[2]
Liebel also was a reserve for the 1948 Chicago Cardinals, but didn’t record any statistics for them. His final career NFL numbers were 84 receptions for 1,753 yards and 23 TDs on offense, plus seven interceptions and three fumble recoveries on defense.[2]
1946 NFL Championship Game
[edit]The day before the1946 NFL Championship Gamebetween theNew York Giantsand theChicago Bears,two players for the Giants,Frank FilchockandMerle Hapes,had been accused of taking bribes to fix the game fromAlvin Paris.New York City MayorWilliam O'DwyerhadJack Mara,Wellington MaraandBert Bellinformed of the police evidence against the two.[6]
Within hours, the four then met atGracie Mansionand the mayor interviewed the players one at a time.[6][7]Under questioning, Hapes admitted that he was offered a bribe and Filchock denied being offered it. Several hours later, Paris was arrested and confessed to bribing the players. Hapes was suspended by Bell, but Filchock was allowed to play.[8]
During the game, Liebel caught a 38-yard scoring pass from quarterback Frank Filchock, which New York eventually lost 24–14 to theChicago Bears.During Paris' trial weeks later, Filchock admitting taking the bribe under oath.[6][9]
Honors
[edit]Liebel was inducted into theNorwich UniversitySports Hall of Fame Class of 2008,[1]and thePennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.[2]
Post-football career
[edit]After retiring from theNational Football League,he worked for 29 years withErie County’s probation and parole department.[2]
Personal life
[edit]In 1946, Frank married Arline M. Gorenflo (1923-2011), who was born inCleveland, Ohio,and was the daughter of the Bert and Esther Johnson Gorenflo.[10]Together Frank and Arline had three children:
- Gary Liebel
- Gayle Liebel
- Tina Liebel
They are buried together at Laurel Hill Cemetery inMillcreek Township, Erie County, Pennsylvania.[11]
References
[edit]- ^ab"Norwich Announces 2008 Sports Hall Of Fame Class".norwichathletics. July 28, 2008. Archived fromthe originalon August 1, 2008.RetrievedSeptember 3,2009.
- ^abcdefCopper, Mike (August 14, 2015)."Varsity Kickoff Countdown 21: Academy grad 0-3 in NFL finals".Go Erie. Archived fromthe originalon June 12, 2016.RetrievedMarch 20,2016.
- ^abRadomski, Megan."Frank E Liebel".ancestry.RetrievedMarch 20,2016.
- ^Reed, John Elmer (1925).History of Erie County, Pennsylvania (Volume v.1).Topeka: Historical Pub. Co. pp. 642–643.RetrievedSeptember 4,2015.
- ^Staff."Frank Liebel".norwichathletics.Norwich Athletics. Archived fromthe originalon April 1, 2016.RetrievedMarch 20,2016.
- ^abcFay, William (December 16, 1946)."'Lost honestly,' Giants say; bribe probe continues ".Chicago Tribune.p. 1, section 3.
- ^Robert S. Lyons,On Any Given Sunday: A Life of Bert Bell.Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press, 2010; pg. 201.
- ^Lyons,On Any Given Sunday,pg. 202.
- ^Lyons,On Any Given Sunday,pg. 203.
- ^Staff."Arline M. Gorenflo Liebel".legacy.Erie Times-Newson June 4, 2011.RetrievedMarch 20,2016.
- ^"Laurel Hill Cemetery".interment.net.Clear Digital Media.RetrievedSeptember 15,2018.
