- Nick Skorich
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Nick Skorich Position(s)
GuardJersey #(s)
12Born June 26, 1921
Bellaire, OhioDied October 2, 2004 (aged 83)
Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaCareer information Year(s) 1946–1948 NFL Draft 1943 / Round: 17 / Pick: 157 College Cincinnati Professional teams - Pittsburgh Steelers (1946-1948)
Career stats Games played 32 Games started 7 Fumble recoveries 2 Stats at NFL.com Career highlights and awards - No notable achievements
Nicholas Leonard Skorich (June 26, 1921 – October 2, 2004) was an American football offensive lineman and coach.
Skorich played guard at Bellaire High School and the University of Cincinnati before joining the Navy in 1943. After the end of World War II, he signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers, who had drafted him in 1943. He played three years for the Steelers.
Skorich then went into coaching, first at the high school level, then as an assistant with the Steelers from 1954 to 1957. After one year with the Green Bay Packers, he moved to the Philadelphia Eagles, who promoted him to head coach after Buck Shaw retired following the Eagles' 1960 championship season.
The Eagles remained competitive in 1961, winning 10 of 14 games, but fell to 3-10-1 in 1962 and 2-10-2 in 1963. Fired from the Eagles, Skorich took a job as a defensive assistant under Cleveland Browns coach Blanton Collier in 1964. The Browns promoted him to offensive coordinator four years later and head coach upon Collier's retirement after the 1970 season.
In 1970, the Browns had gone 7-7 in only their second non-winning season since beginning play in 1946. Under Skorich, the Browns went 9-5 in 1971, winning the AFC Central Division before losing to the Baltimore Colts in the divisional playoffs. The following year, the Browns earned a wild card spot with a 10-4 record. In the playoffs, they came as close as anyone else that season did to beating the Miami Dolphins in that team's perfect season, losing 20-14 on a late Jim Kiick touchdown.
But by then Browns greats like Leroy Kelly, Gary Collins and Gene Hickerson had retired or were winding down their careers, and quarterback Mike Phipps was proving to be a disappointment. Cleveland dropped to 7-5-2 in 1973 and, in its first last-place finish ever, 4-10 in 1974. The Browns replaced Skorich with former Green Bay Packers star Forrest Gregg. Several players drafted under Skorich, including Brian Sipe, Doug Dieken and Greg Pruitt would play well for Gregg and his successor, Sam Rutigliano.
After leaving Cleveland, Skorich served as supervisor of officials for the National Football League. He is credited with developing mechanics for umpires, the most demanding position on an officiating crew since the umpire is positioned behind the defensive line and is often caught in the middle of heavy traffic during play. The mechanics for umpires was changed by the NFL for the 2010 season, moving the umpire behind the quarterback, parallel to the referee, except for the last two minutes of each half.
He died in 2004, after complications from heart surgery. In his memory his family started the Nicholas L. Skorich scholarship fund, which, holds a yearly golf outing.
References
- "Upbringing served Skorich well" by Steve King, Clevelandbrowns.com, October 4, 2004, retrieved December 8, 2005.
- Carroll, Bob, et al. (1999). Total Football II. New York: HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-270174-6.
External links
RPI Engineers head football coaches No coach (1886) • No team (1887–1888) • No coach (1889) • No team (1890–1891) • No coach (1892–1906) • Elder (1907) • William Geiger (1908–1909) • H. R. Bankart (1910) • John Inglis (1911–1913) • Frank Gargan (1914) • A. J. Sturzenegger (1915) • Jack Reed (1916–1919) • Paul Graham (1920–1926) • Glenn Killinger (1927–1931) • Henry W. Krumpf (1932–1938) • Duke Nelson (1939–1941) • Paul Graham (1942–1945) • Edward A. Jontos (1946–1952) • Nick Skorich (1953) • John Coons (1954) • Richard S. Lyon (1955–1957) • Ed Hoffman (1958–1962) • Richard Riendeau (1963–1972) • Dave White (1973–1981) • Bob Ducatte (1982–1983) • Kevin Earl (1984–1988) • Joe King (1989–2010) • Tim Landis (2011– )
Philadelphia Eagles head coaches Lud Wray (1933–1935) • Bert Bell (1936–1940) • Earle "Greasy" Neale (1941–1950) • Bo McMillin (1951) • Wayne Millner (1951) • Jim Trimble (1952–1955) • Hugh Devore (1956–1957) • Buck Shaw (1958–1960) • Nick Skorich (1961–1963) • Joe Kuharich (1964–1968) • Jerry Williams (1969–1971) • Ed Khayat (1971–1972) • Mike McCormack (1973–1975) • Dick Vermeil (1976–1982) • Marion Campbell (1983–1985) • Fred Bruney (1985) • Buddy Ryan (1986–1990) • Rich Kotite (1991–1994) • Ray Rhodes (1995–1998) • Andy Reid (1999– )
Cleveland Browns head coaches Paul Brown (1946–1962) • Blanton Collier (1963–1970) • Nick Skorich (1971–1974) • Forrest Gregg (1975–1977) • Dick Modzelewski # (1977) • Sam Rutigliano (1978–1984) • Marty Schottenheimer (1984–1988) • Bud Carson (1989–1990) • Jim Shofner # (1990) • Bill Belichick (1991–1995) • No team (1996–1998) • Chris Palmer (1999–2000) • Butch Davis (2001–2004) • Terry Robiskie # (2004) • Romeo Crennel (2005–2008) • Eric Mangini (2009–2010) • Pat Shurmur (2011– )
Pound sign (#) denotes interim head coach.Philadelphia Eagles 1960 NFL Champions 9 Sonny Jurgensen | 11 Norm Van Brocklin | 17 Jerry Reichow | 21 Jimmy Carr | 22 Timmy Brown | 25 Tommy McDonald | 26 Clarence Peaks | 27 Gene Johnson | 28 Bobby Jackson | 29 John Nocera | 30 Theron Sapp | 33 Billy Barnes | 35 Ted Dean | 40 Tom Brookshier | 41 Bobby Freeman | 44 Pete Retzlaff | 45 Don Burroughs | 51 Chuck Weber | 53 Bob Pellegrini | 54 Bill Lapham | 55 Maxie Baughan | 60 Chuck Bednarik | 61 Howard Keys | 62 John Wittenborn | 65 Gerry Huth | 66 Joe Robb | 67 Stan Campbell | 70 Don Owens | 71 John Wilcox | 72 Jess Richardson | 73 Ed Khayat | 74 Riley Gunnels | 75 Jim McCusker | 76 J. D. Smith | 78 Marion Campbell | 79 Gene Gossage | 83 Bobby Walston | 87 Dick Lucas | 88 Jerry Wilson |
Head Coach: Buck Shaw
Coaches: Charlie Gauer | Nick Skorich | Jerry WilliamsCleveland Browns 1964 NFL Champions 11 Jim Ninowski | 13 Frank Ryan | 20 Ross Fichtner | 22 Lowell Caylor | 23 Larry Benz | 24 Bobby Franklin | 26 Dave Raimey | 27 Walter Roberts | 30 Bernie Parrish | 32 Jim Brown | 35 Galen Fiss | 36 Charley Scales | 38 Stan Sczurek | 42 Paul Warfield | 44 Leroy Kelly | 48 Ernie Green | 49 Walter Beach | 50 Vince Costello | 52 Mike Lucci | 56 John Morrow | 62 Dale Memmelaar | 60 John Wooten 64 Ed Bettridge | 66 Gene Hickerson | 67 Sid Williams | 69 Jim Kanicki | 70 John Brown | 72 Mike Bundra | 73 Monte Clark | 74 Dick Modzelewski | 75 Roger Shoals | 76 Lou Groza | 77 Dick Schafrath | 78 Frank Parker | 79 Bob Gain | 80 Bill Glass | 82 Jim Houston | 83 Johnny Brewer | 84 Paul Wiggin | 85 Clifton McNeil | 86 Gary Collins | 87 Tom Hutchinson |
Head Coach: Blanton Collier
Coaches: Howard Brinker | Fritz Heisler | Dub Jones | Nick Skorich | Ed UlinksiCategories:- 1921 births
- 2004 deaths
- American football offensive guards
- Cincinnati Bearcats football players
- RPI Engineers football coaches
- Pittsburgh Steelers players
- Pittsburgh Steelers coaches
- Green Bay Packers coaches
- Philadelphia Eagles coaches
- Cleveland Browns coaches
- American people of Croatian descent
- American military personnel of World War II
- United States Navy officers
- People from Belmont County, Ohio
- Players of American football from Ohio
- Deaths from surgical complications
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