The Catholic University of the 1930s and ’40s not only had powerhouse football teams, it also sent a number of alumni to the professional ranks.

Edwin J. Karpowich, B.A. 1936, changed his name to Ed Karp and played four years (1936–39) for the NFL’s Pittsburgh Pirates (later renamed the Steelers), earning $150 per game. He was part of the offensive line that opened holes for running back Byron “Whizzer” White, who led the NFL in rushing in 1938 (and in 1962 was appointed a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court by President John F. Kennedy). The 6-foot-4-inch, 225-pound Karpowich wound up his career with the Buffalo Indians of the now-defunct American Football League in 1940, playing well enough to be named to the league’s all-star team.

Karpowich was an all-around sportsman as well as a man with at least one other alias: Before coming to Catholic University he was a member of the Mexican national soccer team, touring Europe under the name Simon Rodriguez.

Another alumnus, Francis “Red” Fleming, B.S. 1935, was a starting end for the Boston Shamrocks of the American Football League in 1936 (when his team won the league championship) and 1937 (when he was named to the All-League team). During the summers of those years, he played professional baseball for a Columbia, S.C., farm club of the big-league Boston Braves.

Rocco Pirro, B.A. 1940, a star fullback at CUA, played for the NFL’s 1940 Pittsburgh Pirates and 1941 Pittsburgh Steelers, then served in World War II from 1942 to 1945. After the war, he became a starting guard for the Buffalo Bisons of the All-America Football Conference, playing from 1946 to 1949 and serving as team co-captain in 1949. His team went to the league championship game in 1948, losing there to a Cleveland Browns team coached by future NFL Hall of Famer Paul Brown.

The CUA coach who honed the skills of each of these greats later joined them in the professional ranks. Arthur “Dutch” Bergman, who led CUA’s football team to a 59-31-4 record from 1930 to 1941, went on to coach the NFL’s Washington Redskins to the 1943 playoffs, where the ‘Skins trounced the New York Giants 28-0 before losing to the Chicago Bears 41-21 in the championship game. Players back then were on the field the whole game: Sammy Baugh quarterbacked Bergman’s team and — while playing defense — intercepted passes.

Bergman is still the winningest varsity football coach in CUA history, but current CUA gridiron coach Tom Clark (56-24-1 prior to the start of the 2005 season) could break Bergman’s record before the year’s end.

Before the Bergman era, Edward “Ace” Lynch, LL.B. 1924, played for the NFL’s Rochester Jeffersons in 1925, Detroit Panthers in 1926, Providence Steam Roller in 1927 and Orange Tornadoes (based in Orange, N.J.) in 1929. As a CUA player he was immortalized in the Ripley’s cartoon at the left.

Other CUA alumni who played for professional teams include:

• Wilfred P. Howell, B.A. 1928, played for the NFL’s Boston Bulldogs.
• John Vincent Ambrose, B.A. 1932, was a center for the NFL’s Brooklyn Dodgers in 1932.
• Thomas J. Whelan, B.A. 1933, played for the NFL’s Pittsburgh Pirates in 1933.
• Eugene F. Augusterfer, who attended Catholic University in the mid-1930s, played for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1935.
• William Lajousky, who attended CUA in the mid-1930s, was a guard for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1936.
• Peter J. Dranginis, B.S. 1937, played for the Pittsburgh Americans and Boston Shamrocks in the American Football League.

In more recent years, Steve Wilkerson, B.A. 1996, played professionally in Australia. While at CUA, he was a first-team All-American in 1994, catching 90 passes that year. – R.W.

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