Bill Vohaska
American football player (1929–2004)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
William John Vohaska (May 17, 1929 – December 24, 2004) was an American football player.
Riverside, Illinois, U.S.
Venice, Florida, U.S.
Vohaska from 1950 Illio | |
| Profile | |
|---|---|
| Positions | Center, linebacker |
| Personal information | |
| Born | May 17, 1929 Riverside, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | December 24, 2004 (aged 75) Venice, Florida, U.S. |
| Listed weight | 180 lb (82 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Cicero (IL) Morton |
| College | Illinois |
| Awards and highlights | |
| |
Vohaska was born in 1929 in Riverside, Illinois. He attended Morton High School in Cicero.[1]
He played college football for the Illinois Fighting Illini football team at the center position from 1948 to 1950.[1] He was selected as captain of the 1950 Illinois Fighting Illini football team that was ranked No. 11 in the final UPI poll.[2] He was selected by the Associated Press as the first-team center on its 1950 College Football All-America Team.[3][4] Illinois head coach Ray Eliot called Vohaska a "hustler and a perfectionist" and "the finest player I have ever worked with".[5] Vohaska also competed for the Illinois wrestling team, but he forfeited his senior year of wrestling eligibility to participate in an all-star bowl game in Hawaii.[6]
Vohaska later worked as a coach and teacher. He taught at Morton High School beginning in 1954 and later at Morton College.[7] He also founded and operated the Riverside Day Camp in Riverside, Illinois.[8]
Vohaska died in 2000 at a hospice home in Venice, Florida.[7]