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Claude "Tiny" Thornhill

Football ∙ Beaver

Claude (Tiny) Thornhill was Beaver County’s first professional football player. After graduating from Beaver High School, Tiny played sandlot football in Beaver County. Dr Hube Wagner of Monaca persuaded Tiny to enter the University of Pittsburgh in 1913, and the big bruiser was on his way. After playing fullback at Pitt for two seasons, Tiny was switched to tackle in 1915 when Pop Warner became coach. As a senior in 1916, Tiny was an All American tackle. In his four years at Pitt, the Panthers had an amazing 30-3-1 record. Following his graduation from Pitt, Tiny became an assistant coach to Pop Warner but left midway through the season to play pro football in Massillon, Ohio, with teammates that included Knute Rockne, Jock Sutherland, Gus Dorais, Bob Higgins, and Bob Peck. After three years in the pros, Tiny became an assistant coach at Centre College, Kentucky, and Centre upset Harvard in 1921 to win the national collegiate title. Tiny left Centre in 1922 to rejoin Pop Warner, this time at Stanford. Tiny became head coach at Stanford in 1933 and his teams played in the Rose Bowl three times, winning once. His six year record at Stanford was 35-23-7.