Homer Paine
Encyclopedia
Homer Paine is a former American football
tackle
. He played college football
at the University of Tulsa
for one season and at the University of Oklahoma
for three seasons. Paine was named to the All-Missouri Valley Conference
first team while at Tulsa, and he was twice named to all-conference first teams while at Oklahoma. After college, Paine played professional football for one season with the Chicago Hornets of the All-America Football Conference
. He was selected in the 14th round of the 1946 NFL Draft
.
. Paine attended Enid High School
in Enid, Oklahoma
, where he played football
for the "Plainsmen". Paine initially attended college at the University of Tulsa
where he played varsity football
in 1942. During the regular season, the Golden Hurricane
compiled a 10–0 record as the only undefeated team in the nation. Tulsa beat its five conference opponents to win the Missouri Valley Conference
championship, and the Hurricane was invited to the 1943 Sugar Bowl
. There, fourth-ranked Tulsa was finally defeated, 14–7, by the seventh-ranked favorites, under head coach Robert Neyland
. That season, Paine was named to the All-Missouri Valley Conference first team.
In 1946, the University of Oklahoma
hired a new head football coach, Jim Tatum
. His recruiting strategy focused in part on luring to Oklahoma veterans who had played for the school's rivals before the war. Instead of returning to Tulsa, Paine attended Oklahoma where he played for the Sooners from 1946 to 1948. That made Paine part of Tatum's star-studded (and only) recruiting class at Norman
, which included nine All-American
s. Despite not receiving All-American honors himself, Paine was later still considered one of the "top players" at Oklahoma. One author later described Paine's ability to "tell where the play was going from the pressure of the blocks
, and he would try to get the jump on it, fight right into it."
During the 1946 season
, the Sooners compiled an 8–3 record and secured a share of the Big Six Conference championship. Paine was named to that season's All-Big Six Conference first team. After the season, Jim Tatum left for Maryland and was replaced by Bud Wilkinson
in 1947. In March 1948, Wilkinson accused a scout from the Brooklyn Dodgers
of the All-America Football Conference
of attempting to sign three of his players: center
John Rapacz
, guard
Buddy Burris
, and Paine. The scout denied the charge, and insisted his visit to Oklahoma was licit. The scout said he was there at the behest of Burris who wanted to discuss his potential for a future professional career.
During the 1948 season, Paine served as the captain on the Sugar Bowl
championship team. After the 1948 season, he was named to the All-Big Seven Conference first team. The International News Service
also named Paine as the left tackle on its All-Midlands
team, across from fellow Sooner tackle Wade Walker
. In a pessimistic assessment of Oklahoma's 1949 prospects, coach Wilkinson feared the loss of Paine, among other veterans, to graduation "could easily prove disastrous." His brother, Charles W. Paine, played for Oklahoma in the 1949 season.
in the 14th round of the 1946 NFL Draft
as the 128th overall pick. He played for the Chicago Hornets in the All-America Football Conference in 1949. Paine saw action in 12 games and started
in ten. After his playing career, Paine moved back to Enid, Oklahoma, and became manager of the Johnston Grain Company terminal elevator
.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
tackle
Tackle (American football)
Tackle is a playing position in American and Canadian football. Historically, in the one-platoon system a tackle played on both offense and defense. In the modern system of specialized units, offensive tackle and defensive tackle are separate positions....
. He played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
at the University of Tulsa
University of Tulsa
The University of Tulsa is a private university awarding bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. It is currently ranked 75th among doctoral degree granting universities in the nation by US News and World Report and is listed as one of the "Best 366 Colleges" by...
for one season and at the University of Oklahoma
University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma is a coeducational public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two became the state of Oklahoma. the university had 29,931 students enrolled, most located at its...
for three seasons. Paine was named to the All-Missouri Valley Conference
Missouri Valley Conference
The Missouri Valley Conference is a college athletic conference whose members are located in the midwestern United States...
first team while at Tulsa, and he was twice named to all-conference first teams while at Oklahoma. After college, Paine played professional football for one season with the Chicago Hornets of the All-America Football Conference
All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the nation's best players, and introduced many lasting innovations...
. He was selected in the 14th round of the 1946 NFL Draft
1946 NFL Draft
The 1946 National Football League Draft was held on January 14, 1946.The most notable draft choice in this player selection meeting was made by the Washington Redskins and remains one of the biggest draft blunders of all time. They chose Cal Rossi with the 9th overall pick. However, Rossi was a...
.
College career
He was born on September 20, 1923 in Hennessey, OklahomaHennessey, Oklahoma
Hennessey is a town in Kingfisher County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 2,058 at the 2000 census.-History:Hennessey is named after Pat Hennessy, an Irish freighter who was killed at the present townsite in April, 1874...
. Paine attended Enid High School
Enid High School
Enid High School is a public secondary school in Enid, Oklahoma operated by the Enid Public Schools school district. With a student body of about 1,700 in grades 9-12, Enid High School has about a 65 percent matriculation rate...
in Enid, Oklahoma
Enid, Oklahoma
Enid is a city in Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States. In 2010, the population was 49,379, making it the ninth largest city in Oklahoma. It is the county seat of Garfield County. Enid was founded during the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the Land Run of 1893, and is named after Enid, a...
, where he played football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
for the "Plainsmen". Paine initially attended college at the University of Tulsa
University of Tulsa
The University of Tulsa is a private university awarding bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. It is currently ranked 75th among doctoral degree granting universities in the nation by US News and World Report and is listed as one of the "Best 366 Colleges" by...
where he played varsity football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
in 1942. During the regular season, the Golden Hurricane
Tulsa Golden Hurricane football
The University of Tulsa's Golden Hurricane football team represents Tulsa in Conference USA. Tulsa is currently coached by first-year head coach Bill Blankenship. The football team was coached by Todd Graham until he accepted the head coaching job at Pittsburgh....
compiled a 10–0 record as the only undefeated team in the nation. Tulsa beat its five conference opponents to win the Missouri Valley Conference
Missouri Valley Conference
The Missouri Valley Conference is a college athletic conference whose members are located in the midwestern United States...
championship, and the Hurricane was invited to the 1943 Sugar Bowl
1943 Sugar Bowl
The 1943 edition to the Sugar Bowl featured the fourth ranked Tulsa Golden Hurricane, and the seventh ranked Tennessee Volunteers.Tulsa took a 7–0 lead on a nine-yard touchdown pass from Glenn Dobbs to Cal Purdin in the second quarter. Tennessee scored on a three-yard run by Gold, but the extra...
. There, fourth-ranked Tulsa was finally defeated, 14–7, by the seventh-ranked favorites, under head coach Robert Neyland
Robert Neyland
Robert Reese Neyland, MBE was an American football player and coach and and officer in the United States Army, reaching the rank of brigadier general. He served three stints as the head football coach as the University of Tennessee...
. That season, Paine was named to the All-Missouri Valley Conference first team.
In 1946, the University of Oklahoma
University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma is a coeducational public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two became the state of Oklahoma. the university had 29,931 students enrolled, most located at its...
hired a new head football coach, Jim Tatum
Jim Tatum
James M. "Big Jim" Tatum was an American football and baseball player and coach. Tatum served as the head football coach at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , the University of Oklahoma , and the University of Maryland, College Park , compiling a career college football record of...
. His recruiting strategy focused in part on luring to Oklahoma veterans who had played for the school's rivals before the war. Instead of returning to Tulsa, Paine attended Oklahoma where he played for the Sooners from 1946 to 1948. That made Paine part of Tatum's star-studded (and only) recruiting class at Norman
Norman, Oklahoma
Norman is a city in Cleveland County, Oklahoma, United States, and is located south of downtown Oklahoma City. It is part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, Norman was to have 110,925 full-time residents, making it the third-largest city in Oklahoma and the...
, which included nine All-American
College Football All-America Team
The College Football All-America Team is an honor given annually to the best American college football players at their respective positions. The original usage of the term All-America seems to have been to the 1889 College Football All-America Team selected by Casper Whitney and published in This...
s. Despite not receiving All-American honors himself, Paine was later still considered one of the "top players" at Oklahoma. One author later described Paine's ability to "tell where the play was going from the pressure of the blocks
Blocking (American football)
In American football, blocking is a legal move occurring when one player obstructs another player's path with his body. The purpose of blocking is to prevent defensive players tackling the ball carrier, or to protect the quarterback while attempting to pass or hand-off the ball...
, and he would try to get the jump on it, fight right into it."
During the 1946 season
1946 Oklahoma Sooners football team
The 1946 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma in National Collegiate Athletic Association college football. The team was led by Jim Tatum in his first and only season as head coach. Along with first-year backfield coach Bud Wilkinson, who became the head coach...
, the Sooners compiled an 8–3 record and secured a share of the Big Six Conference championship. Paine was named to that season's All-Big Six Conference first team. After the season, Jim Tatum left for Maryland and was replaced by Bud Wilkinson
Bud Wilkinson
Charles Burnham "Bud" Wilkinson was an American football player, coach, broadcaster, and politician. He served as the head football coach at the University of Oklahoma from 1947 to 1963, compiling a record of 145–29–4. His Oklahoma Sooners won three national championships and 14...
in 1947. In March 1948, Wilkinson accused a scout from the Brooklyn Dodgers
Brooklyn Dodgers (AAFC)
The Brooklyn Dodgers was an American Football team that played in the All-America Football Conference from 1946 to 1948. The team is unrelated to the Brooklyn Dodgers that played in the National Football League from 1930 to 1943...
of the All-America Football Conference
All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the nation's best players, and introduced many lasting innovations...
of attempting to sign three of his players: center
Center (American football)
Center is a position in American football and Canadian football . The center is the innermost lineman of the offensive line on a football team's offense...
John Rapacz
John Rapacz
John Joseph Rapacz was an American football offensive lineman in the National Football League for the New York Giants. He also played in the All-America Football Conference for the Chicago Rockets/Hornets...
, guard
Guard (American football)
In American and Canadian football, a guard is a player that lines up between the center and the tackles on the offensive line of a football team....
Buddy Burris
Buddy Burris
Paul "Buddy" Burris was an American football player. He played college football for the Golden Hurricane at University of Tulsa, and after a hiatus to serve in the Second World War, for the Sooners at the University of Oklahoma. Burris was the first Oklahoma player to earn All-America honors in...
, and Paine. The scout denied the charge, and insisted his visit to Oklahoma was licit. The scout said he was there at the behest of Burris who wanted to discuss his potential for a future professional career.
During the 1948 season, Paine served as the captain on the Sugar Bowl
1949 Sugar Bowl
The 1949 edition to the Sugar Bowl featured the third ranked North Carolina Tar Heels and the fifth ranked Oklahoma Sooners.In the first quarter, Oklahoma scored on a 1 yard Mitchell touchdown run as the Sooners jumped out to a 7-0 lead. North Carolina answered with a 2 yard touchdown run from...
championship team. After the 1948 season, he was named to the All-Big Seven Conference first team. The International News Service
International News Service
International News Service was a U.S.-based news agency founded by newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1909.Established two years after the Scripps family founded the United Press Association, INS scrapped among the newswires...
also named Paine as the left tackle on its All-Midlands
Midwestern United States
The Midwestern United States is one of the four U.S. geographic regions defined by the United States Census Bureau, providing an official definition of the American Midwest....
team, across from fellow Sooner tackle Wade Walker
Wade Walker
Wade Walker is an American former football player, coach, and university administrator. He played college football as a tackle at the University of Oklahoma under head coaches Jim Tatum and Bud Wilkinson. Walker was named an all-conference player all four years and a first-team All-American in 1949...
. In a pessimistic assessment of Oklahoma's 1949 prospects, coach Wilkinson feared the loss of Paine, among other veterans, to graduation "could easily prove disastrous." His brother, Charles W. Paine, played for Oklahoma in the 1949 season.
Professional career
Paine was selected by the Philadelphia EaglesPhiladelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
in the 14th round of the 1946 NFL Draft
1946 NFL Draft
The 1946 National Football League Draft was held on January 14, 1946.The most notable draft choice in this player selection meeting was made by the Washington Redskins and remains one of the biggest draft blunders of all time. They chose Cal Rossi with the 9th overall pick. However, Rossi was a...
as the 128th overall pick. He played for the Chicago Hornets in the All-America Football Conference in 1949. Paine saw action in 12 games and started
Starting lineup
A starting lineup in sports is an official list of the set of players who will actively participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.The starters are commonly the best...
in ten. After his playing career, Paine moved back to Enid, Oklahoma, and became manager of the Johnston Grain Company terminal elevator
Terminal elevator
A terminal elevator is a large grain elevator with the capacity to transfer grain to rail cars, barges, or ships for transport to domestic or foreign markets. Terminal elevator markets are used as base locations for posted county prices....
.