Jack Karwales
Encyclopedia
John Joseph "Jack" Karwales (June 22, 1920 – December 31, 2004) was a U.S.
American football
player. He played at the end and tackle
positions for the University of Michigan
in 1941 and 1942. Following four years of service in the United States Army Air Forces
during and after World War II
, he played professional football for the Chicago Bears
in 1946 and for the Chicago Cardinals in 1947.
, Illinois
, and attended Harrison Technical High School in Chicago.
. He played football at the end position (some at the tackle position in 1942) for Fritz Crisler
's Michigan Wolverines football
team from 1941 to 1942. Karwales had been expected to play for the 1940 team, but a knee injury sidelined him for the season. In September 1941, Karwales' debut was again delayed due to swelling in his feet that led doctors to "relegate him to a hospital cot for treatment." He played for the 1941 Michigan team
that finished 6-1-1 and ranked No. 5 in the final AP poll, and for the 1942 Michigan team
that finished 7-3 and ranked No. 9 in the final AP poll.
In August 1943, Karwales played for the College All-Star team that defeated the NFL champion Washington Redskins
in the College All-Star Game
.
where he served for almost four years during an after World War II
. He served in the Pacific theater, and also played football with the Third Air Force
team in 1944.
to play for the Chicago Bears
. He joined the Bears in August 1946 for their summer training camp in Collegeville, Indiana
. According to some sources, Karwales played at the end position for the 1946 Chicago Bears team that won the NFL championship. Other sources do not list Karwales among the regular season roster of the 1946 Bears. A Chicago Daily Tribune
article from September 1947 reported that Karwales had played with the Akron Bears in 1946.
Karwales participated in training camp and pre-season for the Bears in the summer of 1947. He was released by the Bears on September 22, 1947, prior to the first game of the regular season.
Karwales signed with the Chicago Cardinals on October 1, 1947. He played for the 1947 Cardinals team that compiled a 9-3-0 record and finished 1st in NFL West Division.
under head coach Joe Maniaci
.
Karwales was married to Virginia Kailer. They had two daughters, Cathy O'Hara and Jill Fink. His brother, Felix Karwales, Jr., was a rookie pitcher for the Cleveland Indians
in 1940 before being inducted into the U.S. Army. Felix was injured in action in Germany in February 1945 and died in October 1949.
Karwales became a co-owner of the Kailer-Youngquist Oldsmobile dealership in Chicago. The dealership was started by his father-in-law, Louis G. Kailer, who died on January 12, 1956. He later owned an Oldsmobile dealership named Karwales Olds, inc. located in Wheaton, IL.
Karwales was a resident of Evanston, Illinois
for approximately 50 years. He retired in 1983, and his wife died in January 1993.
Karwales died on December 31, 2004 at the Bethany Retirement Community in Chicago. His funeral mass was held at St. Catherine Laboure Catholic Church in Glenview, Illinois
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
American football
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...
player. He played at the end and 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....
positions for the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in 1941 and 1942. Following four years of service in the United States Army Air Forces
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
during and after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he played professional football for the Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
in 1946 and for the Chicago Cardinals in 1947.
Early years
Karwales was the son of Felix Karwales, Sr., and Mary (née Shemky) Karwales. He was born in 1920 on the west side of ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, and attended Harrison Technical High School in Chicago.
University of Michigan
In 1939, Karwales enrolled at the University of MichiganUniversity of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
. He played football at the end position (some at the tackle position in 1942) for Fritz Crisler
Fritz Crisler
Herbert Orin "Fritz" Crisler was an American football coach who is best known as "the father of two-platoon football," an innovation in which separate units of players were used for offense and defense. Crisler developed two-platoon football while serving as head coach at the University of...
's Michigan Wolverines football
Michigan Wolverines football
The Michigan Wolverines football program represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins and the highest winning percentage in college football history...
team from 1941 to 1942. Karwales had been expected to play for the 1940 team, but a knee injury sidelined him for the season. In September 1941, Karwales' debut was again delayed due to swelling in his feet that led doctors to "relegate him to a hospital cot for treatment." He played for the 1941 Michigan team
1941 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1941 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1941 college football season. The 1941 team compiled a record of 6–1–1 and was ranked No. 5 in the final Associated Press poll.-Schedule:-Starters:...
that finished 6-1-1 and ranked No. 5 in the final AP poll, and for the 1942 Michigan team
1942 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1942 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1942 college football season. The 1942 team compiled a record of 7–3 and was ranked No. 9 in the final Associated Press poll...
that finished 7-3 and ranked No. 9 in the final AP poll.
In August 1943, Karwales played for the College All-Star team that defeated the NFL champion Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
in the College All-Star Game
College All-Star Game
The Chicago Charities College All-Star Game was a preseason American football game played annually from 1934 to 1976 between the National Football League champions and a team of star college seniors from the previous year...
.
World War II
In 1943, Karwales entered the United States Army Air ForcesUnited States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
where he served for almost four years during an after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He served in the Pacific theater, and also played football with the Third Air Force
Third Air Force
The Third Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe . It is headquartered at Ramstein Air Base, Germany....
team in 1944.
Professional football
In June 1946, Karwales was signed by George HalasGeorge Halas
George Stanley Halas, Sr. , nicknamed "Papa Bear" and "Mr. Everything", was a player, coach, owner and pioneer in professional American football. He was the iconic longtime leader of the NFL's Chicago Bears...
to play for the Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. He joined the Bears in August 1946 for their summer training camp in Collegeville, Indiana
Collegeville, Indiana
Collegeville is a census-designated place in Jasper County, Indiana, United States. The population was 330 at the 2010 census. Collegeville is commonly mistaken for Rensselaer, Indiana. Collegeville is home to Saint Joseph's College, the source of the town's name. Collegeville is a...
. According to some sources, Karwales played at the end position for the 1946 Chicago Bears team that won the NFL championship. Other sources do not list Karwales among the regular season roster of the 1946 Bears. A Chicago Daily Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
article from September 1947 reported that Karwales had played with the Akron Bears in 1946.
Karwales participated in training camp and pre-season for the Bears in the summer of 1947. He was released by the Bears on September 22, 1947, prior to the first game of the regular season.
Karwales signed with the Chicago Cardinals on October 1, 1947. He played for the 1947 Cardinals team that compiled a 9-3-0 record and finished 1st in NFL West Division.
Later years and family
Karwales was hampered as a football player by bad knees and retired as a football player in 1948. He coached football at St. Louis University football for three years. He was an assistant coach for the Saint Louis BillikensSaint Louis Billikens
The Saint Louis Billikens are the collegiate athletic teams from Saint Louis University. This NCAA Division I program has teams in soccer, basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball, swimming and diving, cross country, tennis, track and field, and field hockey...
under head coach Joe Maniaci
Joe Maniaci
Joseph V. Maniaci was an American football player and coach in the United States. He played college football at Fordham University and then in the National Football League with the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Chicago Bears...
.
Karwales was married to Virginia Kailer. They had two daughters, Cathy O'Hara and Jill Fink. His brother, Felix Karwales, Jr., was a rookie pitcher for the Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
in 1940 before being inducted into the U.S. Army. Felix was injured in action in Germany in February 1945 and died in October 1949.
Karwales became a co-owner of the Kailer-Youngquist Oldsmobile dealership in Chicago. The dealership was started by his father-in-law, Louis G. Kailer, who died on January 12, 1956. He later owned an Oldsmobile dealership named Karwales Olds, inc. located in Wheaton, IL.
Karwales was a resident of Evanston, Illinois
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston is a suburban municipality in Cook County, Illinois 12 miles north of downtown Chicago, bordering Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, and Wilmette to the north, with an estimated population of 74,360 as of 2003. It is one of the North Shore communities that adjoin Lake Michigan...
for approximately 50 years. He retired in 1983, and his wife died in January 1993.
Karwales died on December 31, 2004 at the Bethany Retirement Community in Chicago. His funeral mass was held at St. Catherine Laboure Catholic Church in Glenview, Illinois
Glenview, Illinois
There are at least two locations in Illinois called Glenview:*Glenview, Cook County, Illinois, a northern suburb of Chicago*Glenview, St. Clair County, Illinois, an eastern suburb of St. Louis...
.