Ted Doyle
Encyclopedia
Theodore Dennison Doyle was a professional football
player who played in the National Football League
from 1938 until 1945. He is best known for playing guard
for the Pittsburgh Pirates and as they would later be known as, the Pittsburgh Steelers
. Doyle also played for both of the merger teams the Steelers would be involved in. In 1943 the Steelers merged their team with the Philadelphia Eagles
to form what sportwriters would call the "Steagles
". The two teams merged due to manning shortages that were felt league-wide due to World War II
. A year later the Steelers merged their team again, this time with the Chicago Cardinals to form "Card-Pitt
". When he wasn't playing football, Doyle worked six days a week at the Westinghouse Electric Company
during the war. It was later discovered that he had a small part in the Manhattan Project
, America's effort to build the atomic bomb.
Decades later Doyle referred to his time with Card-Pitt as "a strange time". He was spending six days a week working for Westinghouse on war projects, and then on Sunday he would play football. He stated that playing for Card-Pitt was not a lot of fun and said sometimes that only a couple hundred people would show up for a game. According to Doyle, many players kept hoping that the war would finally end because one it did, all player contracts would become void.
Once the war ended, Doyle played one last season, for the Steelers.
Prior to his professional career, Doyle played college football
at the University of Nebraska from 1935 until 1937. He was later inducted into the school's football hall of fame in 1990. He died in 2006 of heart respiratory disease.
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 who played in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
from 1938 until 1945. He is best known for playing 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....
for the Pittsburgh Pirates and as they would later be known as, the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
. Doyle also played for both of the merger teams the Steelers would be involved in. In 1943 the Steelers merged their team with the Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia 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...
to form what sportwriters would call the "Steagles
Steagles
The Steagles is the popular nickname for the team created by the temporary merger of two National Football League teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Philadelphia Eagles, during the 1943 season...
". The two teams merged due to manning shortages that were felt league-wide due to 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...
. A year later the Steelers merged their team again, this time with the Chicago Cardinals to form "Card-Pitt
Card-Pitt
Card-Pitt was the name for the team created by the temporary merger of two National Football League teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Chicago Cardinals, during the 1944 season. The teams were forced to merge, because both had lost many players to World War II military service...
". When he wasn't playing football, Doyle worked six days a week at the Westinghouse Electric Company
Westinghouse Electric Company
Westinghouse Electric Company LLC is a nuclear power company, offering a wide range of nuclear products and services to utilities throughout the world, including nuclear fuel, service and maintenance, instrumentation and control and advanced nuclear plant designs...
during the war. It was later discovered that he had a small part in the Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
, America's effort to build the atomic bomb.
Decades later Doyle referred to his time with Card-Pitt as "a strange time". He was spending six days a week working for Westinghouse on war projects, and then on Sunday he would play football. He stated that playing for Card-Pitt was not a lot of fun and said sometimes that only a couple hundred people would show up for a game. According to Doyle, many players kept hoping that the war would finally end because one it did, all player contracts would become void.
Once the war ended, Doyle played one last season, for the Steelers.
Prior to his professional career, Doyle 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 Nebraska from 1935 until 1937. He was later inducted into the school's football hall of fame in 1990. He died in 2006 of heart respiratory disease.