 Steuber in The Savitar, 1943 | |||||||||||||
| No. 28, 88, 94, 80 | |||||||||||||
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| Position: | Halfback | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born: | October 25, 1921 Wenonah, New Jersey, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Died: | November 29, 1996 (aged 75) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school: | Christian Brothers College (St. Louis, Missouri) | ||||||||||||
| College: | Missouri (1940–1943) DePauw (1943) | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1943 / round: 1 / pick: 9 | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
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| Career NFL/AAFC statistics | |||||||||||||
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Robert James Steuber (October 25, 1921 – November 29, 1996) was an American football halfback who played one season in National Football League (NFL) and three seasons in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). He played college football for the Missouri Tigers, where he quickly became one of the country's most productive runners and scoring threats. He was second in the country in 1942 with more than 1,000 yards of rushing. Steuber was drafted by the NFL's Chicago Bears and played one game for the team, appearing as a substitute on September 26, 1943, in the Green Bay Packers' home opener, which ended in a 21–21 tie.[1] The next day, Steuber entered the United States Navy and was transferred to DePauw University for pre-flight training.[2] Despite having gone from amateur status to professional football, Steuber was allowed to return to college football six days later and led the DePauw Tigers to a 50–0 win over Illinois Normal College, rushing for 225 yards and scoring 25 points in the first half.[3] Playing for DePauw's football team in 1943, he led the nation in scoring.
After the war, Steuber signed with the Cleveland Browns of the AAFC, a new league set to start play in 1946. He was limited by a knee injury that year, however, and was traded to the Los Angeles Dons after the Browns won the first AAFC championship game. Steuber only played in three games for the Dons due to another knee injury, and he was again traded to the Buffalo Bills. A broken back toward the end of the 1948 season ended his playing career for good. Steuber then settled in St. Louis, where he worked as a sports announcer on the weekends. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1971 and the University of Missouri's athletics hall of fame in 1990. His number 37 jersey is retired by Missouri.
- ^ "Lions Win, 27-0; Packers Tie Bears, 21-21", Chicago Daily Tribune, September 27, 1943, p23
- ^ "Steuber's Career as Pro Player is Ended", Dixon (IL) Evening Telegraph, September 28, 1943, p8
- ^ "DePauw, Plus Steuber, Beats Normal 50 to 0", Chicago Sunday Tribune, October 3, 1943, p2-2