Ace Gutowsky

LeRoy Erwin "Ace" Gutowsky (August 2, 1909 – December 4, 1976) was an American professional American football fullback. He played professional football for eight years from 1932 to 1939 and set the NFL career rushing record in October 1939. He held the Detroit Lions' career and single-season rushing records until the 1960s.

Early life Gutowsky was descended from ethnic German colonists in Ukraine via Poland. Gutowsky learned to play football in the sandlots of Kingfisher and became an outstanding athlete at Kingfisher High School. With Gutowsky in the backfield, the Goldbugs lost only one game in the first two years of the 1930s.

Professional career Gutowsky played eight years of professional football in the National Football League for the Portsmouth Spartans (1932–1933), Detroit Lions (1934–1938) and Brooklyn Dodgers (1939). At and , Gutowsky played principally at the fullback position. As a two-way player, Gutowsky's duties on defense were those which in modern football would be associated with a linebacker or safety.

Gutowsky enjoyed his greatest success as a member of the Detroit Lions from 1934 to 1938. In 1934, he carried the ball 146 times for the Lions, the highest number of carries by any player during the 1934 NFL season.

In 1936, the Lions rushed for 2,885 yards, a mark that stood as the NFL single-season team rushing record until 1972. He also ranked second in the NFL behind Tuffy Leemans in rushing attempts (191), rushing yards (827), and rushing yards per game (68.9). His six rushing touchdowns in 1936 was exceeded only by his teammate Dutch Clark.

Gutowsky finished his playing career in 1939 with the Brooklyn Dodgers football team. On October 22, 1939, in a 23–14 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles, Gutowsky broke Cliff Battles' NFL career rushing record. While his NFL rushing record was short-lived, he continued to hold the Lions' career rushing record into the 1960s. When he concluded his career in the NFL, Gutowsky, Clarke Hinkle and Bronko Nagurski were rated as "the greatest fullbacks ever to play professional football."

Wins

North American Bridge Championships (1) Mitchell Board-a-Match Teams (1) 1951

Later life Gutowsky's father, Assaph "Ace" Gutowsky, was in the oil business. He became convinced that a major petroleum deposit lay under the area north of Oklahoma City and scouted the area extensively. In 1942 or 1943, Gutowsky's father discovered an oil field at West Edmond, Oklahoma, that was estimated at 117,000,000 barrels. Gutowsky's father discovered the oil field using a "doodlebug," a "homemade divining rod"

After serving in the U.S. Army during World War II, Gutowsky went into the oil business with his father. He also served as the line coach for Oklahoma City University in the late 1940s.

Gutwosky died of cancer in December 1976 at Mercy Hospital, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He was buried in the Kingfisher Cemetery.