Cliff Battles

Clifford Franklin Battles (May 1, 1910 – April 28, 1981) was an American professional football tailback who played in the National Football League (NFL). Battles was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1968.

Early life

Battles was born in Akron, Ohio, the son of Frank Battles, a saltworker for the BFGoodrich and Firestone tire companies, and Della Battles. He played high school football at Kenmore High School. His most prominent season was 1931, when he scored 15 touchdowns and had four extra points.

While at West Virginia Wesleyan, Battles won 15 letters in five sports – four each in football and track, three each in baseball and basketball, and one in tennis. He also performed well during the 1933 season and on October 8, 1933, Battles, playing for the newly named Boston Redskins, became the first player to exceed 200 rushing yards in a game, finishing with 215 yards on 16 rushes and one touchdown against the Giants.

In the 1937 NFL season, Battles was again the league's leading rusher with 874 yards on 216 carries and won all-league honors for the fifth time in six years. In six seasons, Battles totaled 3,511 yards rushing. A two way threat, he also finished his career with 15 interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown.

After 1937, Battles hoped for a raise in salary. George Preston Marshall, the owner of the Redskins, refused to pay him more than $3,000 a year (the amount Battles had been paid since his rookie season). Battles chose retirement instead, and left the game as a player at the end of 1937.

NFL career statistics Legend Won the NFL championship Led the league Bold Career high Underline Incomplete data

Regular season Year Team Games Rushing Receiving Passing 1932 BOS 8 8 148 576 3.9 — 3 4 60 15.0 1 2 20 10.0 42 2.1 — 0 2 0.0 4 1933 BOS 12 11 136 737 5.4 — 3 11 185 16.8 0 5 21 23.8 65 3.1 — 0 3 0.4 4 1934 BOS 12 10 96 480 5.0 — 6 5 95 19.0 1 1 9 11.1 7 0.8 7 0 0 39.6 7 1935 BOS 7 6 67 230 3.4 — 1 3 22 7.3 0 5 22 22.7 92 4.2 — 0 1 25.6 2 1936 BOS 11 11 176 614 3.5 — 5 6 103 17.2 1 18 52 34.6 242 4.7 — 1 6 17.1 7 1937 WAS 10 8 216 874 4.0 75 5 9 81 9.0 1 13 33 39.4 142 4.3 — 0 3 15.0 7 Career 60 54 839 3,511 4.2 75 23 38 546 14.4 4 44 157 28.0 590 3.8 7 1 15 5.3 31

Postseason Year Team Games Rushing Receiving Passing 1936 BOS 1 1 2 8 4.0 13 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 0 — 0 — 0 0 0 — — 0 1937 WAS 1 1 17 53 3.1 9 1 3 80 26.7 42 0 3 5 60.0 20 4.0 13 0 1 29.2 2 1 Career 2 2 19 61 3.2 13 1 3 80 26.7 42 0 3 5 60.0 20 4.0 13 0 1 29.2 2 1

Coaching career After the 1937 season, Cliff Battles accepted a $4,000 job as an assistant football coach at Columbia University coached there from 1938 to 1943. While at Columbia, Battles was also the head coach of the men's basketball team from 1942 to 1943. He then served in the United States Marine Corps during World War II. After the war, Battles became head coach of the Brooklyn Dodgers of the All-America Football Conference from 1946 to 1947.

After football After the end of his coaching career, Battles became an associate with General Electric in the Washington Metropolitan Area before retiring in 1979. He died on April 28, 1981, in Clearwater, Florida, and is buried in Parklawn Memorial Park in Rockville, Maryland.