Elgie Tobin

Elza Williams "Elgie" Tobin (May 7, 1886 – September 3, 1953) was an American professional football player with the independent Youngstown Patricians, and a player-coach with the Akron Pros of the American Professional Football Association (renamed the National Football League in 1922) where he wore number 8.

Biography Prior to playing professional football, Tobin played college football at Pennsylvania State University and West Virginia University. He lettered in football for the Mountaineers in 1907. At Penn State, where records list him as "Yegg Tobin", he lettered for three years (1912, 1913, 1914). The 1912 Penn State team compiled a record of 8-0, and has retroactively been recognized as national champion by the National Championship Foundation, though most other selectors have named the 9-0 Harvard team as national champion. He was team captain of the 1914 Penn State team. When the Patricians folded, Tobin joined the Akron Pros of the newly formed AFPA. In 1920, Tobin coached the Pros to a record of 8 wins, 0 losses and 3 ties, winning the first ever NFL Championship. The very next season, he split the team's coaching duties with Fritz Pollard, making Pollard the first African-American coach in the NFL. The 1921 Akron Pros started the year 7–0, but finished in third place with an 8–3–1 record.

Tobin left the Pros after 1921 and was slated to coach a new Youngstown team in the National Football League, but the project died in the planning stages. He later served as player-coach of the semi-professional Elco Sterlings and worked at Republic Steel.