Larry Conover Explained

Larry Conover
Birth Date:21 May 1894
Birth Place:Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
Death Place:Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
Position1:Center
Height Ft:5
Height In:10
Weight Lb:190
College:Penn State
Playing Years1:1921–1923
Playing Team1:Canton Bulldogs
Playing Years2:1924
Playing Team2:Pottsville Maroons
Playing Years3:1925
Playing Team3:Cleveland Bulldogs
Playing Years4:1926
Playing Team4:Frankford Yellow Jackets
Career Highlights:
  • Canton Daily News: 1st team all-NFL (1923)
  • GB Press-Gazette: 2nd team all-NFL (1923)
  • Anthracite League champion (1924)
Nfl:CON623038
Databasefootball:CONOVLAR01

Larner Somers Gardner Conover (May 21, 1894 – August 4, 1945) was a professional American football player who played during the early years of the National Football League (NFL). After attending high school in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Conover attended Penn State University, where he served as the team's captain in 1917.[1] Conover was the head basketball and baseball coach and an assistant football coach at Clemson for the 1920–21 seasons.[2]

Nicknamed "The Atlantic City Airedale", Conovar made his professional debut in the NFL in 1921 with the Canton Bulldogs. Conover played in the league for four years, playing for the Cleveland Bulldogs, Frankford Yellow Jackets and Canton. In 1922, Conover signed on to play with the then-independent, Pottsville Maroons. There he helped the Maroons become the top team in the Pennsylvania coal region.[3] In 1924, the Maroons won the Anthracite League championship. The following year, the Maroons joined the NFL.

Conover later served as a line coach at the University of Georgia and as an assistant football coach his alma mater, Penn State, from 1926 to 1932. He died on August 4, 1945, in Atlantic City, New Jersey, from a heart attack after attempting to revive a drowned swimmer.[4]

Notes and References

  1. News: PENN STATE IS AT WORK.; Football Prospects Are BrightMany Veterans to Return . The New York Times . September 7, 1919.
  2. Web site: Bourret. Tim. Former Head Coaches. Clemson 2010-11 Tiger Basketball Media Guide. August 17, 2011. Philip Sikes. 152. March 4, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304081755/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/clem/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/2010-11_media_guide.pdf. dead.
  3. Web site: Archived copy . March 23, 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20101218173246/http://profootballresearchers.org/Articles/Pottsville_Maroons.pdf . December 18, 2010 .
  4. News: . Heart Attack Fatal—Larry Conover Dies in Trying To Save a Life . . . . August 5, 1945 . 24 . June 27, 2018 . .