Benny Lom
| California Golden Bears | |
|---|---|
| Position | Halfback |
| Career history | |
| College | California (1927–1929) |
| Bowl games | Rose Bowl (1929) |
| Personal information | |
| Date of birth | June 29, 1906 |
| Date of death | June 29, 1984 (aged 78) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Benjamin "Benny" Lom (June 29, 1906 – June 29, 1984) was an American college football player who played for three seasons for the University of California, Berkeley Golden Bears, and was best known for his attempt to stop his own teammate Roy Riegels after Riegels ran the ball 69 yards in the wrong direction during the 1929 Rose Bowl.
As a sophomore in his first game with Cal, Lom threw two long forward passes to win the game. In another game that season, several of Lom's passes led Cal to a 13–0 win over Saint Mary's College of California. The team went 7–3 that season and Lom was named as an honorable mention on the Associated Press All-America team and was named as a first-team member of Lou Little's All-America team.
Cal finished with a 6–1–2 record in the 1928 season and faced the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the 1929 Rose Bowl. In the second quarter, Lom forced a fumble by Stumpy Thomason of Georgia Tech. Lom's teammate Roy Riegels picked up the ball at the Georgia Tech 35-yard line and headed for a touchdown but reversed direction after spinning to avoid tackles and started heading towards his own goal line. Lom chased after Riegels trying to tell him to turn around, but Riegels couldn't hear him over the roar from the crowd of 70,000. Lom ultimately caught up with Riegels at Cal's own six-inch line. The play was described at the time as follows:
"Down the field raced Riegels, the white lines passing beneath his feet, his mind concentrated upon outrunning the Georgia Tech team. Lom gradually overtook him. Once it looked as if Lom were going to make a flying tackle of his teammate, as he was within diving distance, but he evidently expected to turn Riegels around. Not until Riegels reached the 1-foot mark did Lom overtake him. Lom then pulled Riegels by the shoulders and motioned toward the opposite goal. Riegels stopped, and at that instant two Georgia Tech players tackled him and threw him over the goal-line. The referee called the ball down at the place where Riegels had been stopped by his teammate."
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