Ernie Vick
Vick in 1920
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| Position: | Catcher in baseball Center in football |
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| Personal information | |
| Date of birth: | July 2, 1900 |
| Place of birth: | Toledo, Ohio, U.S. |
| Date of death: | July 16, 1980 (aged 80) |
| Place of death: | Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S. |
| Career information | |
| College: | University of Michigan |
| Career history | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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Henry Arthur "Ernie" Vick (July 2, 1900 – July 16, 1980) was an American football and baseball player. He was selected as an All-American center in 1921, played on the 1926 World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals, and was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983.
Born in Toledo, Ohio, Vick graduated from Toledo Scott High School. He attended the University of Michigan where he lettered four years in football (1918–1921) and two years in baseball (1921–1922).
As a 180-pound freshman in 1918, Vick was permitted to play varsity football under the Students' Army Training Corps rule in effect during World War I. He was named to a number of All-Western teams as a freshman in 1918.
In 1919, owing to "the lack of backfield material" in Ann Arbor, Vick was moved to the fullback position. After being laid up with a foot blister in Michigan's early games, Vick built a reputation as "a star line plunger" who was "fast for his weight."
In 1920, Vick was moved back to the center position, where he was Michigan's starter in 1920 and 1921. Michigan's Coach Fielding H. Yost said of Vick: "He is the most accurate passer from center that has ever put a ball into play. Under pressure he was dependable at all times." Vick was named to Walter Camp's All-American team in 1921. Camp said of Vick: "He is the only man who has throughout the season added great power and aggressiveness to steadiness and consistency." After exception was taken by many to Camp's selection of Vick, Michigan's Harry Kipke wrote a column in the Lansing State Journal defending the selection. Kipke wrote:
"Vick is the greatest lineman Michigan has had since the days of "Germany" Schultze. He is good on the offense and even greater on the defense. He has studied football and knows the game from all angles. His defensive work is the best that has been seen on the western gridirons in years. … He is a rough, rugged and dependable man to have in the pivot position."
Kipke noted that Coach Yost had so much confidence in Vick that he would often ask Vick's opinion on plays and players. Kipke said, "When as great a coach as Yost takes in his confidence one of the men playing on his team, he must be far superior to any player on the eleven."
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