Leo Koceski
Leo Koceski in 1948
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| Michigan Wolverines | |
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| Position | Halfback |
| Career history | |
| College | Michigan |
| Personal information | |
| Date of birth | January 28, 1927 |
| Place of birth | Canonsburg, Pennsylvania |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Leo Robert "Bugsy" Koceski, Jr. (born January 28, 1927), also known as the "Canonsburg Comet," is a former American football halfback. He played for Michigan's undefeated national championship team in 1948 and the 1950 Big Ten championship team that defeated the California in the 1951 Rose Bowl.
Koceski was born in 1927, the youngest of nine children. His father, Leo Robert Koceski, Sr., died in 1938 when Koceski was 11 years old. Koceski began his football career at Canonsburg High School in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. He played football at Canonsburg from 1943 to 1946, was selected as an All-WPIAL player in both 1945 and 1946, and led the WPIAL in scoring as a senior in 1946. Koceski scored 19 touchdowns in 1946 and was also a sprinter and long jumper for Canonsburg's track team.
Koceski was recruited as a football player by Pitt, Penn State, Army, Navy, Notre Dame, Alabama, Tennessee, and Columbia, but he chose the University of Michigan. In a 1948 interview, Koceski explained his selection of Michigan, "Ever since I was in the sixth grade at First Ward public school, I had wanted to go to Michigan. It seemed too good to be true when they accepted me." In 1947, he played on the freshman team coached by Wally Weber. Koceski joined the varsity team in 1948 and helped the Wolverines to an undefeated season and national championship. In Michigan's 28–0 victory over Northwestern in 1948, Koceski scored three touchdowns. Michigan's fourth touchdown in the Northwestern game resulted from a Koceski fumble as he crossed the goal line, with the ball being recovered in the end zone by teammate Bob Erben. Following the Northwestern game, the Associated Press wrote:
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