Sports
Andy Farkas
1916–2001 · American football fullback
Hungarian-American fullback who came of age at University of Detroit Jesuit and the University of Detroit, starred for Washington and finished his NFL career with the Detroit Lions.
- Born
Clay Center, Ohio- Died
Traverse City, Michigan
aged 84- Birth name
- Andrew Geza Farkas
- Detroit years
- 1930s–1950s
- Field
- Sports
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Farkas, born in Ohio to a family of Hungarian origin, moved to Detroit as a teenager and graduated from University of Detroit Jesuit High School. He played college football for the University of Detroit Titans from 1934 to 1937 under coach Gus Dorais. Washington picked him in the first round of the 1938 NFL draft; he led the league in rushing touchdowns as a rookie, led it in scoring in 1939 and won the 1942 championship. He is credited as the first NFL player to wear eye black. In 1945 he came home to play a final season with the Detroit Lions at Briggs Stadium. In 1955 he founded the Gus Dorais Foundation at the University of Detroit in honor of his old coach.
Highlights
- University of Detroit Titans fullback, 1934–1937
- First-round NFL draft pick of Washington, 1938
- NFL champion in 1942 and two-time first-team All-Pro
- Played his last season for the Detroit Lions, 1945
- Credited as the first NFL player to wear eye black
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 3
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Studied here · early 1930s
University of Detroit Jesuit High School
Jesuit prep school on Detroit's northwest side where Farkas graduated.
Studied here · 1934–1937, 1955
University of Detroit (now University of Detroit Mercy)
Where he starred for the Titans football team and later founded the Gus Dorais Foundation.
Played here · 1945
Briggs Stadium (Tiger Stadium)
Demolished · 1912–2009
The Lions' home field in 1945, at Michigan and Trumbull; demolished in 2009, the site now holds a youth ballpark and the Detroit PAL headquarters.