Edward Dillon (American football)

Biography

Early years

Dillon was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts in 1882. He was the son of Edward Dillon, who was considered "one of the best printers in New England," and Mary Ann Beasley. His father was born in England to Irish parents and his mother was born in Ireland. Dillon attended Phillips Academy before enrolling at Princeton University.

Princeton

At Princeton, Dillon was the quarterback for the university's football teams from 1905 to 1908. He also played center field and second base for Princeton's baseball team,

In 1906, Dillon was selected as a first-team All-American by Caspar Whitney and The New York Times. In 1907, he was selected as a first-team All-American by Fielding H. Yost and a second-team All-American by Walter Camp and Casper Whitney. He was also selected as captain of Princeton's football team for the 1908 season. In the 1908 publication Spalding's How to Play Football, Dillon's contributions to the Princeton football team were described as follows:"Dillon of Princeton is one of the cleverest quarters that ever handled the ball. Not only does he drive his team well, but he uses his plays with judgment, and he himself is a wonder at catching kicks and running them back. He does not himself enter into the interference or the push as much as some other quarters, and Princeton's plan of play does not give him the kind of forward passing to do as mentioned above in the case of Jones. He acts as though he could perform these duties if they were given him, and I look to see him develop along this line this season." As a senior in 1908, Dillon was the captain of Princeton's football team, but he missed almost the entire season on account of injuries. At the end of the 1908 season, Caspar Whitney wrote in selecting his All-American team that "Dillon of Princeton would undoubtedly have had the call for quarter if he had been able to play, but his injury rendered him practically of no use to his team."

Later years

In 1910, Dillon was hired as the head football coach at the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri after assisting Sewanee to a title in 1909, but he was released from his contract in March 1910 "on the plea that business complications in Philadelphia necessitated his removal there." Dillon played professional football for the Lyceum team in Pittsburgh. The Lyceum team was undefeated from 1910 to 1912.

During World War I, Dillon served as a pilot with the rank of ensign in the U.S. Navy's Naval Aviation Corps.

References

References

1. ''Massachusetts, Birth Records, 1840-1915''
2. (January 31, 1935). "Judge Edward Dillon, Famed Quarterback At Princeton, Dies". Syracuse Herald.
3. ''Textile world record'', Volume 31, p. 189
4. ''Massachusetts, Marriage Records, 1840-1915''
5. ''1900 United States Federal Census''
6. (1935-01-31). "Eddie Dillon of Grid Fame Dead". Lowell Sun.
7. Lawrence Perry. (1935-02-10). "Sport Waves". Salt Lake Tribune.
8. Caspar Whitney. (1907). "The View-Point". The Outing Magazine.
9. (1906-12-09). "New Football Produces Individual Brilliancy: Many Players Merit Places on Fanciful All-American Team". The New York Times.
10. (1907-12-27). "Camp Selects His All American Team". Trenton Evening Times.
11. (1907-12-26). "Whitney Picks Out the Champ Eleven: All-American Eleven Taken from the East". La Crosse Tribune.
12. (1907-12-26). "Casper Whitney Shuns the West: Eleven Eastern Players Picked for All-American Eleven". Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette.
13. (1907-12-02). "COACH YOST AND HIS TEAM". Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette.
14. (1907-12-02). "Eddie Dillon, Quarterback, the New Princeton Captain". The Mansfield News.
15. (1907-11-18). "Yale Won Brilliant Victory from Princeton, 12-10". The Harvard Crimson.
16. (1907). "Spalding's How to Play Football".
17. (1908-12-02). "Eddie Dillon". Trenton Evening Times.
18. Casper Whitney. (1909-01-04). "The Viewpoint". Outing.
19. (January 28, 1910). "Dillon will Coach The Tigers of 1910". The Evening Missourian.
20. (1910-03-07). "Dillon Released from Contract". Trenton Evening Times.
21. "Glamourless Gridirons: 1907-9". The Professional Football Researchers Association.
22. (1935-01-31). "Former Quarterback at Princeton Dies". Billings Gazette.