April 17, 1905 - Little Falls, Minnesota - Herb Joesting the Minnesota Golden Gophers fullback from 1925 to 1927 arrived into the world. According to the FootballFoundation.org website Joesting was a powerful runner and Gopher Coach Clarence “Doc” Spears knew how to use him, building the entire Minnesota offense around the style and talent of Herb. After two straight seasons of being frustrated by Joesting, Notre Dame head man Knute Rockne proclaimed ahead of the 1927 matchup,"I'll buy a new suit for the guy who can throw Joesting for a loss." No Irish player was able to collect on the new threads as Joesting and the Gophers ended up in a 7-7 tie with the Irish that season, ending up with a final record of 6-0-2. The "Owatonna Thunderbolt" as he was called, in that senior season received the honor of being called an All-American for the third straight year! Herb recorded 1,850 career yards in 24 games for a career average of 4.2 yards a carry. He knew only one way to play the game. "I play each game for all it's worth," he said. "No more can be asked of an athlete than that he goes all out in every situation." Those words really inspired a young Gopher sophomore named Bronko Nagurski, who would be watched and learned from the great performances of Joesting during the next two seasons. Herb Joesting received the great honor of being selected for inclusion into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1954.
April 17, 1941 - Red Bluff, California - The Occidental two-way quarterback/defensive back of the 1962 and 1963 seasons, Bill Redell was born. When the experts talk about a well balanced player three can’t be many more balanced than “the Falcon.” Redell passed for 1,567 yards and rushed for 1,583 for his collegiate career. He tossed 11 touchdowns and ran in eight more averaging 6.3 yards per carry per the NFF. Bill picked off seven passes on defense and kicked 36 of 43 extra-point attempts. It was consistent play like this that got him named to the NAIA All-America team in 1963. Bill Redell’s collegiate football records are celebrated in the College Football Hall of Fame after his induction in 2001. After college, he played six years in the CFL for the Edmonton Eskimos, Hamilton Tiger-cats, and the Calgary Stampeders. After hanging up the cleats in 1970, he became a football coach first as assistant at Cal State-Fullerton and California Lutheran and then later as the first head coach of a brand new program at Oaks Christian High School in Westlake Village, California.
April 17, 1972 - Modesto, California - The massive offensive tackle of the USC Trojans from 1991 to 1994, Tony Boselli celebrities his day of birth. Standing 6’-8” and weighing in at 305 pounds, Boselli was a two-time All-American and a 1994 NFF National Scholar-Athlete according to the NFF. Tony was highly decorated as a gridiron athlete as he was selected as a consensus First-Team All-America honors his senior season, the 1994 finalist for the Outland Trophy and a two-time semifinalist for the Lombardi Award. Boselli also was the 1994 Morris Trophy winner as the top offensive lineman in the Pac-10 Conference. The National Football Foundation selected Tony Boselli for entrance into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014. Tony was the first-ever draft pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars when he was selected as the second overall pick in the 1995 NFL Draft. The five-time Pro Bowl selection played seven seasons with the Jaguars before finishing his career with the Houston Texans in 2002. For more chack out our full bio on Tony Boselli.
