How many of you actually met and talked to Nile Kinnick

I apologize for repeating a previous post. Skip it if you've alredy heard the story. A couple of years ago, I was asked to speak at our high school athletic banquet. What follows is the latter part of my speech:

I’m kind of curious about something so I’m going to ask if anyone here tonight was at the athletic

Banquet held in the basement of the old Methodist Church in 1940. Anyone?? Glenn Gregg—

were you there? I was 8 years old so you must have been about 30--??


I’d like to tell you a personal story that happened to me here in Hawarden when I was 8 years

old. The year was 1940 and speaker that year at our athletic banquet was the greatest athlete in

the history of Iowa Hawkeye sports. His name was Nile Kinnick. The only Iowan to ever win the

Heisman Trophy. Captain of the 1939 college All American Football team. Iowa plays football

where? Kinnick Stadium.


After his speech, my Dad took me up front and introduced me to Nile Kinnick. He asked me if I

liked sports & I said yeah, I like sports a lot. He asked me how I was doing in my school work

& I said OK. He asked if I studied as hard as I played & I kind of stammered out something like

“Well, not quite as hard”. I couldn’t lie to Nile Kinnick!!


I’m going to read this next part, because I don’t want to leave out a single word.


He said, sports are fun, and sports can teach you to do your best, which is

great, if you just apply that to your education and your life as well as the games

you play.


I cried when my hero, Nile Kinnick died on June 3, 1943. The plane he was flying as a Navy pilot

in World War 2 had an engine malfunction on takeoff from a Navy Aircraft Carrier and crashed

into the sea. I’ve never forgotten the lesson Nile Kinnick was trying to teach a little 8 year old kid

at a sports banquet in Hawarden, Iowa, in 1940. And now, it’s been passed on to you.


In conclusion,thanks to the basketball team from the geriatric set. You never quit, came from

behind for several wins, had a winning season, and brought us lots of enjoyment and we’re proud

of you. And based on your 3.4 team cumulative grade point average mentioned by your coach, I’m

pretty sure Nile Kinnick somewhere up there is also proud of you.
 
My neighbor went to school with him. I thought that was pretty cool. I asked him once what Nile was like. He said, "Oh he was just a real swell guy. Everybody thought so." I always think about that.

He just passed away recently, and had been "fading away" for a few years prior. It's too bad, I would have liked to ask more about Nile.
 
I am only 35 years old so I obviously never met Nile Clarke Kinnick, but my wife's grandpa went to the U with him. He is still alive and tells of talking to Kinnick casually as he was on his way to class and Kinnick was leaving class at least a couple of times a week. He also is quick to point out that Kinnick was a Senior while he was a Freshman. At that time Freshmen had to wear beanies, and upper classmen usually wouldn't talk to them in this type of a situation. He said, however, that Kinnick didn't reallly care and talked to him like an equal. They were never close friends or anything, but my wife's grandpa said that Kinnick was one of two men that he had ever met in his life that he thought could truly have been president of the U.S. Just as a side note, I have one son named Nile and one named Clarke.
 
This is good good stuff!! :)

It sounds as if Nile Kinnick was one of a very few in life that gave everyone he met an equal chance. You just don't meet people like that anymore, the PURE genuine.

Most people are driven by stereotypes.

People now make others earn their respect. When meeting people, Nile Kinnick gave respect & it was up to whom he met to keep his respect.
 
Wonderful. Thanks for sharing Papa!

At the unveiling of the Kinnick statue a few years ago, I had a chance to talk with one of the few living Ironmen. You could see the admiration in his eyes and hear in his voice how strongly he felt about Nile. Even after all these years.

Every school has their legend or story or Icon (if they're lucky). There's no better foundation, no stronger symbol of excellence...than our own Nile Kinnick.
 
nileclarke said:
but my wife's grandpa said that Kinnick was one of two men that he had ever met in his life that he thought could truly have been president of the U.S. Just as a side note, I have one son named Nile and one named Clarke.
Click to expand...

I'd be curious to know who the other man was? BTW Kinnick is the only Hawkeye to win the Heisman but fellow Iowan Jay Berwanger from Dubuque won the first Heisman trophy.
 
TylerSash said:
So there's a poster on this board nearing 80 years old?

I find that hard to believe.
Click to expand...

My mother is 79 (fortunately, not on this board ... at least to my knowledge.) She spends more time on the computer than a teen-ager.

Here's a quandry: do you accept your mother's request to friend you on Facebook?
 
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