Len Eshmont
No. 2, 81
Position:Halfback
Safety
Personal information
Born:(1917-08-26)August 26, 1917
Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died:May 12, 1957(1957-05-12) (aged 39)
Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S.
Height:5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:179 lb (81 kg)
Career information
High school:Mount Carmel
College:Fordham
NFL Draft:1941 / Round: 5 / Pick: 36
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career AAFC/NFL statistics
Rushing yards:1,345
Rushing average:4.8
Rushing touchdowns:7
Receptions:54
Receiving yards:915
Receiving touchdowns:6
Interceptions:10
Military career
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Navy
Years of service1942–1945
Rank Lieutenant
Battles/warsWorld War II
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Leonard Charles Eshmont (August 26, 1917 – May 12, 1957) was an American professional football halfback and safety for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL) and the San Francisco 49ers, then in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC).

From Atlas near Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, Eshmont played college football at Fordham University in The Bronx; as a senior in 1940, he led the Rams to a 7–1 regular season record and a berth in the Cotton Bowl, which they lost by a point to sixth-ranked Texas A&M.

Eshmont was selected by the New York Giants in fifth round of the 1941 NFL Draft, 36th overall.[1] He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and then played for the 49ers from 1946 to 1949, and scored the first touchdown in franchise history.

After his playing career ended, Eshmont was an assistant coach at the U.S. Naval Academy under Eddie Erdelatz. He moved to the University of Virginia in 1956 under new head coach Ben Martin, whom he had coached with at Navy.[2][3]

Eshmont died at age 39 in 1957 of infectious hepatitis at the University Hospital in Charlottesville, Virginia, where he had been a patient for his final three months.[3] The 49ers created The Len Eshmont Award, the team's most prestigious annual honor, which is given to the Niner who best exemplifies the "inspirational and courageous play" of Eshmont.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "1941 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  2. ↑ LEN ESHMONT, 39, EX-FOOTBALL STAR; Halfback With Fordham and the Forty-Niners Is Dead -- College Coaching Aide Leading Ground-Gainer, The New York Times, May 13, 1957.
  3. 1 2 "Head coaches pay tribute to Eshmont". Free-Lance Star. (Fredericksburg, Virginia). Associated Press. May 13, 1957. p. 8.
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