Jerry Krall obit

Former Buckeye leading rusher Jerry Krall passes away at 92

The Buckeyes have lost a great one.

 

He was not on the list.

Ohio State has lost a member of the Buckeye family. Jerry Krall, who played for the Scarlet and Gray from 1945-49 passed in Rossford, Ohio on June 2. According to his obituary published in The Toledo Blade, Krall passed away “peacefully and with his family by his side." He was under hospice care as he dealt with complications of cancer according to his son, Chris.

Krall was one of 10 children and the youngest of seven boys. Before playing for Ohio State, Krall attended Toledo’s Libbey High School. According to his obituary, his mother did not want Krall to play football but his older sister signed him up anyway when he was a sophomore at Libbey. Krall was a co-captain and helped Libbey to two City League championships in a row. He was named first-team All-City and All-Ohio and was the state's player of the year as a senior.

As one of the top high school players in the country, Krall narrowed his college decision down to Ohio State and Michigan. According to his obituary, he decided between the Buckeyes and the Wolverines by a flip of a coin. The Scarlet and Gray were lucky the coin landed their way, as Krall lettered all four years at Ohio State, one of the first players to accomplish that feat for the Buckeyes.

Krall went on to lead the Scarlet and Gray in rushing, passing and receiving in 1949. In the 1950 Rose Bowl, Krall rushed for 50 yards and threw for another 20 as Ohio State beat the University of California 17-14 with a field goal in the final two minutes. That 1949 Buckeye team included a number of talented players, including Vic Janowicz who went on to win the Heisman Trophy the next season. Despite the talent on the roster, Krall managed to be the team's leading rusher and was eighth in the Big Ten with 606 yards and four touchdowns. Ohio State finished the year 7-1-2 and won the Big Ten before the Rose Bowl win against Cal.

For his Buckeye career, Krall rushed for 1,435 yards and scored 11 touchdowns on 317 carries. He also threw for six additional scores. Krall played for three different head coaches during his time with the Scarlet and Gray, Carroll Widdoes in 1945, Paul Bixler in 1946 and Wes Fesler in 1948 and 1949.

He played professional football halfback and defensive back who played for the Detroit Lions.