Charley Trippi, former Georgia star and Hall of Famer, dies at 100

Charley Trippi, who starred as a running back at Georgia in 1942 and from 1945-46, has died, the program announced Wednesday. He was 100 years old.

Trippi is one of the all-time greats in Bulldogs program history, finishing second in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1946 and winning the Maxwell Award that year as the country’s most valuable player. As a senior, he finished with 1,366 total yards and led the SEC with 84 points scored as Georgia went 11-0. The Bulldogs defeated North Carolina in the Sugar Bowl that year after winning the SEC Championship.

Trippi’s college career was broken up by a tour in the Air Force from 1943-45, and he came back to Athens just in time for the final six games of the 1945 campaign. In one of those games, he totaled 323 receiving yards — which set the SEC record — to help Georgia defeat Georgia Tech 33-0. He also became an All-American baseball player in 1946 and, after his retirement from football, coached at Georgia and with the St. Louis Cardinals.

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After his time as a football star in Athens, Trippi signed with the Chicago Cardinals and helped them to a world title as a rookie. He played nine years in Chicago before retiring in 1955, finishing his career with more than 3,500 rushing yards, 1,300 receiving yards and 34 total touchdowns. He received first team All-Pro honors in 1948, made two Pro Bowls and was named to the NFL’s All-Decade team for the 1940s.

Trippi was inducted into the National College Football Hall of Fame in 1959 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1968. His No. 62 jersey is also retired, making him one of four Georgia players to ever receive that honor.