Villanova Univeristy Athletics

Wherever he went during his award-winning career, there always seemed to be a “first” following Ed Michaels. He was the first football All-American in Villanova history and a draft pick in the first-ever NFL amateur draft. Michaels was part of the first Wildcats football team to play in a bowl game, and his jersey number – 13 – was retired on the brand-new Wall of Fame in Villanova Stadium as part of the first group of inductees in a tradition that started nearly 60 years after his graduation. Two decades earlier he had been among the first group of inductees to the Varsity Club Hall of Fame.
 
Michaels played on the Villanova varsity squad from 1933-35 and graduated in 1936 with a degree in Economics. He was inducted to the Varsity Club Hall of Fame in 1974 as part of the inaugural group of inductees. That first class of seven Hall of Famers included four former athletes: Michaels, basketball legend Paul Arizin, boxer Tony Sala, and track & field star Ron Delany.
 
A standout guard for the Wildcats who went on to have a long professional career, Michaels made history as a senior in 1935 when he became the first football All-American in school history. He left no doubt about how highly he was regarded. Michaels was named a first team All-American by 10 different organizations, among them the Associated Press and United Press International as well as the International News Service, Hearst Syndicate and Liberty Magazine. The list of All-America accolades also included Pop Warner, Fosters All-America, Lawrence Perry, Russell Gnau and Elgin.
 
Michaels was the captain of the freshman football team in 1932 and came full-circle as the captain of the varsity squad in 1935. He played for Harry Stuhldreher on varsity teams that compiled a 17-8-3 (.661) record spanning the 1933-35 seasons. That included seven-win campaigns in both 1933 and 1935, with Villanova defeating Temple in each of those seasons as well as ending the 1933 campaign with a win at Rutgers to go along with an earlier victory at South Carolina.
 
The first NFL Draft was held in 1936 and Michaels was selected by the Chicago Bears with the 14^th overall pick in the second round. He made his professional debut playing 12 games with seven starts for the Bears in 1936, then moved on to Washington where he played in 11 games and won an NFL championship in 1937. A native of Wilmington, Del. who had graduated from Salesianum High School, Michaels returned home in 1938 as a player-coach for the Wilmington Clippers of the American Association from 1938-42.
 
Michaels was a four-time American Association All-Star and won two championships with the Clippers, who he would later play for again in 1947. During World War II, Michaels partial deafness resulted in him receiving a 4-F status given to those who were deemed physically unfit by the United States military. That classification gave Michaels an opportunity to play for the “Steagles” – a merged team consisting of Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers players in 1943 which came about as a result of a league-wide running shortage of player personnel.
 
After the war, Michaels played for the Eagles from 1944-46 and finished his NFL career with 62 games played and 38 starts, including 39 games for the Eagles. He returned to the Wilmington Clippers in 1947 and concluded his playing career with a stint as a player-coach for the Ottawa Rough Riders of the Canadian Football League from 1948-50.
 
Michaels returned to Villanova in 1951 as a line coach for new head coach and former teammate Art Raimo. He held that role for three years before pursuing business interests in 1954, but returned to the Wildcats again in 1955 as the line coach. Michaels shifted to be the coach of the Villanova freshman team in 1956 and remained in that role for the next 11 seasons. His son, Ed Jr., followed in his father’s footsteps as a standout guard for the Wildcats and graduated in 1958.
 
Michaels passed away in Wilmington, Del. in 1976 at the age of 61.