Villanova Univeristy Athletics

John DiCarlo was the second athlete in Villanova history to win an individual event at the Penn Relays and was at one time the Wildcats acting head coach. He graduated in 1943 and later returned to campus for one track & field season after World War II. He was inducted to the Varsity Club Hall of Fame in 1986.
 
A team captain during his collegiate career, DiCarlo anchored winning relay teams at the Millrose Games and New York Athletic Club. He was primarily a sprinter when he got to Villanova but would eventually make a name for himself in the hurdles. He was ranked among the best hurdlers on the east coast during his career.
 
Legendary head coach Jumbo Elliott spent time as a lieutenant commander in the Navy and DiCarlo served as the acting head at Villanova during that time. After DiCarlo’s graduation in 1943 he too joined the service and was deployed during World War II, reaching the rank of Sergeant as a command gunner in a B-29.
 
DiCarlo came back to Villanova after the war and competed during the 1946 outdoor track & field season. It was during that year that he was the 440 yard hurdles champion at the Penn Relays with a winning time of 55.1 on the old cinder track at Franklin Field. At the time the only previous titles the Wildcats had one at the Penn Relays were the freshman mile relay in 1932 and an individual championship by Carl Hickey in the triple jump in 1933.
 
In his professional career DiCarlo was a national sales account manager with Parker Brothers. He was born on April 16, 1920, and died on March 30, 2015, in Midlothian, Va.