Knox College Athletics

The 1921 Lombard College football team was one of the best teams in the country during the 1921 season.

The "Olive and Gold" football team finished the season with an impressive 9-0 record with victories over larger schools like Bradley and DePaul. Their closest games of the season were a 7-0 win over Des Moines and a 14-0 win over Knox. 

The team was led by two members of the Knox-Lombard Athletic Hall of Fame — quarterback Roy "Rody" Lamb and end Evar Swanson. Each won 16 letters at Lombard and both went on to careers as professional athletes. They were both Honorable Mention All-Americans during their careers. Swanson scored 109 points for Lombard during the 1921 season, which would be tops on the Knox scoring list. Lamb was regarded as the best quarterback in Illinois during his time playing for the Olive and Gold. Swanson is still considered the fastest to circle the bases in Major League Baseball (MLB). He also played in the National Football League (NFL).

The 1921 Lombard team was coached by Paul Schissler, who was 19-1-1 in his three seasons at Lombard. His only loss was to Notre Dame by a score of 14-0 in 1923. He later went on to coach at what is now Oregon State University, where he coached for nine seasons before coaching four years in the NFL. After that, Schissler helped found the California Football League where he coached Jackie Robinson before Robinson switched to baseball. Schissler is probably best remembered for being the creator of the NFL Pro Bowl in 1951.

I am honored to welcome the 1921 Lombard Football team into the Knox-Lombard Athletic Hall of Fame, Class of 2021.