Knox College Athletics

Dwight Selmon was born on Blayney Farm, near Alexis, Illinois. Red enrolled at Knox in 1939 after graduating from Alexis High School where he was an outstanding football player.

While at Knox, Red was a three-year letter winner in football as a halfback, and well-known as an excellent overall athlete. In 1942, he was given a unique chance to shine when quarterback Vernon Clark broke his arm early in the season. With Red as quarterback, the team relied on his athleticism to lead the offense. A reporter for The Register-Mail described a particular play during the Homecoming game as “biff-blooey-bang.” The “bang” was Red scoring the only touchdown of the game on a reverse, and the “biff” and “blooey” were two first-down passes he threw to set up that run.
           
During his senior year, Red served as co-captain of the football team with fellow PB Boy, Tom Howes. He was elected Most Valuable Player at the end of the season and unanimously selected to the All-Midwest Conference team that year. Red was a member of Knox R.O.T.C., Phi Sigma Kappa and K Council, and was inducted into Scabbard and Blade, an honor society for R.O.T.C. cadets.
           
On his 21st birthday, Red enlisted in the U.S. Army and was enrolled in the advanced class of R.O.T.C. After basic training in Alabama, Red attended Officers Training school in Georgia. He joined the 335th Infantry, 84th Division in Louisiana as a Second Lieutenant and was sent to fight in the Battle of Germany where he was killed in action. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart, and his body is buried in Netherlands American Cemetery in Margratten, Netherlands. Words taken from his obituary, printed in the Rock Island Argus, describe Red as a “clean, fair-minded, aggressive sportsman, especially fond of football . . .”