chicago (ap) | Marshall Goldberg, an All-America running back at the University of Pittsburgh and key contributor to the Chicago Cardinals’ 1947 NFL championship, died Monday, April 3. He was 88.
Goldberg died in a Chicago nursing home after spending several years battling the effects of brain injuries caused by numerous concussions during his playing days, said his wife, Rita Goldberg.
He was a member of several halls of fame, including the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.
Goldberg was a member of Pitt’s “Dream Backfield” while leading the school to a national championship in 1937 under coach Jock Sutherland.
He was runner-up for the Heisman Trophy in 1938 and amassed 1,957 rushing yards while at Pitt, a school record that stood until Tony Dorsett broke it in 1974. He was named to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1958.
“Marshall Goldberg set a timeless example of the student-athlete ideal,” Pitt’s athletic director Jeff Long said in a statement. Pittsburgh’s football coach Dave Wannstedt called Goldberg “one of the crown jewels of both Pitt and college football.”
Goldberg was a six-time All-Pro defensive back for the Chicago Cardinals during the 1940s. His interception against the Philadelphia Eagles clinched the NFL championship game in 1947.
His pro career was interrupted by a three-year stint as a line officer in the Navy during World War II, according to Pitt.
A native of Elkins, W.Va., Goldberg settled in Chicago after his football career and spent decades as the owner of a machine-tool company in suburban Chicago, his wife said.
He is survived by his wife, son Marshall, daughter Ellen Tullos, two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.