Tony Steponovich

Anthony John Steponovich (January 15, 1907 – January 5, 2000) was an American football player and coach.

Early years

Steponovich was born in 1907 in Globe, Arizona, an attended Inglewood High School in Inglewood, California. He enrolled at the University of Southern California (USC) where he played college football for the freshman team in 1926 and for the varsity from 1927 to 1929.^[1] As a senior, he played for 1929 USC team that won the Pacific Coast Conference championship, defeated Pitt in the 1930 Rose Bowl and has been retroactively recognized by some selectors as the national champion.

Professional football

Prior to the 1930 season, Steponovich and two of his USC teammates (

Steponovich and his USC teammates Barragar and Ward finished the 1930 season with the NFL's Philadelphia franchise, known as the Frankford Yellow Jackets. Steponovich started three games at the end position for the Yellow Jackets.^[4] In all, Steponovich appeared in 12 NFL games, 9 as a starter.^[4]

Steponovich returned to professional football in 1935 as a guard for the Los Angeles Maroons,^[5] and in 1936 as a fullback for the Hollywood Stars.^[1]

Steponovich's younger brother, Mike Steponovich, also played in the National Football League.^[6][5]

Coaching career and later years

Steponovich later coached football at Oceanside High School in Oceanside, California, and at Riverside High School and Riverside College in Riverside, California.^[7][8] His Riverside COllege teams won only one conference game in two years, and he was replaced as head coach in March 1950.^[9] He died in 2000 at Riverside.^[1]

References