Johnny Maulbetsch John F . " Johnny " Maulbetsch ( June 20 , 1890 – September 14 , 1950 ) was an All - American football halfback at Adrian College in 1911 and for the University of Michigan Wolverines from 1914 to 1916 . He is also a member of the College Football Hall of Fame . After playing with an independent football team in Ann Arbor and at Adrian College , Maulbetsch became one of the most famous American football players in 1914 while playing for the University of Michigan . Maulbetsch became known as the " Human Bullet " because of his unusual low , line - plunging style of play , and was also known as the " Featherweight Fullback " because of his light weight and small size . After his performance against Harvard in 1914 , in which some reports indicated he gained more than 300 yards , eastern writers , including Damon Runyan , wrote articles touting Maulbetsch . Maulbetsch was also selected by Walter Camp to his All - American team . In 1915 , Maulbetsch underwent surgery for appendicitis and did not perform to the same level as he had in 1914 . He made a comeback as a senior in 1916 and was again one of the leading players in college football . Between 1917 and 1920 , Maulbetsch was the head football coach at Phillips University . With Maulbetsch ' s name recognition , he was able to recruit big name talent to Phillips , including future Pro Football Hall of Fame r Steve Owen , and future United States Olympic Committee President Doug Roby . Maulbetsch quickly turned Phillips into one of the top programs in the southwest , as his teams beat Oklahoma and Texas and lost only one game in the 1918 and 1919 seasons . Maulbetsch was later the football coach at Oklahoma A & M ( later known as Oklahoma State ) and Marshall College in the 1920s . He has been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame , and the University of Michigan awards the John F . Maulbetsch Award each year to a freshman football player based on desire , character , and capacity for leadership and future success both on and off the football field . Ann Arbor High School and the Independents . Maulbetsch was born and grew up in Ann Arbor , Michigan . He attended Ann Arbor High School where he led the football team to consecutive state championships in 1908 and 1909 . One account of the 1908 playoffs noted : " Ann Arbor ' s smashing play in the first half was wholly due to Maulbetsch , Ann Arbor ’ s fullback , and his terrific line bucking . He clearly outshone his team mates . " After graduating from high school , Maulbetsch joined the Ann Arbor Independents , a football team made up of Michigan " varsity eligibles " and " townies . " Maulbetsch was once reportedly called upon to drive across the goal line for the Independents in a game in which a large crowd , including a farmer with his plow - horse , gathered in the end zone . " Head down and legs working like piston rods , Maulbetsch plowed ahead until head struck the plow horse amidships . Down went the horse Mauly on top of him . " College football player . Transfer from Adrian College . Maulbetsch started his college football career at age 21 , leading Adrian College to an 8 – 0 record in 1911 , including a 15 – 0 win over the University of Michigan freshman team . Maulbetsch ’ s performance drew the attention of Michigan Coach Fielding H . Yost . After watching Maulbetsch dominate Michigan ’ s freshman team , Yost concluded : " If I could get that kid into Michigan and keep him up in his studies I ’ d make an All - American place for him his first year . " Yost persuaded Maulbetsch to transfer , and he played with " the scrubs " in 1912 . Yost told the press at the time he had " another ( Willie ) Heston " in Maulbetsch . 1914 season . Maulbetsch did not play for the varsity team until the fall of 1914 when he was 24 years old . Before the season began , Maulbetsch was " touted as one of the fastest halfbacks who ever donned moleskins . He weighs 155 pounds , is built low , has a powerful pair of shoulders and his dashes are characterized by lightning speed . " Another pre - season account said he was " a wonder as a line plunger and a wizard in the open field . " From the outset , considerable attention was paid to his unusual running style . Observers noted " the peculiar manner in which he runs . . . . He has a corkscrew style of dashing , and even when tackled squarely has such a sturdy pair of legs that his assailant is usually carried back several yards . " Michigan opened the season with a 58 – 0 win over DePauw , followed by a 69 – 0 victory over Case Institute of Technology . Maulbetsch was the offensive star against Case , as he twice " carried several would - be tackles across the goal . " Playing Vanderbilt the following week , Maulbetsch had runs of 25 and 35 yards , scored two touchdown s , " was worked overtime and probably advanced the pigskin more than any two other players . " After starting the season 5 – 0 , Michigan lost three of four games against top eastern schools : Syracuse , Harvard , Penn , and Cornell . 1914 Harvard game . Maulbetsch ’ s breakthrough came on October 31 , 1914 , in front of 30 , 000 fans at Harvard . The game was one of the most anticipated matches of the year . A special train brought Michigan fans to Cambridge , Massachusetts , and hundreds of Michigan alumni from the East were on hand as " reinforcements . " Though Harvard prevailed , 7 – 0 , Maulbetsch was the big story in papers across the country . Writers from Ring Lardner to Damon Runyon told the story of Maulbetsch ’ s performance . Lardner said : " If anyone tells you the East plays the best brand of football , Maulbetsch shot that theory full of holes . " According to Runyon , the Wolverines used " the mighty Maulbetsch as their battering ram , " and he " gained enough ground against Harvard to bury a German army corps . " Football writer Frank G . Menke said : " No westerner ever created half the stir in the east as did this Michigander . . . His peculiar , baffling style of attack , backed by phenomenal strength almost always earned for him gains of 5 to 20 yards every time he was called upon to carry the ball . " Another writer noted Maulbetsch ’ s skill as a " line breaker " as he " carried the ball repeatedly through the Harvard line and into the secondary defense with bullet - like rushes that upset tackler after tackler . " Maulbetsch was responsible for four - fifths of Michigan ’ s ground gains , and on several occasions his dives reportedly " had so much power that he dove right through a double line of crimson players and went sprawling on the ground twelve to twenty feet clear of the double line . " While every report indicates that Maulbetsch had a big day , the accounts vary dramatically as to exactly how many yards he gained . Frank Menke reported after the game that Maulbetsch gained 300 yards . A 1938 newspaper account said he “ gained 350 yards from scrimmage . ” Yet , his 1951 obituary indicated he gained 133 yards in 30 attempts . Despite Maulbetsch ’ s efforts , Michigan was never able to punch the ball across the goal line . Many blamed Michigan ’ s quarterback who switched to another back every time after Maulbetsch " took the ball to the shadow of the Crimson goal posts . " In answer to the question why Michigan was unable to score , Frank Menke said : " Ask the fellow who quarterbacked for Michigan that day . His actions were too mystifying for the spectators to figure out . ” When Harvard reneged on an agreement to play a game in Ann Arbor in 1915 , sports writers concluded it was to avoid facing Maulbetsch again . Said one reporter : " When faih Hahvahd [ sic ] saw what Maulbetsch did in the first clash , it decided it cared to see no more of him . He was too rough . " " Human Bullet " . Much of the attention on Maulbetsch focused on his diminutive size and unique running style . At , and , Maulbetsch was a small back , even by the standards of his day . And his running style saw him bend his torso and propel himself like a projectile into the opposing line . Indeed , he won several nicknames based on his size , running style , and fighting spirit , including the " Human Bullet , " " Mauly , " the " Human Shrapnel , " the " Featherweight Fullback " , the " Michigan Cannon Ball , " and the " German bullet . " Comparisons of Maulbetsch to military armaments were common . In addition to the " bullet , " " shrapnel , " and " cannonball " nicknames , the " Syracuse Herald " observed : " Standing up in front of a Krupp gun has its dangers , but it is not to be compared with the dangers of standing in front of Maulbetsch when he is going full speed ahead . " Maulbetsch ’ s style was described as " line - plunging . " A New York newspaper noted : " When the ball is snapped to him he almost doubles himself up , and , with his head aimed at the knees of the opposing line , he dives head first . Those who have seen Maulbetsch in action marvel at the great momentum he can get up in two or three steps . " Noted football writer Walter Eckersall said : " Mauly is a little fellow , being built close to the ground . They say that when he plunges at the line his head is almost on a level with his shoe tops – that he hits so low that it ’ s well nigh impossible to stop him . " An Iowa newspaper wondered how it was possible " for a man to smash into a line of human bodies with the force that Maulbetsch does and come out of the game without a broken neck . " Maulbetsch was said to run " so low that he could dash under an ordinary table without losing his feet . " At a coaching conference in the 1920s , a coach doubted the table - ducking story and challenged Maulbetsch . The doubter later recalled : " I began ribbing him about this table - ducking stuff and finally offered to bet him he couldn ’ t do it . Well , we got a table up in a room , Johnny tucked a water pitcher under his arm and backed against the wall . Darned if he didn ’ t do it , the only thing , that water pitcher broke in a million pieces . " Asked about the incident , Maulbetsch said it was true , except one part . Maulbetsch insisted there wasn ’ t a nick on the pitcher . Maulbetsch makes All - American . After the loss to Harvard in 1914 , Michigan rebounded with a 34 – 3 win over Penn . Walter Eckersall reported that the Wolverines were " led by the redoubtable Johnny Maulbetsch . " Despite being " a marked man " by the Penn defense , he was not thrown for a loss in the entire game , and he scored three touchdowns . Before Michigan lost to Cornell in the final game of the season , a scandal arose when it was revealed that the owner of an Ann Arbor pool room , Joe Reinger , had written a letter intimating that he could buy Maulbetsch and Michigan ’ s quarterback to throw the Cornell game , and win $ 50 , 000 from students willing to bet on Michigan . The letter was turned in to the Michigan athletic officials , and Reinger went to the athletic office " to try to hush the matter up . " Reinger became abusive and was thrown out of the office by Coach Yost . The incident caused " the biggest stir of the season on the campus , " as students demolished Reinger ’ s pool room , and police had to guard Reinger ’ s residence against threatening demonstrations that continued to " a late hour . " Although Michigan did lose to Cornell , Maulbetsch was said to be " practically the only successful ground gainer for Michigan . " Over the course of the 1914 season , Maulbetsch was said to have scored about half of Michigan ’ s 252 points . A Wisconsin newspaper noted that , " when it comes time to write a resume of the 1914 football season , " Maulbetsch ’ s play " will live in the minds of men . . . for years to come . " As a reward for his efforts , Maulbetsch was named a first - team All - American at the end of the 1914 season . Pie and coffee diet . As public attention focused on Maulbetsch as " the greatest line - plunger of a decade , " the press could not get enough of Maulbetsch , even interviewing his family . His sister revealed that Maulbetsch had a fondness for home cooking and received permission from the team trainer to eat at his family ’ s Ann Arbor home . " Now , Johnny ’ s sister explains that each day his mother baked two pie s for the athlete ’ s supper , and that in addition he had everything else his appetite craved , including coffee . " Confronted by reporters about the revelation , Maulbetsch replied : " The story was slightly exaggerated . I rarely ate more than one and one half pies for dinner . " Joking references to Maulbetsch ’ s diet continued when it was reported in 1915 that he was suffering from " acute indigestion . " One reporter quipped , “ Those much advertised pies of his maw ’ s evidently aren ’ t as great training dope as they were cracked up to be . " It turned out that the indigestion was appendicitis , and Maulbetsch was hospitalized at St . Joseph ’ s Sanitarium in Ann Arbor in April 1915 , where he underwent an operation . 1915 season . As the 1915 season was set to get underway , Coach Yost reported , " Johnny told me he was feeling fine when I saw him recently , although he doesn ’ t weigh as much as he used to . " Despite Yost ' s hopes , Maulbetsch fell far short of the prior year ’ s performance in 1915 . He was several pounds lighter after the illness and surgery , and it was noted that " a few pounds means much to a man of Maulbetsch ’ s weight . " In the opening game against Lawrence , Maulbetsch scored three touchdowns , but he was " woefully weak on interference . " Playing against Mount Union , Maulbetsch made several big gains , including a 50 - yard touchdown run in the third quarter . His difficulties returned in the season ’ s third game against Marietta , as " Maulbetsch was powerless to stop the Marietta forward pass , all of the successful ones being directed toward his side of the line . " After " The Michigan Daily " criticized his performance following the Marietta game , Maulbetsch " threatened to desert the Michigan squad and give up football for good . " It reportedly took Yost several hours to coax Maulbetsch to report for practice again , and in the next game against Case , Maulbetsch did not play until the third quarter . In the season ’ s first big game , Michigan was soundly beaten by Michigan Agricultural College , 24 – 0 , and most of Maulbetsch ’ s runs " didn ’ t even get as far as his own line . " In the final four games of the season , matters got worse for Michigan and Maulbetsch , as the team went 0 – 3 – 1 , scoring only 14 points in four games . In Maulbetsch ’ s defense , some writers noted the weakness of the Michigan line , often allowing rushers into the backfield before Maulbetsch even had the ball . But some of those same observers noted that " Mauly " was not carrying the ball " at his usual pace . " Sports writer Frank Menke described Maulbetsch ' s 1915 performance this way : " [ The ] Wolverine halfback skidded from the heights of greatness to the level of mediocre . . . . The lines that he had crumpled like eggshell s a year before stood up under his charges , often dumping him back for losses . The once ' unstoppable ' Maulbetsch not only was stopped but forced to retract . " Despite the subpar performance in 1915 , Michigan ’ s varsity letter - winners elected him captain of the team for 1916 . 1916 comeback . Maulbetsch made a strong comeback in 1916 . Instead of spending the summer recovering from appendicitis , he spent the summer working as an assistant barkeeper on a steamship plying between Chicago , Illinois and St . Joseph , Michigan . Maulbetsch spent his afternoons swimming and running sprints up and down the beach . On one trip , a giant coal passer claimed to be the strongest man in the world , and Maulbetsch agreed to a wrestling match on the boat . " The coal passer rushed the stripling , who ducked , caught his opponent about the waist and crushed him to the deck . When the giant woke , he wanted to know if the boat hit a rock . " As the season started , " The New York Times " wrote : " Michigan ' s come - back football team , headed by Bullet Maulbetsch , is going to be an eleven to be reckoned with on the gridiron this Fall . " Maulbetsch returned to his prior form , and one of the writers who had criticized him in 1915 said " the great Michigander using the same method of attack , has repeatedly broken in fragments this year the lines that he couldn ’ t dent in 1915 . " Professional football . After the 1916 football season ended , Maulbetsch considered his options . There was a report that he had been engaged as a high school football coach ( and math instructor ) in Toledo , Ohio . Even more prevalent were reports that he had signed to play for a professional football team . Professional football was still in its infancy in 1917 , and landing a well - known star would have been a boost to any of the budding franchises . In January 1917 newspapers reported that Maulbetsch had signed a contract to play professional football for Detroit Tigers owner , Frank Navin . Navin was supporting efforts to organize a professional football league in all the important Midwestern cities , including a Detroit , Michigan franchise to play at Navin Field . As late as November 1917 , newspapers reported Maulbetsch had played professional football after graduating and was offered “ a handsome fee ” to play with the Akron Burkhardts in November 1917 . Although professional football records prior to 1920 are scarce , it appears unlikely that Maulbetsch played professional football , as press accounts show he was working as a college football coach starting in 1917 . Head football coach . Building Phillips University into a football power ( 1917 – 1920 ) . In June 1917 , Maulbetsch announced that he had accepted a position as the football coach ( and professor of chemistry ) at Phillips University in Enid , Oklahoma . Phillips was a small , private school without a well - known athletic program . In the fall , Enid residents were " leaving their work every afternoon to watch [ Maulbetsch ] and his husky young Oklahoma youths work out on campus . " Within a year , Maulbetsch turned Phillips into one of the strongest teams in the southwest . Maulbetsch landed his first big recruit before leaving Ann Arbor . While playing at Michigan , Maulbetsch became friends with Doug Roby , a football player at the Michigan Military Academy , and one of the state ’ s top recruits . Roby followed Maulbetsch to Phillips and later went on to become a member of the International Olympic Committee in the 1950s and 1960s and president of the United States Olympic Committee from 1965 to 1968 . Maulbetsch ’ s next find was future Pro Football Hall of Fame r Steve Owen , who later spent 23 years with the New York Giants . Maulbetsch saw Owen watching football practice from under a tree and told him : " A fellow your size ought to be out for the squad . " Owen showed up the next day and , when Maulbetsch used him to illustrate blocking fundamentals , Owen threw a block into Maulbetsch that threw him five yards through the air . Maulbetsch was satisfied , and Owen had a spot on the team . Because Phillips was not part of a conference , it was not subject to any eligibility limitations , an advantage Maulbetsch was accused of exploiting . A third key player recruited by Maulbetsch was an Native American halfback named Levi , and dubbed " Big Chief " by Phillips fans . Having recruited top talent to Enid , Maulbetsch ’ s teams lost only one game in 1918 and 1919 , including a 10 – 0 – 1 record in 1919 . In 1917 and 1918 , Phillips came into the limelight when they beat the Oklahoma Sooners and the Henry Kendricks College team that had swept the west without allowing another team to score . Maulbetsch arranged a game against the Texas Longhorns in 1919 , the first meeting between the schools . When the game was announced " The San Antonio Light " reported : " Phillips University has one of the strongest teams in the Southwest . The only team to beat them in the past two years is Oklahoma and last year Phillips beat the Sooners 13 – 7 . " The report credited Maulbetsch for securing success at an institution little known in athletics before he arrived . The University of Texas had not lost a game since 1917 when the Phillips " Haymakers " arrived in Austin , Texas on October 11 , 1919 . Maulbetsch ’ s team shocked the Longhorns , holding them scoreless and winning the contest , 10 – 0 . One Texas newspaper reported that Phillips had " whitewashed the Longhorns in their own corral . " Others in Texas concluded that Phillips ’ success was the result of lax or non - existent eligibility policies . The lack of eligibility rules almost certainly did play a part in Phillips ’ success . When Phillips joined the Southwest Conference in 1920 , it became bound by the conference ’ s eligibility rules , and the team was outscored 97 – 0 in conference play against Texas A & M ( 47 – 0 ) , Texas ( 27 – 0 ) , Arkansas ( 20 – 0 ) , and Texas Christian ( 3 – 0 ) . " The Galveston Daily News " noted that Maulbetsch ’ s 1920 team could not " compare with the strong team " he surprised Texas with in 1919 . At the end of the 1920 season , Phillips withdrew from the Southwest Conference , and Maulbetsch accepted a new position at Oklahoma A & M . Head coach at Oklahoma A & M ( 1921 – 1928 ) . In January 1921 , Maulbetsch was hired as the head coach at Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College ( now Oklahoma State ) in Stillwater , Oklahoma . He served as the coach at Oklahoma A & M from 1921 – 1928 , where his teams posted a 28 – 37 – 6 ( . 437 ) record . In 1924 , his team went 6 – 1 – 2 and shut out Oklahoma ( 6 – 0 ) , Arkansas ( 20 – 0 ) and Kansas ( 3 – 0 ) . Maulbetsch ’ s Aggies also shut out Phillips that year , 13 – 0 . After the season , attempts were made to lure him to Washington University in St . Louis , Missouri , but Maulbetsch said he was satisfied with his position in Stillwater . Maulbetsch arranged a game in Ann Arbor against his alma mater to start the 1926 season . Michigan beat the Aggies , 42 – 3 . Despite an overall record of 3 – 4 – 1 , Oklahoma A & M won its first conference football championship by going 3 – 0 – 1 in games against Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association opponents . Maulbetsch also drew attention in 1926 for his disciplinary methods . When the team lost two games due to fumbles , he ordered eight of his backfield players to carry footballs with them to classes throughout the week and instructed other team members to try knocking the balls from under their arms . The penalty for losing a ball was “ a hard run around the stadium . ” He also ordered one of his ends to wear boxing gloves after he poked an opposing player in the eye . The Aggies won only one game against seven defeats in 1928 . In late November , the day after a 46 – 0 loss to Oklahoma , newspapers reported that " reliable sources " had said Maulbetsch intended to resign . Maulbetsch immediately denied the rumor , saying : " I have not resigned . I am aware that a faction here is trying to get me out , but I do not intend to throw up the sponge . " In December , pressure to fire Maulbetsch grew , and one Oklahoma newspaper observed : " Coach Maulbetsch of the A . & M . football team is the object of attacks from many sides because of the rather poor showing made by his team during the past season . They are looking for a goat and just now Johnnie is cast in that role . Regardless of his past record , those who demand victory at any price and by any means whatsoever , are insisting that he be fired forthwith and a man be placed in the position who , by fair means or foul , will gather in a team that will win victories and never lose a game . " Ultimately , Maulbetsch resigned at the end of May 1929 as Oklahoma A & M ’ s coach in football , baseball , and basketball . It was announced that he would spend the remaining year of his contract on a leave of absence at half pay . Head coach at Marshall College ( 1929 – 1930 ) . In July 1929 , Maulbetsch was hired by Marshall College in Huntington , West Virginia to become head coach in charge of football and track . When Marshall ’ s " Thundering Herd " got off to a 4 – 1 start , Maulbetsch won praise in the West Virginia press , but Marshall finished the season 1 – 2 – 1 in the second half . And in 1930 , the Marshall team went 3 – 5 – 1 , including a 65 – 0 loss to Penn State . Maulbetsch resigned as Marshall ' s coach in January 1931 ; his only comment at the time was that he had " other plans . " Later years and legacy . After retiring from football , Maulbetsch bought a drug store in Huntington , West Virginia . During World War II , Maulbetsch took a job building B - 24 Liberator bombers at Ford Motor Company ’ s famed Willow Run Plant near Ypsilanti , Michigan . From 1946 until his death , he owned an automobile sales company in Adrian , Michigan . Maulbetsch died of cancer in 1950 at his home in Ann Arbor . He was survived by his widow , Ida , a son John Maulbetsch , and a daughter Barbara . Maulbetsch had been married to Ida ( maiden name Ida Elizabeth Cappon ) since May 27 , 1917 . Maulbetsch was inducted posthumously into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1973 . Since 1956 , the John F . Maulbetsch Award has been given at the University of Michigan after spring practice to a freshman football candidate on the basis of desire , character , capacity for leadership and future success both on and off the football field . The award was established by Frederick C . Matthaei – a former classmate of Maulbetsch who went on to become a Regent of the University . The award has been a good indicator of future success , as past recipients include Jim Mandich ( 1967 ) , Rick Leach ( 1976 ) , Charles Woodson ( 1996 ) , Marlin Jackson ( 2002 ) , and Jake Long ( 2004 ) . Maulbetsch Avenue in Ypsilanti Township is presumably named after Maulbetsch .