New Kensington great Willie Thrower headed to Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame

BB Flenory knows a thing or two about making his mark in New Kensington.

As a prolific basketball star at Valley High School in the mid 1970s, he finished with more than 1,800 points and was selected to the Parade Magazine’s All-American team.

So, when the opportunity arose to recognize another New Kensington great, Flenory, a member of the Willie Thrower Awards Foundation board of directors, didn’t hesitate.

He nominated Thrower for induction into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, and earlier this year, the hall of fame committee accepted Thrower’s credentials for enshrinement.

In front of foundation board members, family and friends, and other representing the Robert “Tick” Cloherty Western Chapter, Thrower will take his place Saturday among some of Pennsylvania’s all-time athletic greats.

“We were absolutely thrilled when we found out that Willie would go into the hall of fame,” Willie Thrower Award Foundation president Bob Pallone said.

“Our foundation has been working very hard to bring attention to all that Willie Thrower meant through his play on the field and impact off the field when he became the first African American (quarterback) to take a snap in the NFL. We’re always working on things to keep that legacy alive. We have really grown and been thrilled to the amount of attention we’ve gotten. We are really looking ahead to the 75th anniversary and some big things for that time. We hope to include the Chicago Bears and the Pittsburgh Steelers in those plans.”

Willie Thrower’s son, Melvin, will represent and induct his father during Saturday’s 63rd banquet and ceremony at the Valley Forge Casino Resort, King of Prussia.

“I remember us watching the Super Bowl between the Redskins and the Broncos when Doug Williams quarterbacked the Redskins to the championship,” said Melvin of the first black quarterback to win a Super Bowl.

“I didn’t fully understand it because I was young, but he said, ‘Someday, they will know who I am.’ I never forgot that. At that time, nobody really knew who my dad was except for those who were close to him and knew what he did. No one knew what he accomplished and what he did to break the color barrier for African American quarterbacks. He knew his day was going to come. He said he might not be here to witness it, but he had hope that a day like (Saturday) would come.”

Willie Thrower is one of 13 inductees in this year’s class, which includes Darrelle Revis, the Aliquippa and Pitt standout who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame earlier this year.

Former Phillies shortstop Larry Bowa, retired PIAA executive director Brad Cashman and Michael Bantom, a St. Joseph’s University star who was part of the 1972 U.S. Olympic basketball team that lost a controversial gold medal game to the Soviet Union in Munich, also are part of the class.

“All of the inductees have their great stories of facing adversity, not giving up, pushing through, and going over every hurdle they had to go through to get to where they became great and beyond,” Melvin said.

“That is why I can’t wait to hear their stories. With my speech, I know I only have so much time, but I don’t want to forget anything. There is so much I want to say.”

With a last name of Thrower, he almost seemed destined to be a quarterback.

And what a quarterback he was.

Thrower helped lead the former New Kensington High School to WPIAL football titles in 1946 and 1947 after helping the Red Raiders to a runner-up finish in 1945.

He was recruited to play in college at Michigan State, and in 1952, he was the Big 10’s first black quarterback as part of the Spartans’ national championship run.

Just a year later came his one opportunity in the NFL.

Signed as an undrafted free agent by Bears owner and coach George Halas, Thrower made history as the league’s first black quarterback to play in a game. The date was Oct. 18, 1953, and Thrower found himself under center against the San Francisco 49ers in a competitive 35-28 loss at Wrigley Field.

Thrower struck up a connection that season with Bears starter George Blanda, whose prowess under center and in the kicking game provided a long career that resulted in enshrinement into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Eighteen years after his passing, the foundation that bears his name was formed to honor some of today’s top high school quarterbacks. The Will Thrower Award has been presented since the spring of 2021 — celebrating the 2020 season — to recognize the top Western Pennsylvania High School quarterback.

The player is chosen by a panel of coaches from each conference in the WPIAL and City League, media reporters and broadcasters and several other game officials.

“We get a thrill every year in handing out the award, which the foundation was formed to do,” said Melvin Smith, the founder of the Willie Thrower Award Foundation.

“But to have him receive this induction award reaffirms to us that we are doing the right things. It was so exciting to hear that he was going to be going into the hall of fame. That was something we hadn’t dreamed of. So many people have heard Willie Thrower’s story, but many others haven’t. It is great to know that more people will hear his amazing story (this weekend).”

A Willie Thrower statue at Valley Memorial Stadium commemorates his career at the high school, college and professional levels.

In honor of the 70th anniversary of Willie Thrower’s first snap in the NFL, the Willie Thrower Awards Foundation held a celebration in New Kensington from Oct. 12-18, 2023, with a number of events to mark the occasion including a parade, a homecoming festival, a community day with a cookout, a football skills camp and live broadcasts.

The Foundation hopes to celebrate in 2028 with a number of events to mark the 75th anniversary of Thrower’s achievement. The Foundation, Smith said, hopes to possibly arrange a scrimmage between the Bears and Steelers at Valley High Stadium before the teams play a preseason game at Acrisure.

The Bears have been an ardent supporter of Willie Thrower and the Willie Thrower Foundation. In April, the Bears invited Melvin and Willie Jr. to be their guests at the NFL Draft with an up-close view of the stage in the shadow of Acrisure Stadium.