{{Short description|American football player (1918–1991)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}} {{Infobox NFL biography | name = Joe Hoague | number = 17, 21 | position = Fullback, halfback | birth_date = {{birth_date|1918|02|18}} | birth_place = Brookline, Massachusetts, U.S. | death_date = {{death_date and age|1991|01|04|1918|02|18}} | death_place = Lakeville, Massachusetts, U.S. | height_ft = 6 | height_in = 2 | weight_lb = 203 | high_school = The Governor's Academy <br> (Byfield, Massachusetts) | college = Colgate | draftyear = 1941 | draftround = 13 | draftpick = 111 | pastteams = * Pittsburgh Steelers ({{NFL Year|1941|1942}}) * Philadelphia-Pittsburgh Steagles ({{NFL Year|1943}}) * Boston Yanks ({{NFL Year|1946}}) | statlabel1 = Rushing yards | statvalue1 = 282 | statlabel2 = Rushing average | statvalue2 = 2.8 | statlabel3 = Receptions | statvalue3 = 3 | statlabel4 = Receiving yards | statvalue4 = 25 | statlabel5 = Total touchdowns | statvalue5 = 3 | pfr = HoagJo20 }}
'''Joseph Daniell Hoague''' (February 18, 1918 – January 4, 1991) was an American professional football player in the National Football League (NFL) with the Pittsburgh Steelers and later the Philadelphia-Pittsburgh Steagles and Boston Yanks. Before joining the NFL, Hoague played college football at Colgate University.
==Early life== Hoague began his athletic career while attending The Governor's Academy, the oldest boarding school in the United States. There, he played five varsity sports and served as the baseball team captain in his senior year. In his junior year, Hoague played football, hockey, and baseball; as a senior, he competed in football, basketball, winter track, and baseball. While at the school he was also awarded the Academy’s most honored prize, the Morse Flag, for earning the highest respect of the faculty.
==College career== Hoague graduated in 1937, and so afterward attended Colgate University. At Colgate, he was a three-year letterman and honorable All-American. He was inducted into the Colgate University Hall of Honor in 1990.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://athletics.colgate.edu/hallofhonor/hoh2006.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2009-06-01 |archive-date=2011-07-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718093652/http://athletics.colgate.edu/hallofhonor/hoh2006.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==Professional career== After college, he was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the 13th round (111th overall) of the 1941 NFL draft.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1941 NFL Draft Listing |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1941/draft.htm |access-date=2023-03-31 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> His rights were transferred to the Pittsburgh Steelers due to the events later referred to as the Pennsylvania Polka. He played in two seasons with the Steelers.<ref>{{cite news|title=Deceiving!: Pile Driving Hoague Also Packs Strong Harvard Accent|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=EPYaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=8kwEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2135%2C3257304|accessdate=May 20, 2011|newspaper=Pittsburgh Press|page=36|date=August 29, 1941}}</ref> However, he was later called up to fight in World War II. He was drafted into the United States Navy and was out of football until 1946, when he played one last season with the Boston Yanks.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.profootballhof.com/history/general/war/worldwar2/honor_roll.jsp|title = WW II Honor Roll - Online Exhibits | Pro Football Hall of Fame Official Site}}</ref> However, before he left for the Navy, Steagles coach Walt Kiesling placed Hoague in the line-up one last time in a game against the Chicago Bears.
==Coaching career== In 1980, Hoague was named to the National High School Association Hall of Fame for his dedication to coaching football at Melrose High School in Melrose, Massachusetts. As a high school football coach at Melrose, Natick, and Taunton High Schools, Hoague achieved a combined record of 200 victories. He was also recognized by his induction into the Massachusetts Football Coaches Hall of Fame.
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110728094137/http://www.thegovernorsacademy.org/home/content.asp?id=767 Governor's Academy profile] *[http://www.melrosefootball.org/history.html Friends of Melrose Football] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090212163007/http://melrosefootball.org/history.html |date=February 12, 2009 }} *[https://books.google.com/books?id=XeqqE-hyBUkC&dq=Joe+Hoague+football&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 Last Team Standing]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoague, Joe}} Category:1918 births Category:1991 deaths Category:Players of American football from Brookline, Massachusetts Category:United States Navy personnel of World War II Category:Boston Yanks players Category:Pittsburgh Steelers players Category:Steagles players and personnel Category:Colgate Raiders football players Category:The Governor's Academy alumni Category:20th-century American sportsmen