Homer Reed Gilbert, who sometimes played under the name Knuckles Boyle (August 17, 1909 – January 26, 1943) was an American football tackle who played one season with the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL).[1] He attended Albright College and Shippensburg State Teachers College. Gilbert also attended Harrisburg Technical High School in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and the New York Military Academy in Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York. He was also a member of the Reading Keys and Pittsburgh Americans.[2][3] He was a member of the New York Giants team that won the 1934 NFL Championship.[4] Gilbert used the alias "Knuckles Boyle" because he could not be enrolled at Albright College and play professional football at the same time. "Boyles" was the name of a friend and he gained the name "Knuckles" for his toughness on the football field. He also played baseball in the New York-Pennsylvania League. Gilbert was the freshman football coach of Franklin and Marshall College in 1938. He also served as a police officer in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. He died of a heart attack while on duty on August 26, 1943.[5][6][7]

Knuckles Boyle
Personal information
Born:(1909-08-17)August 17, 1909
Jeanesville, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died:January 26, 1943(1943-01-26) (aged 33)
Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Height:5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:232 lb (105 kg)
Career information
High school:Harrisburg (PA) Tech
College:Albright
Position:Tackle
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Pro Football Reference

References

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  1. ^ "KNUCKLES BOYLE". profootballarchives.com. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  2. ^ "Signed by Pittsburgh". Reading Eagle. Associated Press. July 25, 1936. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  3. ^ "1935 Reading Keys". profootballarchives.com. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  4. ^ "HOMER GILBERT". locateancestors.com. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  5. ^ "Homer Reed Gilbert (Boyle)". oldestlivingprofootball.com. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  6. ^ "Officer Homer Reed Gilbert". cclemf.com. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  7. ^ Miller, Barbara (May 14, 2013). "11 fallen officers to be remembered in Cumberland County Law Enforcement Memorial". pennlive.com. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
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