- Walt Kiesling
NFL PlayerCoach
Name=Walt Kiesling
DateOfBirth=May 27 ,1903
Birthplace=Saint Paul, Minnesota , U.S.
DateOfDeath=March 2 ,1962
College=St. Thomas (MN)
Position=Lineman ,Head Coach
Awards=
Honors=NFL 1920s All-Decade Team
Records=
Retired #s=
player=yes
years=1926-1927
1928
1929-1933
1934
1935-1936
1937-1938
teams=Duluth Eskimos Pottsville Maroons
Chicago CardinalsChicago Bears Green Bay Packers
Pittsburgh Pirates
DatabaseFootball=KIESLWAL01
coach=yes
coachingyears=1939-1940
1941-1944
1954-1956
coachingteams=Pittsburgh PiratesPittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
Record=30-55-5
DatabaseFootballCoach=KIESLWAL01
HOF=114
HOFYear=1966Walt Andrew Kiesling (
May 27 ,1903 –March 2 ,1962 ) was anAmerican football player and coach.Playing career
A native of
Saint Paul, Minnesota , Kiesling played both offensive and defensive line at theUniversity of St. Thomas (Minnesota) . His professional career took him to theDuluth Eskimos ,Pottsville Maroons ,Chicago Cardinals ,Chicago Bears ,Green Bay Packers , andPittsburgh Steelers .Coaching career
His coaching career in the
National Football League was spent exclusively with the Steelers. He was head coach for most of the six seasons from 1939 to 1944, and came back for a second stint from 1954 to 1956. In 1944 Kiesling split head Coaching duties withPhil Handler when thePittsburgh Steelers merged with the Chicago Cardinals. Kiesling's overall record at Pittsburgh was 30-55-5. He kept the franchise competitive, but only put together two winning seasons.A 1939 Official Program for Pittsburgh Pirates Intra-Squad Game list Keisling as "Asst. Coach" and Johny Blood (McNally) as "Coach"
Perhaps the biggest blunder in Steelers history is attributed to Kiesling, when as head coach he benched a young Pittsburgh born-and-bred
Johnny Unitas through an entire training camp before cutting him, allowing the Baltimore Colts to acquire his rights. However, Kiesling had a reputation for coaching dated techniques and strategies and an intractable personality that pushed away numerous talented players. This occurred particularly during the difficult WW II merger years when he co-coached teams comprised of the Eagles-Steelers and Cardinals-Steelers. College talent with better coaching and veterans returning to play football found his methods and attitude intolerable.Honors
Kiesling was elected to the
Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1966.External links
*"Pro Football Hall of Fame:" [http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?player_id=114 Member profile]
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