Photo 1930; John Haggerty,Glenn Presnell, Keith Molesworth, Carl Pignatelli
Photo 1930; John Haggerty,Glenn Presnell, Keith Molesworth, Carl Pignatelli
All Material Copyrighted Reproduced with permission of the authors, C. Robert Barnett and Linda Terhume
The Ironton Tanks disbanded after the 1930 season, but the Portsmouth Spartans stayed in the NFL through 1933. On the verge of bankruptcy, the Portsmouth owners sold the team and the franchise to Detroit interest for $16,500. The team moved "lock, stock and barrel" to Detroit and became the Detroit Lions.
Five former Tanks moved to Portsmouth in 1931, including Tim Hastings, tackle, and Elmer Wager, center, who both played two seasons with the Spartans and then retired from pro football. Halfback Gene Alford (who caught the tying TD pass against the Giants) played three seasons with Portsmouth and then moved on to play a season each with the St. Louis Gunners and the Cincinnati Reds. Tex Mitchell, a Tanks end, played three seasons with Portsmouth and moved with the team to Detroit. He played two seasons each with the Lions and the New York Giants before he retired from football in 1936.
Four other Tanks players caught on with pro teams. Dick Power, the other end opposite Mitchell, played for the New York Giants in 1932 and the Cincinnati Reds in 1933. Tackle Howard Jesson moved on to the Cleveland Indians as did fullback-kicker Carlos Pignatelli. The Tanks with the longest professional career was halfback Keith Molesworth. He was given a tryout with the Chicago Bears on the basis of the outstanding game he played against them as a Tank. He made the team and played with the Bears from 1931 to 1937.
The most successful former Tank in the NFL was Glenn Presnell. He played for the Spartans for three years and then moved with the team to Detroit, where he played for three more years. He was named second team All Pro in 1931, the year the Spartans finished second in the NFL, only one game behind the champion Green Bay Packers. IN 1933, the Spartans were second in the Western Division, and Presnell was named first team All Pro when he lead the NFL in scoring and tied for the lead in field goals.
When the Spartans became the Detroit Lions in 1934, they finished second in the NFL Western Division, and in 1935, the Lions won the Western Division and defeated the New York Giants 26-7 in the NFL championship game. Presnell played quarterback and kicked an extra point in the game. He retired from pro football after the 1936 season.
Following his playing career, Presnell became an assistant football coach at the University of Kansas and the University of Nebraska. After serving in World War II, he returned to Nebraska as head coach for one season. He took a brief shot at the business world before returning to coaching at Eastern Kentucky University. He served Eastern Kentucky for almost 30 years as head football coach, director of athletics and golf coach. He is retired and resides outside of Ironton.
TopOriginally published in 1979