Arnold Horween (left) and Ralph Horween
The family name was actually Horwitz, as was that of two of the Three Stooges, Moe and Jerry "Curly" Howard. Ralph was born on August 3, 1896, and Arnold was born on July 7, 1898, both in Chicago. Each was an All-American offensive and defensive back at Harvard University, helping them win the 1920 Rose Bowl. Arnold became Harvard football's 1st Jewish captain.
Ralph played for the Cardinals from 1921 to 1923, and Arnold did so from 1921 to 1924. However, at the time, professional football was still looked down upon. So they used the name "McMahon," to fool people into thinking they were Irish. When that didn't work, they used "Horween," which sounded Jewish, and at least gave them the same initials.
Both men went back to Harvard. Arnold was their head coach from 1925 to 1930, going 21-17-3. More importantly, he went 3-2-1 against Yale. He later became a trustee of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Both he and his brother helped run the family leather tannery business. Arnold lived until August 5, 1985.
Ralph went back to Harvard, graduated from their Law School, became a patent attorney, a federal government official, and raised cattle. He died on May 26, 1997, making him the 1st former NFL player to live to be 100 years old. He was also the last surviving player from the early days of the NFL.
The Horweens were the last pair of Jewish brothers to play in the NFL until 2012, when Geoff Schwartz was a guard for the Minnesota Vikings, and Mitchell Schwartz was an offensive tackle for the Cleveland Browns.
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October 7, 1923 was a Sunday. These other NFL games were played that day:
* The Buffalo All-Americans beat the Akron Pros, 9-0 at Olympic Park in Buffalo, New York.
* The Canton Bulldogs beat the Louisville Brecks, 37-0 at Lakeside Park in Canton, Ohio, outside Cleveland. The fact that this was the only other game of the weekend that was not close shows how good the Bulldogs were: From 1922 to 1924, they won the NFL Championship all 3 times, with a record of 28-1-4.
* The Toledo Maroons beat the Oorang Indians, 7-0 at Swayne Field in Toledo, Ohio. Swayne Field was also home to the Toledo Mud Hens of the International League from 1909 to 1955, the team best known as the hometown team of M*A*S*H character Max Klinger, played by Toledo native Jamie Farr.
The Indians were a team of native Americans organized by Jim Thorpe, based in LaRue, Ohio, outside Marion, hometown of the recently deceased President Warren Harding, but essentially a "traveling team" that played all away games. They were named for Oorang Kennels, their sponsor, and so a dog was their symbol. Thorpe had been the best football player, and the best track & field athlete, of the 1910s, but by this point, he was 36 years old, much slower as a player, and he was no coach or administrator. The team lasted only 2 seasons, this being the 2nd, going 3-6 and 1-10.
* The Hammond Pros beat the Dayton Triangles, 7-0 at League Park in Hammond, Indiana, outside Chicago.
* The Rock Island Independents and the football version of the Cleveland Indians played to a tie, 0-0 at Douglas Park in Rock Island, Illinois.
* The Chicago Bears beat the Racine Legion, 3-0 at Horlick Park in Racine, Wisconsin. Although Racine is in Wisconsin, it is closer in distance to Chicago than to Milwaukee.
* The Milwaukee Badgers and the Columbus Tigers played to a tie, 0-0 at Athletic Park (later Borchert Field) in Milwaukee.
* The Green Bay Packers and the St. Louis All-Stars played to a tie, 0-0 at Bellevue Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
* The Duluth Kelleys beat their in-State rivals, the Minneapolis Marines, 10-0 at Nicollet Park in Minneapolis.
And these baseball games were played:
* The New York Yankees lost to the Philadelphia Athletics, 9-7 at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees had already clinched the American League Pennant. Babe Ruth hit a home run, and Harvey Hendrick hit a grand slam, but it wasn't enough.
* The Brooklyn Robins (as the Dodgers were known under the managing of Wilbert Robinson, from 1914 to 1931) beat their arch-rivals, the New York Giants, 6-1 at Ebbets Field. The Giants had already clinched the National League Pennant, and the Yankees went on to beat them, winning their 1st World Series.
* The Washington Senators beat the Boston Red Sox, 5-2 at Griffith Stadium in Washington.
* The Cleveland Indians beat the Chicago White Sox, 9-6 at League Park in Cleveland. Indians center fielder and manager Tris Speaker went 1-for-3 with 2 walks and an RBI.
* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Cincinnati Reds, 7-5 at Redland Field (later Crosley Field) in Cincinnati.
* The Detroit Tigers beat the St. Louis Browns, 7-6 at Navin Field (later Briggs Stadium and Tiger Stadium) in Detroit. Tigers center fielder and manager Ty Cobb went 2-for-5 with an RBI. George Sisler, the Browns' greatest player ever, was at the height of his powers, but did not play in this game.
* A doubleheader between arch-rivals was split at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. The Chicago Cubs won the opener, 10-3. The St. Louis Cardinals won the nightcap, 6-3.
* And the Boston Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies, the 2 worst teams in the league, losing 100 and 104 games, respectively, ended their season against each other the day before.
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