Bob Swisher, Class of 1932
One of Peoria High's Outstanding Athletes
Two Championships with Chicago Bears
Peoria High Athletics is filled with some of the finest athletes to ever play on the field. History has captured those stories. As I search Crests, Opinions and any other archived information I come across some that laid the groundwork early on and set the standards. Coach Salen "Doc" Herke is one of those coaches in Peoria High's history who had the opportunity to coach several fine athletes. In 1931-32, he was in his sixteenth year coaching the "Maroons" (later to be Lions). His 1931-32 football team had some notable characters that went on to very successful not only in athletics but also life. On this notable team, they had a manager named Bill Rutherford. Wildlife Prairie Park ring a bell for the younger crowd. He was instrumental in the establishment of the park. He was also an aviator.
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Another great player on the team was Clarence Hinton. Clarence Hinton went on to be a surgeon. The Hinton family has a great history here in Peoria.
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Bob Swisher was a guy who set records in different sports. He had a Pole Vault record that stood until the 70's. As a football player, he wasn't the big halfback at 230 pounds. He was 5'11" and 168 pounds playing for the Bears.
Peoria has had only one athlete ever to play in three National Football League championship games: Bob Swisher of the Chicago Bears.
Swisher, who played college ball at Northwestern at 5-foot-10 and 158 pounds, joined the Chicago Bears in 1938 and played five seasons under legendary coach George Halas.
He appeared in the record-setting 73-0 Bears romp over the Washington Redskins in the 1940 NFL title game, catching one pass for 35 yards, one of only seven passes the Bears, owning a crunching ground game, completed all day.
In the 33-14 win over Green Bay in the 1941 conference championship game, he scored on a nine-yard run and then played in the NFL title game a week later, which was a 37-9 win over the New York Giants. He also played in the 1942 title game, a 14-6 loss to Washington.
Swisher began his athletic career at Peoria Central High School, lettering in football, basketball, and track. He held the school's pole vault record from 1931 to 1970. He later won letters in football and track at Northwestern.
During World II, Swisher, a lieutenant in the Navy, played with the powerful Iowa Pre-Flight Sea Hawks before being sent overseas.
He played one post-war season with the Bears and then turned to coaching, first at Loyola University in Los Angeles and then at the Naval Air Base in Millington, Tenn.
He passed away in 1979.
1932 PHS Crest
