Banks McFadden was an American football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 player. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame

College Football Hall of Fame

The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...

 in 1959. McFadden attended Great Falls High School in South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

, where he led the Red Devils to two state championships in football and one in basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

. McFadden is widely considered to be the greatest athlete in Clemson University

Clemson Tigers

The Clemson Tigers are any team that represents Clemson University as a member of the NCAA's Division I or in the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference....

 history, lettering in three sports (football, basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 and track). In 1939, McFadden was voted the Associated Press

Associated Press

The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...

' "Athlete of the Year". McFadden was also a two-time All-American in basketball (1938 and 1939) and lead the Tigers basketball

Clemson Tigers men's basketball

The Clemson Tigers men's basketball team is a college basketball program that competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference in the NCAA Division I. The current head coach is Brad Brownell.-Team history:...

 team to a Southern Conference

Southern Conference

The Southern Conference is a Division I college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision . Member institutions are located in the states of Alabama, Georgia, North...

 championship in 1939. Upon graduating, McFadden played football for the National Football League

National Football League

The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

's Brooklyn Dodgers

Brooklyn Dodgers (NFL)

The Brooklyn Dodgers were an American football team that played in the National Football League from 1930 to 1943, and in 1944 as the Brooklyn Tigers. The team played its home games at Ebbets Field. In 1945, because of financial difficulties, the team was merged with the Boston Yanks...

. McFadden fought in World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 and upon returning to the United States went into coaching.

On September 19, 1987, Clemson University retired his basketball No. 23 and football No. 66.

In October 2008, the O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy

O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy

The O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy was created in 2008 by the Boston College Gridiron Club in order to honor the tradition at Clemson and Boston College to honor the legacy of Charlie O'Rourke and Banks McFadden, who played during the leather helmet era...

 was introduced as a reward to the winner of the annual football game between Boston College

Boston College Eagles

The Boston College Eagles are the athletic teams representing Boston College. They compete in NCAA Division I as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The men's and women's ice hockey teams compete in Hockey East. The women's crew team competes in the Eastern Association of Women's Rowing...

 and Clemson

Clemson Tigers

The Clemson Tigers are any team that represents Clemson University as a member of the NCAA's Division I or in the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference....

, in honor of the historic meeting between Charlie O'Rourke

Charlie O'Rourke

Charles C. O'Rourke also known as Chuckin' Charlie is a former quarterback and defensive back for the Boston College Eagles, Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Dons, and Baltimore Colts. He quarterbacked the BC football team to one of its most famous wins...

 and Banks McFadden in the 1940 Cotton Bowl Classic, Clemson's first bowl appearance.

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