Joseph Nathaniel Kendall[1] (October 2, 1909 – November 25, 1965) was an American gridiron football player, best known for playing college football for the Kentucky State Industrial College for Colored Persons (now Kentucky State University) in the mid-1930s. Nicknamed "Tarzan" for his athletic prowess, he was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2007.
Biography
Kendall was born in Owensboro, Kentucky, in 1909,[1] and attended high school there.[2] A dominant figure in black college football in the 1930s,[3] Kendall first played for West Kentucky Industrial College, a junior college, during the 1932 season.[2][4] He then played for the Kentucky State Thorobreds during the 1933–1936 seasons.[2] His nickname of "Tarzan" appeared in print by October 1934.[5] While Kendall played as a halfback, football of the era included much more passing by halfbacks than in modern collegiate or professional football; various newspaper reports of the era highlighted Kendall's skill as a passer.[6]
Following his playing career, Kendall served as a high school teacher, principal, and sports coach. He first taught in Harlan, Kentucky,[16] interrupted by service in the United States Army during World War II.[17] He then taught in Owensboro from 1948 until his death.[18] Kendall died on November 25, 1965, at Owensboro Daviess County Hospital, a month after sustaining injuries in an automobile accident on U.S. Route 60 near Garfield, Kentucky.[19][16] He was survived by his wife, four sons, and three daughters.[18]
A park in Kendall's hometown of Owensboro was co-named in his honor in 1973.[20][21] Kendall was inducted into the Kentucky State Athletics Hall of Fame in 1975,[22] and was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2007,[2] becoming the first inductee from Kentucky State.[11] He was inducted to the Black College Football Hall of Fame in 2011.[11]
