College and Military Service
Brown became Ohio State's head football coach in 1941 and recruited Gillom to the school. Gillom played on Ohio State's freshman team that year as an end opposite Dante Lavelli. He was expected to move up to the varsity team the following year as a blocking back, but was kicked out of school in January for failing to maintain his grades. Brown later said Gillom did not fail any courses and was back at Ohio State doing "some extra reading in history that he can make up", but his struggles with classwork ultimately kept him off of the Ohio State team in 1942. Gillom enlisted in the U.S. Army during World War II before he played on the varsity team.
Gillom fought in the European Theatre of World War II and participated in the Battle of the Bulge near the end of the war. He was discharged after three years of service, having earned three Bronze Star Medals. By that time, Brown had become the head coach of the Cleveland Browns, a team in the new All-America Football Conference (AAFC). Brown wanted Gillom on the team, but he changed gears after signing fullback Marion Motley in 1946. Motley, a black star who played in high school for Massillon rival Canton, joined the Browns from the University of Nevada, Reno, where former Canton coach Jim Aiken was head coach. As compensation for drawing Motley away, Brown arranged for Gillom to go to Nevada for the 1946 season. Gillom led the nation in punting at Nevada that year, but left the school in December because of poor grades.
Read more about this topic: Horace Gillom
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