John Van Cleve
John Moore Van Cleve (September 26, 1871 – January 9, 1914) was an American football player and coach. He became one of the earliest known people paid to play the sport when he, Ollie Rafferty, and Peter Wright signed contracts with the Allegheny Athletic Association for $50 per game for the entire 1893 season. Only Pudge Heffelfinger and Sport Donnelly are known to have been professionals earlier.
Van Cleve at Lehigh | |
| Born: | September 26, 1871 South Amboy, New Jersey, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Died: | January 9, 1914 (aged 42) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Career information | |
| Position(s) | End, halfback |
| Career history | |
| As coach | |
| 1898 | Duquesne |
| As player | |
| 1892 | Lehigh |
| 1893–1894 | Allegheny Athletic Association |
| 1895 | Duquesne Country and Athletic Club |
| 1896–1897 | Pittsburgh Athletic Club |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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In 1894, during a game against the Pittsburgh Athletic Club. Allegheny's quarterback, A. S. Valentine, was thrown out of the game after coming to the aid of Van Cleve during a fight against Pittsburgh's Joe Trees. After several appeals, Valentine left the field reportedly "crying like a baby" by the local media. During the 1895 season, Allegheny did not field a team after learning the club was under investigation by the Amateur Athletic Union for secretly paying its players. As a result, Van Cleve played for the upstart Duquesne Country and Athletic Club.
Van Cleve played end for the Pittsburgh Athletic Club in 1896. He began the following season coaching and captaining a team from Sewickley, Pennsylvania. The Pittsburgh Post reported that he would not rejoin the Pittsburgh Athletic Club in 1897 because of PAC manager Bob Hamilton's refusal to field paid players, but after a new manager took over for Hamilton during the season, Van Cleve was brought back.