Chadron State College Athletics

Carroll was a standout on the 1920 Cambridge football team that beat Omaha Commerce (soon to be called Technical High) 10-0 for the state championship. Since he reportedly weighed only about 120 pounds, he worked at the bakery and drug store in his hometown for three years until he weighed 140 pounds, then enrolled at CSC in 1924.  Although he started all four years at CSC, he didn’t get to play in the 3-0 victory over the University of Colorado that opened the 1925 season. That’s because he had purchased new shoes and was sidelined by blisters.
Carroll earned all-conference honors three times, was captain of the 1926 Eagles and wrapped up his career in ’27, when they went 7-2. After graduating with a degree in chemistry, Carroll taught and coached at Gordon for eight years, Chadron for 15 years and Hay Springs for seven years. Although he was in his late 30s when the United States entered World War II, Carroll spent three years in the Navy.  After retiring from teaching, he lived in Chadron and often attended Chadron State athletic events. He seldom would be drawn into discussions about how the highly-successful teams he played on would have fared against those he watched the next seven decades. About all he would say was “For that era, we had a real good team.” He died in 1997 at age 94.