Arda Bowser
The first to use a kicking tee
Arda C. Bowser was one of the pioneers of professional football. He was a member of the 1922 Canton Bulldogs — the National Football League’s first championship team.
Bowser, a left-footed punter, kicker, linebacker and fullback, went kick for kick in exhibitions with the legendary Jim Thorpe. He was the first NFL player to use tees — his were made from mud — and a reinforced-toe kicking shoe.
A longtime general insurance agent in Chicago, Bowser retired in 1948 and moved to the shores of Lake Fredrica in Orlando. There, he tended orange groves and played golf whenever possible. Bowser died at the age of 97 in 1996.
In 1922, Arda Bowser made $250 a game.
Bowser played only four years in the pros because his full-time employer, White Motor Co., made him quit. He was an All-American player in college and a member of the Bucknell University Football Hall of Fame.
Historians of the game say Bowser’s mud tees that he first used at Bucknell led to today’s kicking tee.
”We had the freshmen carry a washtub of mud on the sidelines, and when I needed some for a place kick, I ran over and got a fistful of it to make a tee,” Bowser said.
The 1922 Canton Bulldogs won the first NFL championship with a 10-0-2 record. Bowser scored two touchdowns and returned a kickoff 90 yards to lead a 38-0 rout of the Louisville Brecks.
Bowser had replaced Thorpe on the Canton team after Thorpe left to form the Oorang Indians of Marion, Ohio.
Bowser said he once played four pro football games in four days.
BIO INFO
Arda Bowser
Halfback, Kicker
Personal information
Date of birth:Jan. 9, 1899
Place of birth:Danville, Pennsylvania
Height:6 ft 2 inWeight:210 lbs
Career information
College:Bucknell, Bethany
Last played:
Cleveland Indian (1923)
Career highlights and awards
- NFL champion (1922)
- Walter Camp All-America Honorable Mention (1920)
- Frank G. Menke All-America team (1920)
- Grantland Rice All-American team (1921)
