My Dad's 1952 Sugar Bowl Watch

This is my Dad’s Sugar Bowl watch. I remember him wearing it to Terps games. He had all the regalia, but my favorite two I ended up with is this watch and his old Maryland Letter Jacket with a National Championship Patch! My Dad’s senior year at Maryland he won college football’s National Championship Game, but years earlier he was dating my Mom.

I’ll return to Jacksonville in his letter dated December 31, 1949.

“My Dearest Penni,”

He is tired. He opens with, “…last practice session today and I am really glad. I have had more football this year than I bargained for. I was really tired when we finished practice yesterday…Seems like we have been here a month…The team went to Marineland and the fountain of youth this morning but I thought I could use the rest more”…a poker game in his room until 5:15am made him sleep elsewhere…he went swimming yesterday and it was cold…Jville doesn’t get much of the sunshine state’s sun…He will spend New Years Eve playing Bingo for money! (Something I would have lost my scholarship for and my school would have been suspended by the NCAA). Just for the record, my Dad hated the NCAA. He was running NPCA at the time when he told me this.


“I love you and will see you in about 3 ½ days.”