Mishel, Dave

David Mishel

Mishel played at Brown in the mid-1920s and was a member of the famed 1926 "Iron Men" team. That year, Brown defeated Yale and Dartmouth in successive weeks without making a single substitution. Two weeks later, the eleven starters (including Mishel, Al Cornsweet, and Lou Farber) played the first 57 minutes in a victory over Harvard. They won their first nine games before tying Colgate in the final, 10-10. All 11 Brown starters played the entire game again.

Mishel almost won the Colgate game for Brown when he attempted a field goal in the final quarter. After hitting the goal post and momentarily balancing there, the ball dropped back into the field; it was the first extra point Mishel missed all season. Current research thus far indicates that the Brown team was the first to which the term "Iron Men" was applied.

Birth and Death Dates:
b. July 6, 1905 - d. March 11, 1975

Career Highlights:
Mishel arrived at Brown as a tremendous football player (he was the only four-year letterman in the history of his high school), but did it wasn't until 1926, his second year on the team, that Mishel really began to shine. That year, the Bears had their only undefeated season in the school's history (9-0-1) as Mishel was the team's leading scorer with 50 points on four touchdowns, 17 extra points, and three field goals (he was 13th in scoring in the East). Mishel was named Grantland Rice, AP, and New York Times All-America honorable mention and Grantland Rice called Mishel one of the three best all-around backs in the country in 1926.

After graduating in 1927, Dave coached the Brown freshman football team. As to the possibility of playing in the new NFL, Mishel said, "Back in the 1920s, there was a stigma attached to playing pro football. In fact, my first contract at Brown stipulated no pro football. However, when the freshman season was over I signed with the Providence Steamrollers for the remainder of the year. The following season I signed to coach the varsity backfield at Brown with the same stipulation...since the season ended on Thanksgiving Day, my pro days were over. At least I thought so until the depression hit the country. Actually, I turned to pro football to keep the wolf from the door. That was in 1931 in Cleveland. Believe me, the pay was terrible and it was truly difficult for me get back into the swing. Finances were so bad that our team travelled around the circuit in cars. We couldn't afford the train...as a pro I reached my full growth -- 5'8 1/2" and 180-pounds..."

Mishel played four games for the Providence Steam Roller in 1927. The team finished fifth with a record of 8-5-1. He then played in six games in 1931 with the Cleveland Indians who finished eighth in the league with a record of 2-8-0. One of the Indians' coaches was Mishel's former Brown teammate (and fellow Iron Man), Al Cornsweet.

Origin:
Lynn, Massachusetts

Career Dates:
Mishel played quarterback, halfback for Brown University from 1925-1926. He then played as a quarterback, fullback, tailback and wingback in the NFL with the Providence Steam Roller in 1927, and the Cleveland Indians in 1931.

Physical description:
5'8 1/2", 180 pounds

Career Statistics:
In the NFL:
Games: 10
Passing touchdowns: 1
Extra points: 1

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