Goodman, Sanford

Sanford Joseph Goodman

A three-year letterwinner at Army in the 1920s, Goodman was an outstanding all-around athlete who also competed in baseball, swimming, and water polo at West Point.

Birth and Death Dates:
b. 1899 - d. unknown

Career Highlights:
Born in Massachusetts, Goodman and his family moved to California in 1905 when he was six years old. According to a 1922 article in the Jewish magazine, American Hebrew, Goodman attended Commerce High School in San Francisco and was president of the student body as a senior. In 1918, Goodman entered the University of California and played freshman basketball, was a member of the freshman track and field team, and captained the freshman swimming team. In 1920, Goodman was a member of the National Champion water polo team and broke the Pacific Coast 50-yard freestyle indoor swimming record.

In the fall of 1920, Goodman left California and entered U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He played on the football team that season and helped the Cadets finish 7-2. In the season finale against Navy, held at the Polo Grounds in New York, the wife of an army colonel (and professor at West Point) died on her way to her seat. Over 48,000 people saw the game, which Navy won by a score of 7-0.

Goodman did not play on the football team in 1921, but returned to the squad in 1922 and started at right tackle as the Cadets finished 8-0-2 and avenged the previous year's loss to Navy with a 17-14 victory over the Midshipmen at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. In 1923, Goodman again started on the line as Army finished 6-2-1, their one tie against Navy in the season finale, 0-0. During his time at West Point, Goodman also competed in baseball, swimming, and water polo.

Origin:
Brockton, Massachusetts

Career Dates:
Goodman played guard and tackle on the Army football team, 1920, 1922-1923.

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