Dec. 12, 2007
PHILADELPHIA -
Three Temple University standouts, Walter Bahr, Frank "Bucko" Kilroy and Harry Litwack, will be inducted into the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame tonight at the Hyatt Regency Penn's Landing.
Bahr, who earned All-American honors under coach Pete Leaness in 1944, played in the 1948 Olympic Games and was a member of every international team to represent the United States for 11 years. He was a standout performer for the U.S. team that pulled off arguably the greatest upset in World Cup play, defeating Italy, 1-0, in 1950. The Philadelphia native participated as a professional soccer player for 20 years and succeeded Leaness as the Owls coach, compiling a 20-12-10 record in three seasons (1971-73). Prior to that he coached at Philadelphia's Frankford High, guiding the squad to five City championships and six public league titles.
One of the finest linemen in Temple football history, Kilroy starred for the Owls in the 1940 and 1941 seasons. He played both offense and defense and started every game while winning All-American honors. He went on to become an outstanding professional player with the Philadelphia Eagles, playing 13 pro seasons and missing only one of 203 games because of an injury. His 147 consecutive games played was a league record at the time. The Philadelphia native made all-pro for six years and played in three Pro Bowl games. He was the 42nd player elected to the Helms Hall of Fame. Following his playing days he was a longtime general manager and administrator with the New England Patriots.
Synonymous with Temple Basketball, Litwack starred as a player for the Owls from 1926-29 under Jimmy Usilton, Sr. Following a pro basketball career, he moved on to become an assistant coach in 1938 when Temple won the first National Invitational Tournament, before taking over as the program's head coach in 1952. He would coach Temple for 21 seasons, guiding the Owls to 323 wins, 13 postseason tournaments, six NCAA Tournaments, two NCAA Final Fours (1956, 1958) and the 1969 NIT Championship. He produced four All-Americans and several professional players during his time patrolling the Temple sidelines. He was enshrined in the Naismith Hall of Fame in 1976.
