Walter A. Gorinski was a professional football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 player in the National Football League

National Football League

The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

 for the Pittsburgh Steelers

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...

. After attending Hurst High School, located in Norvelt, Pennsylvania

Norvelt, Pennsylvania

Norvelt is an unincorporated community in Mount Pleasant Township, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. Although the United States Census Bureau includes it in a census-designated place with the nearby community of Calumet, they are in reality two very different communities, each...

, Gorinski attended and played college football

College football

College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

 at Louisiana State University

Louisiana State University

Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...

. Gorinski made his professional debut in the NFL in 1946 with the Steelers. He played his entire 1 year career for Pittsburgh. Walt is also the uncle to Bob Gorinski

Bob Gorinski

Robert John Gorinski played baseball for the Minnesota Twins for his entire 1 year career with a .195 batting average.Gorinski was born on January 7, 1952 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. He was a native of Calumet, Pennsylvania. and a graduate of Mount Pleasant Area High School in 1970...

, a designated hitter

Designated hitter

In baseball, the designated hitter rule is the common name for Major League Baseball Rule 6.10, an official position adopted by the American League in 1973 that allows teams to designate a player, known as the designated hitter , to bat in place of the pitcher each time he would otherwise come to...

 with the Minnesota Twins

Minnesota Twins

The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...

 in .

Many sources state that Gorinski attended Mount Pleasant Area High School

Mount Pleasant Area School District

Mount Pleasant School District is a public school district in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. The boroughs of Mount Pleasant and Donegal, as well as the townships of Mount Pleasant and Donegal are within district boundaries.-Administration:...

, located in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania

Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania

Mount Pleasant is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It stands 45 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. Population in 1900, 4,745 people; in 1910, 5,812 people; and in 1940, 5,824 people...

. However the school was not open until 1961 well after Gorinski's graduation in 1938.

NFL

Gorinski was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles

Philadelphia Eagles

The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...

 in the 17th round (152nd overall) of the 1943 Draft

1943 NFL Draft

The 1943 National Football League Draft was held on April 8, 1943.This draft is the first and oldest NFL Draft not to produce a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.-Round one:-Round two:-Round three:-Round four:-Round five:-Round six:...

. That year the Steelers and the Eagles merged their teams during the 1943 season and became the Philadelphia-Pittsburgh "Steagles"

Steagles

The Steagles is the popular nickname for the team created by the temporary merger of two National Football League teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Philadelphia Eagles, during the 1943 season...

. The teams were forced to merge because both had lost many players to military service due to World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. The team was nicknamed the "Steagles". However officially the team was known simply as the "Eagles" without a city designation, the Eagles-Steelers, or the Steelers-Eagles. The official NFL record book refers to the team as "Phil-Pitt."

The merger was dissolved after the 1943 season, as it was not intended to be permanent. The Eagles, received enough players back from the war and resumed their traditional operation. Gorinski did not play with the merged teams he played only one season with the Steelers in 1946.

College

On November 29, 1941, with Gorinski in at fullback, the LSU Tigers defeated Tulane

Tulane Green Wave football

The Tulane Green Wave football program is an NCAA Division I FBS football team that represents Tulane University in New Orleans. The team is a member of Conference USA and is led by interim head coach Mark Hutson, who took over on October 18, 2011, when fifth-year head coach Bob Toledo resigned...

 19-0 in New Orleans. This victory resulted in the Tiger Rag

Battle for the Rag

The Battle for the Rag is an American college football rivalry game played by the LSU Tigers football team of Louisiana State University and the Tulane Green Wave football team of Tulane University...

being awarded to LSU.