Cvercko, Jack, 1941-

Dates

• Existence: 1941    

Biography

John “Jack” Cvercko, Jr. was born on January 24, 1941, in Youngstown, OH, the son of Anne and John Cvercko, a spark tester at Campbell Coupling Department, and brother of Northwestern All-American offensive lineman Andy Cvercko. He attended Campbell Memorial High School in Campbell, Ohio, where he gained fame as a defensive lineman under coach John Knapick.

Graduating high school in 1959, Cvercko followed in his older brother’s footsteps and enrolled in Northwestern University, majoring in mathematics. Cvercko played football at Northwestern from 1960-1963, sitting out the 1961 season due to a knee injury. However, in 1962, his junior year, he made the All-American team. That same year, Northwestern was ranked #1 in the country, and Cvercko was on the cover of Sports Illustrated, which called him “one of the top linemen in the nation.” Playing against Indiana in the third game of his senior year, Cvercko suffered a knee injury that benched him for the rest of the season. NU was 17-10 during Cvercko's three seasons with victories over Oklahoma, Notre Dame (twice), Miami and Ohio State (twice).

Cvercko spent one season with the San Diego Chargers but was kept on the bench due to his knee problems and did not play a game. He was head coach and math teacher at Father Lopez High School in Daytona Beach, and later an assistant coach at Bethune-Cookman College. Cvercko went on to get his master’s degree in mathematics from Stetson University, and taught mathematics at Daytona Beach College, holding the position of Senior Professor and Chair of the Mathematics Department. Cvercko retired in 2007.

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