[Baltimore Sun] Navy set to retire jersey numbers of Maxwell Award winners Ron Beagle, Bob Reifsnyder
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Bob Reifsnyder was recruited to the Naval Academy as a fullback. During his plebe season, legendary coach Eddie Erdelatz called Reifsnyder into his office and asked a simple question: How bad do you want to play football here?
When Reifsnyder responded that he wanted to get on the field very badly, Erdelatz informed the freshman he was being switched to offensive and defensive tackle.
Reifsnyder embraced his new positions and proceeded to become one of the greatest down linemen in Navy football history. He became a two-way starter as a sophomore then blossomed into a dominant force as a junior.
Reifsnyder was named a first team All-American and was presented the prestigious Maxwell Trophy as the nation’s best player in 1957. Now, the 84-year-old is set to receive a deserved honor that is long overdue.
The Naval Academy Athletic Association announced this week that Reifsnyder and fellow Maxwell Award winner Ron Beagle would have their jersey numbers retired at halftime of the Aug. 31 season opener against Bucknell.
Beagle and Reifsnyder represent two of the best players of the 1950s, a highly successful era in which Navy post winning records in eight of 10 seasons and capture the Sugar Bowl (1955) and Cotton Bowl (1958) championships. Navy also went 6-2-1 against archrival Army during the decade.
“As we approach the centennial of Navy’s 1926 national championship, we will use this timely opportunity to reflect on past decades of our storied Navy football history,” athletic director Chet Gladchuk said in a statement. “Over the next two years, our football community will celebrate and be reminded of the incredible accomplishments of players and teams that have defined our legacy and justified the respect Navy football has earned over decades.”
Reifsnyder was a standout tailback on Long Island, New York. He had scholarship offers from Iowa and Maryland, two of the best programs in the country at the time.
“My father told me I could go anywhere I wanted as long as it was Army or Navy,” Reifsnyder said.
Reifsnyder was one of 10 fullbacks on the freshman team when Erdelatz decided he was too big to play that position. In addition to playing tackle on both sides of the ball, the 6-foot-2, 235-pounder was also the kickoff specialist.
Navy is retiring Bob Reifsnyder’s #58 jersey, a former Maxwell Award winner.
Reifsnyder, who wore No. 58, was named the College Lineman of the Year by the Philadelphia Sportswriters Association in 1957. In two seasons as a starter, he helped Navy compile a 15-2-3 record and beat Notre Dame twice.
In 1957, Navy went 9-1-1 with wins over Boston College, Georgia, Notre Dame, Army and Southwest Conference champion Rice in the Cotton Bowl. Navy earned the Lambert Trophy as the best team in the East and was ranked No. 5 nationally in the final Associated Press poll.
Reifsnyder was the first guard or tackle to receive the Maxwell Award and remains one of only four interior linemen to be recognized by the Maxwell Football Club.
Reifsnyder, who did not play football as a senior at Navy after sustaining a torn Achilles in preseason, was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1997. He was selected in the fourth round of the 1959 NFL draft by the Los Angeles Rams and played professionally in the American Football League for the New York Titans for two seasons.
Navy is retiring Ron Beagle’s No. 80 jersey. (Courtesy photo)
Beagle, a sure-handed split end on offense and rangy defensive end, was named first team All-American in 1954 and 1955. He became Navy’s first Maxwell Award winner as a junior and after leading what was known as the Team Named Desire to an 8-2 record and victory over Mississippi in the Sugar Bowl.
The Touchdown Club of Annapolis was formed in 1954 specifically to honor that team. It marked the first time in 31 years that Navy had appeared in a postseason bowl game.
In three seasons as a two-way starter, Beagle helped Navy amass an 18-7-3 record. No. 80 was a unanimous All-American and finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy voting as a senior.
Beagle was chosen by the Chicago Cardinals in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL draft. He served four years in the Marine Corps and suffered a knee injury while playing football in the service and never recovered.
Beagle was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1986.
Beagle, a successful businessman who resided in Sacramento, California, died Sept. 8, 2015 at the age of 81.
“Ron Beagle was a senior when I was a plebe and he kept me straight,” said Reifsnyder, who is now 87 years old and living in the Ocean Pines community of Berlin. “It’s nice to know that Ron and I are being remembered in this way. I only wish he was still here to be recognized.”
Roger Staubach and Joe Bellino, Navy’s Heisman Trophy winners, have their jersey numbers honored on the field at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Reifsnyder admitted he was worried that the other two of Navy’s four Maxwell Award winners had been forgotten, so he was naturally thrilled when informed of the jersey retirement.
“It’s a great honor and I’m very glad it finally happened,” he said. “I was very fortunate to have played on a great football team with tremendous teammates and outstanding coaches.”
Although the jerseys of Beagle and Reifsnyder will be retired, Navy will keep their numbers in circulation. Co-captains Daba Fofana and Colin Ramos will wear patches on their jerseys in recognition of the two Navy football legends.
“During their time at the academy, Bob Reifsnyder and Ron Beagle achieved national recognition for being the best in all of college football,” Gladchuk said. “We are honored to share their accomplishments and extend our gratitude for this legacy of excellence.”
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