Lu Vorpahl—who is believed to be the oldest living former Gophers football player—celebrates his 103rd birthday today.
Vorpahl was born on June 30, 1911. That was before the First World War and prior to a constitutional amendment extending the right of suffrage to women in the United States. It was even prior to the legendary Bernie Bierman captaining the 1915 Big Ten championship Gophers football team.
A sportswriter recently visited Vorpahl in his apartment at a Minneapolis area assisted living facility. Vorpahl is frail and his hearing is less than perfect but his mind is sharp and spirits are high. Asked the secret to his longevity, he said, “Good friends. They keep you going.”
For a birthday celebration relatives will take Vorpahl on a trip up north today to Breezy Point where he owns a residence. He isn’t sure how long he will stay, possibly a week. What does he want for his birthday? “I just want everybody to have a good time,” he said.
A trip to Breezy Point wouldn’t be Vorpahl’s first travel in recent months. He was in Florida and Arizona earlier this year. He became ill in March while out of town, and about a month ago moved into assisted living. That meant not residing any longer in the Minneapolis area home that he built in the late 1940’s and stayed in for so many years.
At his new residence Vorpahl enjoys church services and going to the fitness center where he will exercise for 30 minutes at a time. On a recent day he was even doing shoulder exercises in his room to lessen discomfort. “I got pains across my back. I guess that’s arthritis or something like that. My shoulder (bothers me) but I can work it out.”
What might Vorpahl have said if football teammates predicted back in the early 1930s that he would celebrate a 103rd birthday and be the oldest living former Gophers football player? He laughed and answered, “Baloney.”
How has Vorpahl been able to achieve such longevity? “I didn’t play hard enough,” he joked. “I am out living all these guys (teammates) who played hard. Those were quite the days.”
Vorpahl played a couple of seasons for the Gophers before an injury forced him to quit football. A halfback, he only played in one game and never lettered. First he played for head coach Fritz Crisler who left the Gophers after the 1931 season to coach at Princeton. Then he played for Bierman whose first season as Minnesota head coach was in 1932. “We had a great coach in those days but he couldn’t make me good enough,” Vorpahl said.
The “Grey Eagle” won his first national championship in 1934 but Vorpahl was no longer on the team. Bierman would go on to coach national championship teams at Minnesota in 1935, 1936, 1940 and 1941. “They really had a coach there,” Vorpahl said. “I’d say Bierman was tops.”
When Vorpahl left the University he had his football memories but he had something more important. “Best thing I ever did was get my degree (civil engineering), and not worry about football where I wasn’t good enough,” he said.
That was 1935 when Vorpahl had his diploma and entered a scarce job market. He found employment even though America was in the Great Depression. A steady job meant he could get married. He and Genevieve were married 61 years before she passed away in 2000. Vorpahl paid her the ultimate compliment when he said Genevieve accepting his proposal for marriage was the highlight of his life. They never had children.
The two of them met at Edison High School. Vorpahl played football for the Tommies and was president of the National Honor Society, graduating in 1929. His intelligence and leadership would serve him well after high school including during World War II.
Vorpahl joined the Army Corps of Engineers in 1940 and helped build runways in Australia, New Zealand and the Philippines. He also was in New Guinea where for 27 months he and four others lived in a tent. “We enjoyed each other’s company,” Vorpahl said. “We were from all over the country.”
Back in Minneapolis after the war Vorpahl joined a company called Barber Oil. He later became managing director for Union Oil Company of California, now known as Chevron. Retirement came in 1976, and if you’re doing the math that was 38 years ago!
Vorpahl earned a good living and believes in giving back to the community. He was a founding member of St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in St. Anthony. He’s been a member of the Knights of Columbus for more than 70 years, and has generously donated money to the University of Minnesota. “I set up a couple scholarships in my wife’s name and my folks’ name in the engineering school,” he said.
A visitor clarified that the scholarships were for engineering students. Vorpahl’s sense of humor was evident once more when he responded, “I am not going to give them (scholarships) to the law school.”
The University invited Vorpahl and other guests to watch a Gophers football game last fall from an enclosed area at TCF Bank Stadium. “Watching it behind glass (out of the elements), you don’t mind it,” Vorpahl said. “That was a real treat—the (amount of) food to no end.”
Vorpahl met all-time leading rusher Darrell Thompson and Gophers coach Jerry Kill at last year’s game. “I rate him (Thompson) up with the best,” Vorpahl said.
He likes Kill, too, but recognizes the coach has been rebuilding the program that has struggled for decades despite a royal legacy from Bierman. “I think we’re getting a little better but we need help,” Vorpahl said.
Vorpahl “loves” football and regrets not being able to earn a letter. That seems like something the Gophers could do something about.