#30
Bosh PritchardThe Greatest Eagle by the Numbers at #30 is the speedy all-purpose halfback, Abisha (Bosh) Pritchard, who played for the Eagles in 1942 and then from 1946 until 1951.
Bosh joined the Cleveland Rams in 1942 as a free agent out of the Virginia Military Institute (VMI). He appeared in just one game for the Rams, and caught on with the Eagles for the final six contests of the season. In his third game with the Birds, against Washington, he scored on a 97-yard kickoff return. He also had 104 yards on 14 carries at Brooklyn, and made enough of an impact for the 2-9 Eagles to be selected to the Pro All-Star Game (predecessor to the Pro Bowl) following the season.
World War II military obligations interrupted Pritchard’s career, and he put in a stint with the Pacific Coast Professional Football League’s San Diego Bombers in 1945 (where, curiously, he led the league in passing and also sang with the band at halftime). He returned to the Eagles for the 1946 season, and in his second game back, a 49-25 dismantling of the Boston Yanks, he scored two TDs, one on a 35-yard pass play from Tommy Thompson, and the other a 68-yard run. Such performances would become typical of Bosh as he teamed with HB Steve Van Buren to create an effective inside-outside backfield tandem.
He wasn’t the primary running back during his career with the Eagles, and so Bosh’s numbers aren’t overwhelming, particularly by modern standards, but he was a much-respected and effective all-purpose back with breakaway speed and impressive cutback ability. He had 378 carries for 1734 yards over his career in Philadelphia, for an average gain of 4.6 yards and 11 TDs. His 117 attempts for 517 yards in 1948 were his season-highs in both categories; his 6.0 rushing average in ’49 led the NFL (even though he only appeared in eight games). Pritchard had two 100-yard rushing games, with a high of 128 yards on 11 carries against the Redskins in 1949. His 77-yard TD run in that game was a team record at the time, and still ranks fourth in Eagles history. He had several other long touchdown runs for the Birds, including a 65-yard carry against the Giants at the Polo Grounds in New York in 1948, a 58-yarder at home against Pittsburgh in ’46, and a 52-yard run at Los Angeles in ’48.
As a receiver out of the backfield, Bosh caught a total of 75 passes for 1168 yards - an impressive 15.6-yard average for a running back - and another 10 touchdowns. His season high for pass receptions was 27 in 1948, although his highest yardage figure was 315 in ’47, on just 16 catches for a 19.7-yard average and three TDs. Again, his speed in the open field accounted for some long TD receptions, including a 75-yard score on a pass from Tommy Thompson against Washington in ’49 (in the same game as his 77-yard run), a 69-yarder from Thompson against Pittsburgh in ’47, and a 59-yarder from Roy Zimmerman against the Boston Yanks at Fenway Park in ’46.
Pritchard was particularly effective as a punt returner, running back 91 punts for the Eagles for 975 yards (still among the top five totals in Eagles history), resulting in a 10.7-yard career average. He scored on a 55-yard punt return at Pittsburgh in ’48. He also scored on a 79-yard punt return in the 1947 Eastern Division playoff, also against the Steelers, which is the only TD on a punt return in Eagles postseason history.
As a kickoff returner, Bosh returned a total of 38 kicks for 875 yards, a 23.0 average, with one TD. He had a high of 9 returns for 249 yards and a 27.7 average in 1948.
Pritchard also occasionally punted for the Eagles, with a total of 26 punts for 901 yards, a 34.7-yard average. Defensively, since this was the age of single-platoon football, he intercepted 7 passes over his career with the Birds, returning them for 42 yards, with a season high of 3 in both 1942 and ’46.
Altogether, Bosh scored 24 TDs as an Eagle, with three scored in one game against the Giants in 1947 (one rushing, two on pass receptions). He also scored on a 18-yard return of a recovered fumble against the Steelers in ’48.
In addition to the punt return for a touchdown in the postseason, Pritchard also ran for 71 yards in 21 carries in playoff games, virtually all of which came in the 1948 NFL Championship win over the Chicago Cardinals in blizzard conditions (16 rushes for 67 yards). He also caught 4 passes for 48 yards overall and returned 5 punts for 101 yards (the most punt return yards in franchise postseason history).
Bosh lost the end of the ’49 season and all of 1950 to injury. His career with the Eagles ended midway through the 1951 season when he was traded to the New York Giants, and he scored one last TD on a punt return before retiring.
Pritchard, who was just 5’11” and 165 pounds, was an example of the type of multi-skilled halfback that was more prevalent during the days when rosters were smaller, players played both ways, and specialization had not taken hold in the NFL. He was named as an offensive back on the Eagles All-Time team that was selected in 1965.
Bosh Pritchard’s career record with the Eagles:
RUSHING
Year
1942
1946
1947
1948
1949
1951
| | | | G
6
11
11
12
8
6
| | | | Att.
35
42
69
117
84
31
| | | | Yds.
193
218
294
517
506
6
| | | | Avg.
5.5
5.2
4.3
4.4
6.0
0.2
| | | | TD
0
3
1
4
3
0
|
PASS RECEIVING
Year
1942
1946
1947
1948
1949
1951
| | | | G
6
11
11
12
8
6
| | | | Rec.
2
14
16
27
8
8
| | | | Yds.
4
309
315
252
185
103
| | | | Avg.
2.0
22.1
19.7
9.3
23.1
12.9
| | | | TD
0
3
3
2
2
0
|
PUNT RETURNS
Year
1942
1946
1947
1948
1949
1951
| | | | G
6
11
11
12
8
6
| | | | Ret.
11
12
24
24
13
7
| | | | Yds.
107
166
271
282
99
50
| | | | Avg.
9.7
13.8
11.3
11.8
7.6
7.1
| | | | TD
0
0
0
1
0
0
|
KICKOFF RETURNS
Year
1942
1946
1947
1948
1949
1951
| | | | G
6
11
11
12
8
6
| | | | Ret.
3
8
8
9
5
5
| | | | Yds.
134
164
148
249
99
81
| | | | Avg.
44.7
20.5
18.5
27.7
19.8
16.2
| | | | TD
1
0
0
0
0
0
|
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