Photo collage of images of Wisconsin football player Allen Shafer with the Camp Randall 100 logo. Lost in 1944, Shafer is the only UW player to ever die from an injury sustained during a football game.

General News Andy Baggot

Camp Randall 100: Allen Shafer

Young Wisconsin quarterback lost his life on a tragic day in 1944

General News Andy Baggot

Camp Randall 100: Allen Shafer

Young Wisconsin quarterback lost his life on a tragic day in 1944

Camp Randall 100 logo
The Camp Randall 100 is an exclusive list celebrating 100 people who have shaped Camp Randall Stadium's history across the realms of sports, music, culture and beyond. A new honoree will be revealed each day over the final 100 days leading up to kickoff of the Wisconsin football team's season opener with Utah State on Friday, Sept. 1. The Camp Randall 100 reveal is part of a year-long celebration of the history of the iconic stadium, which opened in 1917.
 

MADISON, Wis. — The differences in World War II-era college football compared to the modern game are stark when considering the circumstances surrounding the death of Allen Shafer in 1944.

First, the position switch Shafer made from center to quarterback is unheard of in today's game. A 17-year-old freshman seeing significant action at the game's most important position would also make headlines.

A quarterback as the lead blocker on a running play? Pretty rare nowadays.

Those things weren't all that uncommon during the war years, however, and now serve as footnotes to one of the most tragic days in Camp Randall Stadium's history.

Read more in Shafer's Camp Randall 100 profile.


Camp Randall 100 profiles through August 11, 2017:
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