Frank Gatski

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Frank Gatski (March 18, 1921 – November 22, 2005) was an American football center who played for the Cleveland Browns in the AAFC and NFL, and for the Detroit Lions in 1957. Known as “Gunner” for his strength, he helped protect quarterback Otto Graham and open running lanes for Marion Motley. He won seven league titles with the Browns from 1946 to 1955 and added an eighth championship with Detroit in 1957. He never missed a game or practice in his 12-season career.

Gatski was born in Farmington, West Virginia, into a coal-mining family. He played at Farmington High School and then Marshall University, where he started at center and linebacker. His college career was interrupted by World War II, during which he served in the U.S. Army in Europe. After the war he played briefly at Auburn before joining the Browns in 1946, initially as a backup center and linebacker and becoming the starting center in 1948.

As a blocker, Gatski was respected for his durability and steadiness. He helped the Browns win all four AAFC championships (1946–1949) and, after the league merged with the NFL, additional titles in 1950, 1954 and 1955. He earned multiple All-Pro honors (1951–1953, 1955) and a Pro Bowl selection in 1956. In 1957, he was traded to the Detroit Lions, who won the NFL championship that year.

After retiring, Gatski worked as a scout for the Boston Patriots and later served as athletic director and head football coach at the West Virginia Industrial School for Boys until 1982. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985. Marshall University retired his No. 72 in 2005, the only football number it has retired. Gatski died in Morgantown, West Virginia, in 2005. In 2006, the East End Bridge in Huntington, West Virginia was renamed the Frank Gatski Memorial Bridge in his honor.