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The original was posted on /r/cfb by /u/ZappaOMatic on 2024-05-12 15:49:06+00:00.
Original Title: [OC] In 1939, DePauw running back Alex Vraciu threw an eraser at his professor during a quiz and jumped out the second-story window as part of a prank that made national news. He went on to become a flying ace in World War II with 19 victories, including 6 in the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot.
Alexander Vraciu was one of the Navy’s finest flying aces during World War II. But before that, he was a simple lad at DePauw University who played football and a prank for the ages.
At DePauw
The son of an East Chicago policeman, Vraciu earned the four-year Edward Rector Foundation Scholarship to DePauw on May 3, 1937 out of Washington High School, where he was the editor-in-chief for the school yearbook and captained the tennis team.[1] The scholarship, worth $1,000 ($21,689.72 today), was awarded to 110 high schoolers across sixteen states that year.[2]
Upon matriculating at DePauw that fall, he tried out for football—in secret, against his parents’ wishes—and joined the freshman team as a halfback.[3] They struggled early on, getting shut out 32–0 by Butler (in fairness, Butler’s freshmen had not lost to anyone in four years at this point) while playing Wabash to a scoreless tie.[4] Still, his contributions earned him a starting spot on the varsity roster.[5]
In 1938, DePauw’s 50th season began with a 13–0 win over Franklin. Playing in all three phases like many at the time, Vraciu was the backup halfback behind the baseball team’s star pitcher Karl “Curly” Randells while also doubling as a linebacker and the Tigers’ lead return man. His special teams value came in handy in the third quarter when Franklin was forced to punt from their own end zone and Vraciu returned it to the 17-yard line, which set up John Scott’s one-yard touchdown run to break the scoreless draw.[6]
His season was upended in the following week’s 41–0 victory over Evansville College when he twisted his knee in the second quarter; fellow backup running back Robert Soule was also knocked out for the year with an arm injury.[7][8] Not wanting his parents to know that he was playing football behind their backs, he had to hide the injury from them, which proved difficult as he was also a member of the mile relay and tennis teams.[3] Even with his football career cut short, he still earned a spot on a postseason all-American roster, kind of: he was first-team All-Unpronounceables, for players whose names all-star team creator Ed Nace could not say properly.[9]
The Prank
In the summer of 1939, Vraciu was attending a psychology class taught by Paul J. Fay. The class was intended to study “a human’s ability to observe, and accurately recall what was observed,” and Fay tested his students perhaps a bit too zealously as he frequently started random “fights” before asking the class who was involved and what happened.[3][10]
Tired of this, Vraicu decided to see if Fay “could take some of his own medicine.” On the final day of class, while taking a quiz, he suddenly stood up and threw an eraser at the professor. Vraciu then proclaimed, “I just can’t stand it any longer!”, and made a beeline for the window before jumping out.[10]
Since the classroom was on the second floor, Fay immediately rushed to the window in horror. Upon gazing down, he saw Vraciu laying on a tarp held by his Delta Chi fraternity brothers and thumbing his nose at him.[10][11]
The prank made national headlines. The Chicago Tribune, who had Vraciu and his friends re-enact the prank for a photo, quipped, “Give him an A in the course!”[11][12]
“I like to see students on their toes,” Fay remarked.[13] "Vraciu is an excellent jumper and a good student besides. I’m giving him an A in the course."
World War II
A pre-medicine major, Vraciu had plans of becoming a doctor after graduating.[14] Those plans were dropped when the United States entered the Second World War, and he opted to enlist in the Navy in 1942 as an aviation cadet. He underwent training at Naval Air Station Glenview.[15]
In November, while training in California, his training plane collided with another mid-air, forcing him to “re-enact” his prank again as they hopped out.[16] DePauw’s student newspaper even headlined their story “Vraciu Parachutes from Wrecked Plane; Repeats Procedure of Stuent Prank.”[11]
His first assignment was over Wake Island in October 1943, flying an F6F Hellcat for Fighter Squadron 6 (VF-6) under Edward O’Hare, who would receive the Medal of Honor after being killed in action the following month. Vraciu scored his first victory in just his second day, then became a flying ace with his fifth kill by January of the following year. By the time VF-6 was rotated out, he already had nine wins.[17]
Still, he elected to continue serving and was reassigned to VF-16.[17]
Vraciu’s finest day came on June 19, 1944, during the Battle of the Philippine Sea. In a day that came to be known as the “Great Marianas Turkey Shoot”, he shot down six Japanese bombers flying close in formation in eight minutes. He told a correspondent for The New York Times:[18]
We went out at a high altitude and from a far range we could see scattered groups of from twenty to fifty Jap planes each coming toward our carriers. They were all Judys. As squadron leader, I tallyhoed to the carrier and climbed to 25,000 feet, about 2,000 feet above the enemy planes.
For unknown reason they were all massed together with the groups at various altitudes. It was a brilliantly clear day, about 10:30 a.m. and from my observations there were enough Japs around to satisfy everybody in my squadron.
They were thirty-five miles away when we started after them, and as they tried to separate from their groups I was able to apply the simple process of picking them off the edges. You might say it was comparable to riding herd in the sky.
Just as the first Jap approached, my belly tank ran dry and I shifted to an auxiliary and took that one out easily. In making the shift, a lot of oil got on my windshield and made the vision so poor I had to go within 150 yards of the next one before stopping it. The next two were knocked out on a run of about fifteen seconds.
Next in line were three heading for an American destroyer. I was able to get two of those, and must have hit the bomb of one of them, for he exploded, scattering plane parts through the air. The third was foolish enough to attack a battleship, which was the end of him.
Although nominated by seven Navy admirals for a Medal of Honor for his performance that day, Vice Admiral George D. Murray of the medal review board instead gave him a Navy Cross. They tried again after the war in 1947 but was rejected by Murray again.[19]
“I do not, in any way, mean to detract from the very enviable record made by Lt. Vraciu during the war,” began Murray.[20][21] “His superior performance of normal duties brought distinction upon himself. His failure, if it had occurred, to engage the enemy, on 19 June 1944, would have brought censure upon himself.”
In 1990, Army veteran and aviation buff Harry Block convinced Rep. Andy Jacobs Jr. to organize a United States House Committee on Armed Services hearing to review the case. Although most of the committee including chairman Les Aspin were supportive of Vraciu, Navy assistant secretary for manpower and reserve affairs Barbara S. Pope—the lone Navy representative in attendance—questioned the need for a hearing 46 years later. Although Vraciu was supposed to testify, the hearing ran out of time and ended without a decision. The only positive takeaway was that the committee agreed Murray’s reasoning for denying him the MOH was poorly written and missed numerous key points like listing Vraciu with the wrong squadron and aircraft carrier.[22][23]
By Vraciu’s death in 2015, he was still without the MOH.
His last combat flight came in December 1944 when his oil tank was punctured by a Japanese bullet over the Philippines, forcing him to—you guessed it—jump from his plane. He was rescued by the Filipino resistance and supported them before returning to American ends.[18] At war’s end, he had 19 victories in the air and 21 on the ground.[17]
References
[1] Washington High Senior Given $1,000 Scholarship, The Times, May 3, 1937
[2] DEPAUW LISTS 110 RECTOR AWARDS, The Indianapolis Star, May 2, 1937
[3] STORY OF LEGENDARY WORLD WAR II HERO ALEX VRACIU '41 TOLD BY CALIFORNIA NEWSPAPER, DePauw University, February 24, 2003
[4] Shooting From Taw—Out of Butler’s Delta by Wm. F. Fox Jr., The Indianapolis News, November 11, 1937
[5] 21 Varsity Letters, 15 Frosh Numerals Awarded at DePauw, The Indianapolis News, November 20, 1937
[6] *[Tigers Tally Twice in Second Half For 13-to-0 Triumph Over F…
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