Emil's Roots....

His father Steven, a Croatian immigrant, worked in the coal mines while his mother, Rose, ran a boarding house and raised five children. Emil earned a football scholarship to the University of Pittsburgh. Not only was he the first in his family but the first kid from his high school to go to college. Emil arrived at Pitt with one pair of shoes, two pairs of pants and two shirts. He was a standout on the championship 1937 Pittsburgh Panthers foot ball team, playing the now-defunct position of halfback passer.