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Russ Reader

Russell "Big Daddy" Reader Jr. (June 26, 1923 – August 12, 1995) was an American gridiron football player. Reader was born in Ypsilanti, Michigan and graduated from Dearborn High School in Dearborn, Michigan. After graduating from Dearborn High School, Reader enrolled at the University of Michigan where he was a member of Fritz Crisler's 1941 Michigan Wolverines football team. After World War II, Reader enrolled at Michigan State University and played at the halfback position for the Spartans football team in 1945 and 1946. Reader was considered a triple-threat player, as he handled rushing, passing and kicking duties for the Spartans. In November 1945, he led the Spartans to a 33–0 win over the Penn State Nittany Lions, as he threw two touchdown passes and also caught a touchdown pass. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the 21st round (195th overall pick) in the 1947 NFL draft. Simkus played in two games for the Bears in the 1947 NFL season, and began the 1948 season with the Bears as an understudy for Sid Luckman at the quarterback position. He was also a renowned swimmer and diver. He started the 1949 season with the Toronto Argonauts in the Canadian Football League and finished the season playing for the Windsor Bulldogs in the Canadian American Football League. Reader died in 1995 at age 72 while living in Milford, Michigan.

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Article summary

Russell "Big Daddy" Reader Jr. (June 26, 1923 – August 12, 1995) was an American gridiron football player. Reader was born in Ypsilanti, Michigan and graduated from Dearborn High School in Dearborn, Michigan. After graduating from Dearborn High School, Reader enrolled at the University of Michigan where he was a member of Fritz Crisler's 1941 Michigan Wolverines football team. After World War II, Reader enrolled at Michigan State University and played at the halfback position for the Spartans football team in 1945 and 1946. Reader was considered a triple-threat player, as he handled rushing, passing and kicking duties for the Spartans. In November 1945, he led the Spartans to a 33–0 win over the Penn State Nittany Lions, as he threw two touchdown passes and also caught a touchdown pass. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the 21st round (195th overall pick) in the 1947 NFL draft. Simkus played in two games for the Bears in the 1947 NFL season, and began the 1948 season with the Bears as an understudy for Sid Luckman at the quarterback position. He was also a renowned swimmer and diver. He started the 1949 season with the Toronto Argonauts in the Canadian Football League and finished the season playing for the Windsor Bulldogs in the Canadian American Football League. Reader died in 1995 at age 72 while living in Milford, Michigan.

Key claims

  1. date of death: 1995 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. The record states that the date of death is "1995". What evidence would count against this claim?
  3. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  4. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

  1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1372422534

Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.