H. Farquhar Jones, Class of 1944

H. Farquhar Jones ’44 was captain of the 1943 football team inducted into the Peddie Sports Hall of Fame in 1994. The team’s 7-1 record made them the most successful team in 20 years and earned them the Crusader Trophy from the Holy Cross College Club for being the No. 1 prep school team in New Jersey. Jones’s accomplishments on this remarkable squad and his leadership on and off the field warrant special recognition.

Jones joined the Peddie 11 as a junior under first-year head coach Mickey Shuman. Recognizing the formidable opposition brought by the “new boys” for the returning veterans, Shuman assigned the former Penn Charter halfback to Peddie’s quarterback position. Partnering with then Captain Frank Bradley ’43 at left halfback, Jones’s impact was felt immediately. In a game against Princeton University’s JVs in the fall of ’42 Peddie marched down to the Princeton 33-yard line with the exceptional running of “Special Delivery” Jones.

Another standout moment came at the close of the ’42 season when the Old Gold and Blue gridmen played their best ball of the season leading to their first victory over Blair in six years with a score of 21-0. According to the Peddie News, on the fourth down, Farquhar Jones picked up a bad snap from center and aided by two blocks, eluded the grasp of several Blair tacklers and crossed the double-stripe for Peddie’s initial tally.” When the second half resumed, “Peddie regained possession and before cheers could die down, Jones, running wide to his right, outdistanced the Blair tacklers and sped unmolested for a [70-yard] touchdown.”

Elected captain his senior year, Jones continued his prolific scoring. In the St. John’s game, he scored two touchdowns and passed for a third. A week later he scored both touchdowns against Newark Academy avenging the previous year’s defeat. Surrounded by talent, Jones was accompanied by Bob Ludman ’44 in the backfield and Lindsay Pratt ’44, Frank Thropp ’44 and Jim Hitchner ’44 in the line. The spark of this cohesive team was Captain Jones. He was fearless and proud, and his teammates were filled with the same will-to-win attitude.

Pratt recently recalled, “We had a marvelous group, and we played as a team as well as for fun. We had a great coach who inspired us.”

A natural leader, Jones was also student president of the school and chairman of the Gold Key Society. Hitchner noted that “beyond his athletic abilities, he was a fine student and an inspirational leader. He had it all – good looks, fine personality and [he was] humble.” Jones was a member of the All-State Prep School first team and All-State Prep and High School second team.

Jones went on to play football at the University of Pennsylvania where he was a three-year varsity letter winner and received the Edgar Church Memorial Award, given in memory of a former captain to the senior who contributes the most to the team.