Don Steinbrunner

Don Steinbrunner

Date of birth	(1932-04-05)April 5, 1932
Place of birth	Bellingham, Washington, United States
Date of death
Place of death	Kontum, South Vietnam †
Career information
College	Washington State
NFL draft	1953 / Round: 6 / Pick: 71
Career history
As player
1953	Cleveland Browns
Career stats
Playing stats at DatabaseFootball.com
Military career
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	U.S. Air Force
Years of service	1954-1967
Rank	Major
Battles/wars	Vietnam War
Awards	Distinguished Flying Cross Purple Heart

Donald Thomas Steinbrunner (April 5, 1932–July 20, 1967) was an American football offensive tackle who was one of only two American professional football players to die in the Vietnam War.

Donald Thomas Steinbrunner was born April 5, 1932 in Bellingham, Washington. He was an All State athlete in football and basketball at Wickersham High School. He played both sports at Washington State College (now Washington State University), and was the captain of both teams. He was also a member of ROTC in college. He was an offensive tackle with the 1953 Cleveland Browns, but a knee injury ended his professional football career after only eight games. He joined the United States Air Force, serving as a navigator. He was also an assistant football coach at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Steinbrunner was sent to Vietnam in 1966, and after an injury was offered a safer assignment, which he refused. Major Steinbrunner's plane, a C-123, was shot down on July 20, 1967 during a defoliation mission spraying Agent Orange on the jungle forest canopy, killing all five crewmen aboard. He was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart and the Distinguished Flying Cross.

See also

• Bob Kalsu
• Pat Tillman
• Tim James - American basketball player who left his professional sports career and enlisted in the United States Army on September 12, 2008.

References

• The Virtual Wall

External links

• Don Steinbrunner at Find a Grave