Portal:Michigan/Selected biography/6

Paul Gordon Goebel (born May 28, 1901 in Grand Rapids, Michigan – January 26, 1988 in Grand Rapids, Michigan) was an American football end who played for the University of Michigan Wolverines from 1920-1922. He was an All-American in 1921 and was the team’s captain in 1922. He played professional football from 1923-1926 with the Columbus Tigers, Chicago Bears, and New York Yankees. He was named to the NFL All-Pro team in 1923 and 1924. After his football career ended, he operated a sporting good store in Grand Rapids. He officiated football games for the Big Ten Conference for 16 years and also served in the U.S. Navy on an aircraft carrier in World War II. He was active in Republican Party politics in Grand Rapids, and was one of the organizers of a reform movement to oust the city’s political boss, Frank McKay. As an anti-McKay reform candidate, Goebel was three times elected mayor of Grand Rapids, Michigan in the 1950s. He was later elected to the University of Michigan Board of Regents, where he served from 1962-1970.