Nobby Wirkowski was a good passing QB out of theUniversity ofMiami (Ohio) and played for Toronto, Hamilton and Calgary in the 1950s. Wirkowski is best remembered for leading the Argonauts to a Grey Cup victory in 1952. Unfortunately, no official stats are available for his first two seasons in Toronto (1952-53), so his stats start in his third year in 1954 which was his last in Toronto (the first time around anyway). Wirkowski threw 355 passes, completing 55.8% for 2960 yards. In 1955, Wirkowski joined Hamilton for his first of two seasons with the Tiger-Cats. His numbers dropped about in half (188 pass attempts in 1955) on the more run orientated Tiger-Cats. In 1957, Wirkowski moved to Calgary and put up similar stats (181 attempts), but had a much better season in 1958 with 269 attempts and 2300 yards passing. In 1959, Wirkowski lost his starting job to a young QB named Joe Kapp. Wirkowski was sent back to Toronto in 1960 for his final season where he served as a backup to Tobin Rote.
Wirkowski was also involved in coaching. football at various levels. From 1952 to 1957, while he was with the Argos, he was the head coach of De La Salle Collegiate (highschool) in Toronto. When Wirkowski returned to the Argosin 1960, he also served as an assistant coach and continued in that role in 1961 and 1962 after his playing career ended. Wirkowski took over as the Argo head coach three games into the 1962 season with the firing of Lou Agase. Wirkowski remainedas head coach through the 1964 season. From 1965 to 1967, Wirkowski served as the Argo's Director of Player Personel. In 1968, Wirkowski became the Athletic Director and the head football coach for York University. Wirkowski coached York from 1968 to 1975 and again from 1988 to 1989.
Wirkowski is a member of both the Miami (Ohio) sports hall of fame and the Mississauga sports hall of fame.
Nobby Wirkowski passedaway on October 15, 2014.
Argos mourn the death of former star QB Nobby Wirkowski
Obituary for Nobby Wirkowski on legacy.com
Obituary for Nobby Wirkowski at insidetoronto.com
Nobby Wirkowski dies at 88 - tribute.com
| Year | Team | GP | PA | PC | % | Yds | TD | Int | Sacked | Yds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | TOR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1953 | TOR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1954 | TOR | 355 | 198 | 55.8 | 2960 | 12 | 20 | |||
| 1955 | HAM | 188 | 89 | 47.3 | 1329 | 6 | 9 | |||
| 1956 | HAM | 133 | 73 | 54.9 | 999 | 11 | 8 | |||
| 1957 | CAL | 181 | 94 | 51.9 | 1736 | 9 | 10 | |||
| 1958 | CAL | 269 | 149 | 55.3 | 2300 | 13 | 12 | |||
| 1959 | CAL | 40 | 17 | 42.5 | 201 | 1 | 6 | |||
| 1960 | TOR | 14 |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
No individual stats are available for 1952-53. Games played stats were not kept in the East until 1960 and in the West until 1964.
| Year | Team | TC | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | TOR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1953 | TOR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1954 | TOR | 21 | 72 | 3.4 | 0 | 13 |
| 1955 | HAM | 8 | 12 | 1.5 | 0 | 5 |
| 1956 | HAM | 10 | 58 | 5.8 | 0 | 14 |
| 1957 | CAL | 33 | -63 | -1.9 | 0 | 12 |
| 1958 | CAL | 45 | -73 | -1.6 | 0 | 10 |
| 1959 | CAL | 2 | 9 | 4.5 | 0 | 9 |
| 1960 | TOR | 3 | 13 | 4.3 | 0 | 7 |
The 1957 and 1958 stats include losses while passing.
| Year | Team | F | FL |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | TOR | ||
| 1953 | TOR | ||
| 1954 | TOR | ||
| 1955 | HAM | ||
| 1956 | HAM | ||
| 1957 | CAL | 4 | |
| 1958 | CAL | 5 | |
| 1959 | CAL | 1 | |
| 1960 | TOR |
