Boucher, John W.
St. John's College
1967
John Boucher graduated from Grantsville High School after receiving
a "Senatorial Scholarship" from Garrett County to go to
St. John's College in Annapolis. In his freshman year (1925), he
went out for football practice, which had already begun. He had
never seen a football or lacrosse game before attending St. John's.
He lettered in football from 1926-28.
Boucher played in the first lacrosse game he had ever seen, and
played in every minute of every game of his college career. He was
a 1929 First Team All-American; the first student at St. John's
ever to receive such an honor. By his senior year, he had perfected
his "Long John Flip"--a move he had learned from teammate
Ernie Cornbrooks in which the 210-pound defenseman flipped a dodging
attackman over his knee. This obviously was a dramatic and dangerous
spectacle, which was soon outlawed by a new holding rule intended
to lessen the use of this move.
Boucher played on St. John's first national championship team in
1929. After graduation in 1929, Boucher accepted a position as coach
of the freshman football and basketball and varsity lacrosse teams
at Randolph-Macon College, in Ashland, Va., for 1929-30. In 1930
he returned to Baltimore to coach football and lacrosse and teach
history at Woodbrook School. From 1931-33 he coached swimming and
lacrosse and assisted in football at Tome School, in Port Deposit,
Md. In the spring and summer of 1930, Boucher played some games
for Penn Athletic Club in Philadelphia and in 1931 played for Mt.
Washington Lacrosse Club. The summer of 1931 he played defense for
the Cornwall Colts of the Canadian Professional Box Lacrosse League.
In 1931 he played for the Baltimore Rough Riders in the newly formed
professional league. The league broke up after two months with Baltimore
in the lead without a loss. New Year's Day of 1930, he played an
exhibition football game for the Virginia All-Stars in Richmond,
Va., against the New York Giants of the National Professional Football
League. Boucher played for Irvington Football in a semi-pro league
in 1930-31 in Baltimore. At the close of the school year of 1933,
he left the coaching and teaching career to work for the fountain
sales division of Coca-Cola Company.
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