Ray Apolskis
Raymond Edward Apolskis was a professional football player, an offensive lineman in the National Football League. He played eight seasons for the Chicago Cardinals and served in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II.
Born in Cicero, Illinois, Apolskis grew up in Chicago and graduated from Fenger High School, where he earned eleven varsity letters in football, basketball, baseball, and swimming. He played college football at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he was a team captain as a sophomore. Apolskis was selected in the fifth round of the 1941 NFL Draft by the Cardinals, the 32nd overall pick.
He started as a rookie in 1941, but missed the 1943 and 1944 seasons in the Marines. Apolskis returned to play in the 1945 season and was a member of the 1947 team, the last NFL Championship for the franchise, and retired after the 1950 season.
After football, Apolskis worked for a steel company in San Mateo, California, where he died of a heart attack at age 40 in 1960.
