Bob "Bones" Hamilton

Robert "Bones" Hamilton
Born	Template:Birth date Sewickley, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	April 1, 1996(1996-04-01) (aged 83)
Occupation(s)	College football player, assistant coach, car dealer
Years active	1933–1941 (football)
Known for	Stanford University football halfback, College Football Hall of Fame inductee

Robert Alexander "Bones" Hamilton (September 8, 1912 – April 1, 1996) was a prominent American gridiron football athlete, primarily recognized for his collegiate career at Stanford University. In 1972, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

Biography

Born in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, Hamilton completed his early education at Sewickley High School. Following this, he attended Kiski Prep beginning in the autumn of 1930, and matriculated at Stanford University in the fall of 1932 alongside fellow Kiski alumnus Jim "Monk" Moscrip. During the 1932 season, Hamilton, Moscrip, Bob "Horse" Reynolds, and Bobby Grayson were members of Stanford’s freshman football squad. After the varsity team suffered a decisive loss to the USC Trojans, the freshmen resolved never to be defeated by USC again—a pledge Hamilton described as a vow—leading to their moniker as the "Vow Boys."

Hamilton served as a halfback for Stanford's varsity football team from 1933 through 1935. His performance earned him first-team All-American honors in 1934 from Liberty magazine, and he was appointed captain of the 1935 squad. Throughout Hamilton’s tenure, Stanford participated in the Rose Bowl Game for three consecutive years, experiencing two losses before securing a victory over SMU in the January 1936 Rose Bowl—the final game of his collegiate career.

In a 1934 interview, Hamilton recounted how his nickname evolved: initially called "Ham" at Kiski, it transformed through "Ham and eggs" to "Hambone," then shortened to "Bone," and finally became "Bones".

Although drafted by the Brooklyn Dodgers in the inaugural 1936 NFL draft, Hamilton opted not to pursue a professional playing career. He did appear in one film, The Big Game, released in 1936 alongside several contemporaries including Moscrip. During the final game of Stanford’s winless 1939 season, when trailing at halftime, Hamilton was invited to deliver a motivational speech. He bluntly told the players they were “by far and large the worst group of players who have ever worn the Stanford red,” which inspired them to rally for a comeback victory—their sole win that year. He subsequently served as an assistant coach for Stanford during the 1940 and 1941 seasons.

Hamilton enlisted in the United States Navy during World War II, where he held the rank of lieutenant within naval procurement. In early 1951, he purchased a Buick dealership located in Van Nuys, California, which continued operating under his ownership into the mid-1970s. His athletic achievements were recognized with induction into the Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame in 1954, followed by his enshrinement in the College Football Hall of Fame two decades later.

Hamilton married Bernice Walters in October of 1936 in Reno, Nevada. The duration or conclusion of this marriage is not clearly documented. In July of 1967, he wed Florence—widow of W. Clarke Swanson and daughter-in-law of Carl A. Swanson. She passed away in April of 1988. Hamilton died at age eighty-three in 1996; he was survived by one son.