A four-year letterwinner at U of L as a linebacker and center from 1949-1952, he earned honorable mention Associated Press Little All-America honors as a sophomore and United Press International All-America his junior year. As a senior he was U of L team captain and a Collier’s Little All-America first team selection. It wasn’t uncommon for him to play the entire 60 minutes of a football game. He was inducted into the U of L Athletic Hall of Fame in 1979 in its second induction class, and was inducted into the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994.
Prior to attending Louisville, he lettered in football, basketball, swimming and track at local St. Xavier High School. Following his collegiate career, Knop played on the Boling Air Force Base gridiron team in 1954 and 1955, captaining the ’55 national service championship team. He served as an assistant coach at St. X from 1956 to 1959. He worked for Hubbuch in Kentucky for 20 years before founding Knop Family Inc., a Louisville design firm of which he was president before his death in 1987. Three of his sons were lettermen for the red and black football team; Otto Jr. (1976-1979), Brian (1978) and Kurt (1980-1981). |
|
|||||||||||
