November 20 (1931)

Future U.S. Soccer Hall of Famer Bill Looby is born. Looby will become one of the most prolific scorers in St. Louis soccer history. He will play primarily as an inside left for the legendary Kutis team that will dominate U.S. soccer in the 1950s with one U.S. Open and six consecutive U.S. Amateur cups. “Noted for his extremely hard shots,” according to a profile of Looby in the Jan. 15, 1956, issue of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Looby will score more than 60 goals in all competitions during the 1958-59 season. His goal production that season will be “undoubtedly the highest ever recorded by a St. Louis player,” according to U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame journalist Dent McSkimming in the April 5, 1959, Post-Dispatch. Looby’s goal total that season will be even more remarkable because he will not score in Kutis’ first five games. Looby’s success as a goal producer carries over to the international level, where he scores in his first appearance for the United States, a 1954 World Cup qualifier against Mexico. Looby eventually will amass six goals in eight appearances for the U.S. national team. He will play on the 1956 and 1960 U.S. Olympic teams, and he will score six goals for the U.S. team in the 1959 Pan American Games.