A standout nose tackle in high school and college, Ralph Serpico emerged as a pillar of the community he grew up in throughout his adulthood. From high school football star to Rose Bowl champion and beyond, Ralph “Babe” Serpico was a role model and force for good in his native Melrose Park.

“You have a community of mostly working-class Italians, and they’re reading stories in the newspaper about my dad winning the Rose Bowl,” Melrose Park Mayor Ron Serpico says. “It was a big source of pride for everyone in the community.” Ralph got the ball rolling as a standout nose tackle for the Proviso High Pirates in the 1940s.