Ralph Vaughn

Who is Ralph Vaughn?

Ralph L. Vaughn is an American former college basketball player for the Southern California Trojans. He led the Pacific Coast Conference in scoring his senior season of 1939–40 at 15.0 points per game in which he was named a Consensus First Team All-American. That season, Vaughn led the Sam Barry–coached team to their first ever NCAA Tournament, losing in the national semifinals. Vaughn once scored 36 points in a single game against UCLA, which was a conference record that stood for 21 years.

At Frankfort High School in Indiana, Vaughn led the North Central Conference in scoring during his junior and senior seasons, winning the state championship as a junior in 1935. He was also dubbed All-State and played for future Hall of Famer Everett Case.

Vaughn also appeared on the January 15, 1940 cover of LIFE Magazine. He went on to play in the National Basketball League for seven years before getting into business.