Ollie Matson
| No. 33 |
| Halfback |
| Personal information |
| Date of birth: May 1, 1930(1930-05-01) |
| Place of birth: Trinity, Texas |
| Date of death: February 19, 2011(2011-02-19) (aged 80) |
| Place of death: Los Angeles, California |
|
|
| Career information |
| College: San Francisco |
| NFL Draft: 1952 / Round: 1 / Pick: 3 |
| Debuted in 1952 for the Chicago Cardinals |
| Last played in 1966 for the Philadelphia Eagles |
|
|
| Career history |
|
|
| Career highlights and awards |
- 6× Pro Bowl selection (1952, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958)
- 7× All-Pro selection (1952, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959)
- NFL 1950s All-Decade Team
- 1956 Pro Bowl MVP
|
| Rushing yards |
5,173 |
| Average |
4.4 |
| Touchdowns |
40 |
| Stats at NFL.com |
| Pro Football Hall of Fame |
| College Football Hall of Fame |
Ollie Genoa Matson II (May 1, 1930 – February 19, 2011) was an American Olympic medal winning sprinter and professional American football running back who played in the National Football League, in 1952 and from 1954 to 1966. He graduated from George Washington High School in San Francisco in 1948.
[edit] College career
Matson attended the City College of San Francisco prior to transferring to the University of San Francisco. While in school, Matson became a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity. In 1951, Matson's senior year at USF, he led the nation in rushing yardage and touchdowns en route to leading the Dons to an undefeated season. He was selected as an All-American and finished ninth in Heisman Trophy balloting that year.
Despite its 9-0 record, the 1951 San Francisco team was not invited to a bowl game. It was later reported that the Orange, Sugar and Gator Bowls - all in the American South - did not consider inviting any teams that had black players, and the USF refused to play without its two African-American teammates.[1]
Drafted #1 by the Chicago Cardinals, he went on to share 1952 Rookie of the Year honors with Hugh McElhenny of the San Francisco 49ers. During his 14-year career, Matson also played for the Los Angeles Rams (traded by the Cardinals for nine Rams players following the 1958 season),[2] the Detroit Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles, and he was named to the Pro Bowl six times (1952, 1954 to 1958). When Matson retired in 1966, his 12,799 career all-purpose yards were second only to Jim Brown.[3] Matson was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1972, and into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1976.
Matson also won a bronze medal in the 400-meter run and a silver medal as part of the United States 4x400-meter relay team in the 1952 Summer Olympics held in Helsinki, Finland.
Ollie Matson was a member of The Pigskin Club Of Washington, D.C. National Intercollegiate All-American Football Players Honor Roll.
[edit] Personal life
He married his wife Mary, whom he met when both were San Francisco teenagers in the mid 1940s, in 1952. He and Mary lived in the same Mid-City Los Angeles home from the time he played for the Los Angeles Rams until his death. The site is being nominated as the 'Ollie and Mary Matson Residence', a City of Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument, as an historic house museum and interpretive center. Museum and Interpretive is Landmarking 2007-2008, being prepared by students of Los Angeles Trade Technical College, Program in Historic Preservation, anticipated listing mid-2008. Matson suffered from Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in his later years, which is a result of numerous hard hits to the head Matson sustained during his time in the NFL.[4]
Matson died in his Los Angeles home on February 19, 2011 of respiratory failure, surrounded by family.
[edit] References
[edit] Bibliography
- Eisenberg, John (2009), That First Season:: How Vince Lombardi Took the Worst Team in the NFL and Set It on the Path to Glory. New York:Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. ISBN ISBN 978-0-618-90499-0
[edit] External links
|
Eagles Honor Roll inductees
|
|
1987: Chuck Bednarik, Bert Bell, Harold Carmichael, Bill Hewitt, Sonny Jurgensen, Wilbert Montgomery, Earle "Greasy" Neale, Pete Pihos, Ollie Matson, Jim Ringo, Norm Van Brocklin, Steve Van Buren, and Alex Wojciechowicz | 1988: Bill Bergey and Tommy McDonald | 1989: Tom Brookshier and Pete Retzlaff | 1990: Timmy Brown | 1991: Jerry Sisemore and Stan Walters | 1992: Ron Jaworski | 1993: Bill Bradley | 1994: Dick Vermeil | 1995: Jim Gallagher and Mike Quick | 1996: Jerome Brown | 1999: Otho Davis | 2005: Reggie White | 2009: Randall Cunningham and Al Wistert | 2011: Eric Allen and Jim Johnson
|
|
|
|
|
- 1978: Pete Rozelle, George Halas, Art Rooney
- 1979: Paul Brown, Red Grange, Bronko Nagurski
- 1980: Don Shula, Wellington Mara, Dominic Olejniczak, Pro Football Hall of Fame
- 1981: Lamar Hunt, Tom Landry
- 1982: William Bidwill, Alex Wojciechowicz, Bud Grant
- 1983: F. William Harder, LeRoy Neiman
- 1985: George P. Marshall, Weeb Ewbank
- 1986: Howard Cosell, Vince Lombardi, Vic Maitland
- 1987: Ray Scott, Steve Sabol, Ed Sabol, Bert Bell
- 1988: Raymond Berry
- 1989: Tex Schramm
- 1990: Bill Dudley, Ollie Matson, Steve Van Buren
- 1991: Hugh McElhenny 1992: Chuck Bednarik, Art Modell
- 1993: Elroy Hirsch, Marion Motley
- 1994: Sid Luckman, Sammy Baugh
- 1995: Otto Graham, Chuck Noll
- 1996: Johnny Unitas, Curt Gowdy
- 1997: Pat Summerall, Ralph Wilson
- 1998: Jim Brown, Al Davis
- 1999: Bobby Mitchell, Paul Tagliabue
- 2000: Len Dawson, Deacon Jones
- 2001: Mike McCormack, Mel Renfro
- 2002: Mel Blount, Jim Otto, Jim Tunney
- 2003: Tom Flores, Willie Davis
- 2004: Dick Vermeil, Val Pinchbeck, Don Weiss
- 2005: Larry Wilson, Joe Greene
- 2007: Sonny Jurgensen, Jack Youngblood
- 2008: Eric Dickerson, John Madden, Alex Spanos
|
|
| Persondata |
| Name |
Matson, Ollie |
| Alternative names |
|
| Short description |
Athletics (sport) and American Football competitor |
| Date of birth |
May 1, 1930 |
| Place of birth |
Trinity, Texas |
| Date of death |
February 19, 2011 |
| Place of death |
|
United States
