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Tom Keane

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Tom Keane
refer to caption
Keane on a 1954 Bowman football card
No. 10, 21
Position:Cornerback
Personal information
Born:(1926-09-07)September 7, 1926
Bellaire, Ohio, U.S.
Died:June 1, 2001(2001-06-01) (aged 74)
Miami, Florida, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:192 lb (87 kg)
Career information
High school:Linsly Military Institute
(Wheeling, West Virginia)
College:West Virginia
NFL draft:1948 / round: 3 / pick: 18
Career history
As a player:
As a coach:
Career highlights and awards
Player stats at PFR

Thomas Lawrence Keane (September 7, 1926 – June 19, 2001) was an American football cornerback.

High school

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Keane played football and graduated from Linsly Military Institute in Wheeling, West Virginia (now known as the Linsly School) in 1944. During his high school career, he was an All-OVAC selection in football and basketball in 1943 and 1944. He was also All-City in basketball.

College

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He then went to play football at Ohio State University where he lettered as a freshman. After freshman year, he joined the United States Navy where he served for 20 months. After the navy he enrolled at West Virginia University, where he lettered in football in 1946 and 1947.

Professional football

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Keane was a third round selection and 18th overall pick in the 1948 NFL Draft. He was selected by the Los Angeles Rams. He played four years with the Rams, where he won the 1951 NFL title. In 1952, the Rams traded him to the expansion Dallas Texans, one of eleven players sent to Dallas in exchange for future Hall of Famer Les Richter. (Of the eleven, Keane turned out to be the only one to play in the NFL beyond 1952; six of them never played a down for Dallas or any other NFL team.) Due to injuries, he was occasionally used on offense, catching three passes for 73 yards. Keane moved with the Texans from Dallas to Baltimore, playing for the Colts, and ended his career with the Chicago Cardinals in 1955. During his career he was selected All-Pro twice and played in the 1953 Pro Bowl.

Coaching career

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Keane served as an assistant for the Chicago Cardinals from 1957–1959. From 1962–1964 he served as Head Coach of the Wheeling Ironmen of the United Football League. Then he went back to the NFL to the Pittsburgh Steelers as an assistant in 1965. He served as a longtime assistant to the Miami Dolphins where he coached from 1966–1985. He was one of the assistants on the 1972 undefeated Miami Dolphins team under head coach Don Shula.

References

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Tom Keane, OVAC Hall of Fame[permanent dead link]