George Ratterman
Encyclopedia
George William Ratterman (November 12, 1926 – November 3, 2007) was an American Football
player in the All-America Football Conference
and the National Football League
.
, where he graduated from St. Xavier High School in 1944. He played college football
at the University of Notre Dame
from 1944 through 1946, primarily as a backup to quarterbacks Frank Dancewicz
and Johnny Lujack
. He was the last of only four students in Notre Dame history to earn letters in four different sports (football, basketball, baseball, tennis). Legendary football coach Frank Leahy
called him "the greatest all-around athlete in the history of Notre Dame."
of the AAFC from 1947 to 1949, when the league merged with the NFL. In his first year, 1947, at the age of 20, Ratterman threw 22 touchdown passes, setting a professional football rookie record that stood for more than twenty years. He continued his career with the New York Yanks
of the NFL in 1950 and 1951, the Montreal Alouettes
of the Canadian Football League
in 1951 and finished with the Cleveland Browns
of the NFL from 1952
through 1956
. He led the NFL in TD passes in 1950 while playing for New York. In 1956
, he became the Browns' starting quarterback, succeeding Otto Graham
, and was first player in the history of football to wear a radio receiver in his helmet, which allowed Cleveland Coach Paul Brown
to call plays using a microphone instead of sending in messenger players for each play. Ratterman was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated
, October 8, 1956. A leg injury on October 21, 1956, ended his football career.
and Kentucky
. He acted as general counsel for the American Football League Players Association in the mid-1960s, when Jack Kemp
was the president of the union.
, he was drugged with chloral hydrate
and put in bed with stripper
April Flowers in an attempt to blackmail him and force him to drop from the race. The plot was uncovered, and publicity from the botched frame-up attempt catapulted him and his party to victory in the election. While sheriff, with cooperation from federal agents and personal interest of then-U.S. Attorney General Robert Kennedy, he was able to rid the county, and particularly the city of Newport
, of gambling, prostitution and vice businesses that had dominated the area since the Civil War.
quarterback Otto Graham
says Ratterman was the "best natural clown and comic I ever saw in professional football." In one story, during a game while Ratterman was in a game for the Browns and stern Coach Brown was sending in the plays from the bench using his messenger guard system, Ratterman told the guard who came in with the play call to "go back and get another one" because Ratterman "didn't like that play." The guard, a rookie named Joe Skibinski
, obediently turned to run back to the bench and Coach Brown before Ratterman and other players stopped him.
He was an unsuccessful candidate for county judge and United States Congress
in the 1960s.
and NFL football games for ABC-TV
(1960-1964) and NBC-TV
(1965-1973). He was frequently paired with Jack Buck
and Charlie Jones
on broadcast teams.
, Colorado
, on November 3, 2007, from complications of Alzheimer's Disease
. He and his wife of 59 years, Anne, had ten children.
The Great Kentucky Scandal
by Bill Davidson
Look Magazine, October 24, 1961, http://www.nkyviews.com/campbell/text/txt_newport_look.htm
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player in the All-America Football Conference
All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the nation's best players, and introduced many lasting innovations...
and the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
.
Early life
He was born in Cincinnati, OhioOhio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, where he graduated from St. Xavier High School in 1944. He played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
at the University of Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
from 1944 through 1946, primarily as a backup to quarterbacks Frank Dancewicz
Frank Dancewicz
Francis Joseph "Boley" Dancewicz was an American football quarterback who played professionally in the National Football League...
and Johnny Lujack
Johnny Lujack
John Christopher Lujack Jr. is a former American football quarterback and 1947 Heisman Trophy winner.Lujack was born on January 4, 1925, in Connellsville, Pennsylvania. He played college football for the University of Notre Dame, and professionally for the Chicago Bears. Lujack was the first of...
. He was the last of only four students in Notre Dame history to earn letters in four different sports (football, basketball, baseball, tennis). Legendary football coach Frank Leahy
Frank Leahy
Francis William Leahy was an American football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and professional sports executive...
called him "the greatest all-around athlete in the history of Notre Dame."
Professional football career
He played professional football with the Buffalo BillsBuffalo Bills (AAFC)
The Buffalo Bills was an American Football team, based in Buffalo, NY, that played in the All-America Football Conference from 1946 to 1949. During its first season in 1946, the team was known as the Buffalo Bisons...
of the AAFC from 1947 to 1949, when the league merged with the NFL. In his first year, 1947, at the age of 20, Ratterman threw 22 touchdown passes, setting a professional football rookie record that stood for more than twenty years. He continued his career with the New York Yanks
New York Yanks
The New York Yanks American football team played in the National Football League under that name in the 1950 and 1951 seasons. In 1949, Boston Yanks owner Ted Collins had requested the NFL to fold his Boston team and give him a new one in New York City...
of the NFL in 1950 and 1951, the Montreal Alouettes
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...
of the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
in 1951 and finished with the Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
of the NFL from 1952
1952 NFL season
The 1952 NFL season was the 33rd regular season of the National Football League. Prior to the season, New York Yanks owner Ted Collins sold his team back to the NFL...
through 1956
1956 NFL season
The 1956 NFL season was the 37th regular season of the National Football League. CBS became the first network to televise some regular season games across the nation...
. He led the NFL in TD passes in 1950 while playing for New York. In 1956
1956 NFL season
The 1956 NFL season was the 37th regular season of the National Football League. CBS became the first network to televise some regular season games across the nation...
, he became the Browns' starting quarterback, succeeding Otto Graham
Otto Graham
Otto Everett Graham, Jr. was a professional American football and basketball player who played for the Cleveland Browns in both the All-America Football Conference and National Football League, as well as the Rochester Royals in the National Basketball League.-Early life:Born in Waukegan,...
, and was first player in the history of football to wear a radio receiver in his helmet, which allowed Cleveland Coach Paul Brown
Paul Brown
Paul Eugene Brown was a coach in American football and a major figure in the development of the National Football League...
to call plays using a microphone instead of sending in messenger players for each play. Ratterman was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
, October 8, 1956. A leg injury on October 21, 1956, ended his football career.
General counsel for the American Football League Players Association
He earned his law degree in 1956 and was admitted to practice in OhioOhio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
and Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. He acted as general counsel for the American Football League Players Association in the mid-1960s, when Jack Kemp
Jack Kemp
Jack French Kemp was an American politician and a collegiate and professional football player. A Republican, he served as Housing Secretary in the administration of President George H. W. Bush from 1989 to 1993, having previously served nine terms as a congressman for Western New York's 31st...
was the president of the union.
Campaign for sheriff of Campbell County, Kentucky
On May 9, 1961, while campaigning as a candidate for sheriff of Campbell County, KentuckyCampbell County, Kentucky
Campbell County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed on December 17, 1794, from sections of Scott, Harrison and Mason counties. As of 2010, the population was 90,336. Its county seats are Alexandria and Newport...
, he was drugged with chloral hydrate
Chloral hydrate
Chloral hydrate is a sedative and hypnotic drug as well as a chemical reagent and precursor. The name chloral hydrate indicates that it is formed from chloral by the addition of one molecule of water. Its chemical formula is C2H3Cl3O2....
and put in bed with stripper
Stripper
A stripper is a professional erotic dancer who performs a contemporary form of striptease at strip club establishments, public exhibitions, and private engagements. Unlike in burlesque, the performer in the modern Americanized form of stripping minimizes the interaction of customer and dancer,...
April Flowers in an attempt to blackmail him and force him to drop from the race. The plot was uncovered, and publicity from the botched frame-up attempt catapulted him and his party to victory in the election. While sheriff, with cooperation from federal agents and personal interest of then-U.S. Attorney General Robert Kennedy, he was able to rid the county, and particularly the city of Newport
Newport, Kentucky
Newport is a city in Campbell County, Kentucky, United States, at the confluence of the Ohio and Licking rivers. The population was 15,273 at the 2010 census. Historically, it was one of four county seats of Campbell County. Newport is part of the Greater Cincinnati, Ohio Metro Area which...
, of gambling, prostitution and vice businesses that had dominated the area since the Civil War.
Confessions of a Gypsy Quarterback
He is the author of a book, Confessions of a Gypsy Quarterback, Coward-McCann, 1962, containing hilarious anecdotes of his experiences and hi-jinks in professional football. In the foreword, Pro Football Hall of FamePro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
quarterback Otto Graham
Otto Graham
Otto Everett Graham, Jr. was a professional American football and basketball player who played for the Cleveland Browns in both the All-America Football Conference and National Football League, as well as the Rochester Royals in the National Basketball League.-Early life:Born in Waukegan,...
says Ratterman was the "best natural clown and comic I ever saw in professional football." In one story, during a game while Ratterman was in a game for the Browns and stern Coach Brown was sending in the plays from the bench using his messenger guard system, Ratterman told the guard who came in with the play call to "go back and get another one" because Ratterman "didn't like that play." The guard, a rookie named Joe Skibinski
Joe Skibinski
Joe Skibinski is a former guard in the National Football League. He was drafted in the fifteenth round of the 1951 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns and later played with the team during the 1952 NFL season. After two years away from the NFL, he played with the Green Bay Packers for two...
, obediently turned to run back to the bench and Coach Brown before Ratterman and other players stopped him.
He was an unsuccessful candidate for county judge and United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
in the 1960s.
Broadcasting career
He worked as a color commentator on TV and radio broadcasts of AFLAmerican Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
and NFL football games for ABC-TV
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
(1960-1964) and NBC-TV
NFL on NBC
NFL on NBC is the brand given to NBC Sports coverage of National Football League games until 1998, when NBC lost the NFL American Football Conference rights to CBS...
(1965-1973). He was frequently paired with Jack Buck
Jack Buck
John Francis "Jack" Buck was an American sportscaster, best known for his work announcing Major League Baseball games of the St. Louis Cardinals. Buck received the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987, and is honored with a star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame...
and Charlie Jones
Charlie Jones (sportscaster)
Charlie Jones was an American Emmy Award-winning sportscaster for NBC and ABC.-Education:Born in Fort Smith, Arkansas, Jones earned an undergraduate degree at the University of Southern California and a law degree at the University of Arkansas.-American Football League/National Football...
on broadcast teams.
Death
Ratterman died in CentennialCentennial, Colorado
The city of Centennial is a Home Rule City located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States, and part of the Denver-Aurora metropolitan area. The city was to have a total population of 100,377 in 2010 census. Centennial is the tenth-most populous municipality in the state of Colorado and its...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, on November 3, 2007, from complications of Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
. He and his wife of 59 years, Anne, had ten children.
External links
- databaseFootball: George Ratterman
- Professional Football Researchers Association: Mini-Bio: George Ratterman
The Great Kentucky Scandal
by Bill Davidson
Look Magazine, October 24, 1961, http://www.nkyviews.com/campbell/text/txt_newport_look.htm