Greg Latta was an American football

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. As tight end

Tight end

The tight end is a position in American football on the offense. The tight end is often seen as a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like offensive linemen, they are usually lined up on the offensive line and are large enough to be...

, he was drafted by the Baltimore Colts

History of the Indianapolis Colts

The Indianapolis Colts are a professional football team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. They play in the AFC South division of the National Football League. They have won 3 NFL championships and 2 Super Bowls....

 of 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...

, but played instead for the Florida Blazers of the World Football League in 1974. He left for the Chicago Bears in 1975 along with the head coach of the Blazers, Jack Pardee. Latta was a member of the NFL Chicago Bears from 1975 to 1979. He died on September 28, 1994 at St. Michael's Hospital, Newark, New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

. He was 41 years old

In his rookie season with the Florida Blazers, Latta caught 39 passes for 815 yards and nine touchdown receptions. The Blazers went to the 1974 World Bowl Championship game falling 22-21 to the Birmingham Americans.

During his 5-year NFL career, the 6-foot-three, 227-pound tight end caught 90 passes for 1,081 yards and 7 touchdowns. On special teams, he returned 3 kickoffs for 22 yards.

Background

Latta attended South Side High School

Malcolm X Shabazz High School

Malcolm X Shabazz High School is a four-year public high school in Newark, New Jersey, as part of the Newark Public Schools. The school was formerly named South Side High School, but was renamed in 1972....

 in Newark and Morgan State College

Morgan State University

Morgan State University, formerly Centenary Biblical Institute , Morgan College and Morgan State College , is a historically black college in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Morgan is Maryland's designated public urban university and the largest HBCU in the state of Maryland...

in Baltimore, Maryland.