Lyle Alzado
Encyclopedia
Lyle Martin Alzado was a professional American football
defensive lineman of the National Football League
famous for his intense and intimidating style of play.
He played 15 seasons, splitting his time between the Denver Broncos
, Cleveland Browns
and most famously the Los Angeles Raiders, with whom he won a championship in Super Bowl XVIII
. Alzado died after a battle with brain cancer in 1992 at the age of 43.
, Long Island
. His father, whom Alzado later described as "a drinker and street fighter," left the family during Alzado's sophomore year at Lawrence High School
. He played high school football and was a Vardon Trophy Candidate (defense) in high school for three years.
, a junior college. After two years, he was asked to leave the team, he later contended, for befriending a black teammate. From Texas, Alzado moved on to Yankton College
in South Dakota
, a now-defunct school whose campus is currently the site of a federal prison. Though playing in relative obscurity in the NAIA
, Alzado nonetheless gained notice by the NFL when a scout for the Denver Broncos, having been taken off the road by automobile trouble, decided to pass the time by screening film of Montana Tech, one of Yankton's opponents. Impressed by the unknown player squaring off against Montana's offense, the scout passed back a favorable report to his team. The Broncos ultimately drafted Alzado in the fourth round of the 1971 draft. Alzado went back to Yankton after his rookie season to get his college degree. He received a B.A. in physical education with an emphasis in secondary education.
was injured in 1971, Alzado took over the job and never gave it up. Alzado made various All-rookie teams for his contributions of 60 tackles and 8 sacks. The following year, Alzado began to get national attention as he racked up 10½ sacks to go with his 91 tackles. In 1973, Alzado posted excellent numbers as the Broncos had a winning record for the first time in team history with a 7–5–2 mark.
In 1974, Alzado gained more notice as one publication named him All-AFC, with his 13 sacks and 80 tackles (eight for a loss) he was being recognized with the NFL's top defensive ends, such as Elvin Bethea
, Jack Youngblood
, L. C. Greenwood
, Claude Humphrey
, and Carl Eller
. The Denver Broncos
posted their second consecutive winning season, going 7–6–1.
The 1975 season brought change, as Alzado moved to defensive tackle. He responded with 91 tackles and 7 sacks. Alzado took a step backward as did the Broncos with a 6–8 record. On the first play of the 1976 season, Alzado blew out a knee and missed that campaign. The Broncos were 9–5 but SPORT magazine
reported that 12 players, including Alzado, did not think the team could reach the playoffs with coach John Ralston. Ralston was replaced as coach by Red Miller
for the 1977 season.
The 1977 season was the most successful in franchise history to that point; the Broncos had one of the NFL's best defenses, went 12–2 and then beat Pittsburgh Steelers
and Oakland Raiders
, the team with which he would later star, in the playoffs to reach Super Bowl XII
. In that game, played in New Orleans, they were beaten soundly 27–10 by the Dallas Cowboys
. Still, the year was a big success for Alzado, who was voted consensus All-Pro and consensus All-AFC as well as winning the UPI AFC Defensive Player of the Year.
He also led the Broncos in sacks with 8, while making 80 tackles.
The Broncos again went to the AFC playoffs, losing the first round to the eventual champions Steelers. Alzado had 77 tackles and 9 sacks and recorded his first NFL safety. (Alzado would record two more in his career, which ties him in second place all-time). He was 2nd team All-Pro and a consensus All-AFC pick. In 1979 he had a contract dispute, and the Broncos traded him to the Cleveland Browns
.
in 1982.
He continued to perform well for the Raiders in the 1983 season, helping lead them to a Super Bowl
victory that year while recording 50 tackles and 7½ sacks. He also had an outstanding 1984 season with 63 tackles and 6 sacks, but the next year his tackle and sack totals dipped to 31 and 3 following a mid-season injury.
Alzado retired at the end of the 1985 season. He attempted a comeback in 1990, but injured a knee during training camp and was released. In 196 career games, he racked up 112.5 sacks, 24 forced fumbles, and nearly 1,000 tackles, while earning Pro Bowl
honors in 1977 and 1978. Following his retirement from playing, Alzado worked as a part-time color analyst for NBC
's NFL coverage in 1988–89.
would later find a "violent, combative player known for his short temper" inspired the league rule against throwing a helmet after having done so himself to an opponent's helmet. Peter Alzado, Lyle's brother, later identified the years of their youth—marked by an absent, alcoholic father and an over-worked mother—as the crucible for Alzado's unremittingly fierce style of play. "That violence that you saw on the field was not real stuff," his brother held. "Lyle used football as a way of expressing his anger at the world and at the way he grew up." Defensive end
Greg Townsend
, a teammate on the Raiders, contended that the savagery for which Alzado became noted represented only part of a "split personality." "Off the field," remembered Townsend, "he was the gentle giant. So caring, so warm, so giving."
Alzado also starred in the sitcom Learning the Ropes
where he played a high school principal whose secret alter ego is a professional wrestler known as "The Masked Maniac." NWA Wrestling
stars Ric Flair
, Ronnie Garvin, Ron Simmons
, The Rock 'n' Roll Express, Jimmy Garvin
and the Road Warriors
appeared on the show.
From Brainyquote.com http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/verified.html
s. In the last years of his life, as he battled against the brain tumor
that eventually caused his death, Alzado asserted that his steroid abuse directly led to his fatal illness. According to some reports, Alzado was using natural growth hormone, harvested from human corpses, as opposed to synthetic growth hormones. However, shortly before his death, Alzado recounted his steroid abuse in an article in Sports Illustrated
,
Alzado died at age forty-three. He is buried at River View Cemetery
in Portland
, Oregon
.
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...
defensive lineman 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...
famous for his intense and intimidating style of play.
He played 15 seasons, splitting his time between the Denver Broncos
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
, 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...
and most famously the Los Angeles Raiders, with whom he won a championship in Super Bowl XVIII
Super Bowl XVIII
Super Bowl XVIII was an American football game played on January 22, 1984, at Tampa Stadium in Tampa, Florida, deciding the National Football League champion following the 1983 regular season. The American Football Conference champion Los Angeles Raiders defeated the National Football Conference...
. Alzado died after a battle with brain cancer in 1992 at the age of 43.
Early life
He was born in Brooklyn, New York, to an Italian-Spanish father and a Jewish mother. When he was 10, the family moved to CedarhurstCedarhurst, New York
Cedarhurst is a village in Nassau County, on the South Shore of Long Island, New York, in the USA. The population was 6,592 at the 2010 United States Census. The village is named after a grove of trees that once stood at the post office....
, Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
. His father, whom Alzado later described as "a drinker and street fighter," left the family during Alzado's sophomore year at Lawrence High School
Lawrence High School (New York)
Lawrence High School is a four-year public high school located in Cedarhurst on Long Island in New York, United States. It is a part of the Lawrence Public Schools, and is the district's only public high school.- Details :...
. He played high school football and was a Vardon Trophy Candidate (defense) in high school for three years.
College
Following his failure to receive even a single college scholarship offer, Alzado played for Kilgore CollegeKilgore College
Kilgore College is a community college located in Kilgore, Texas. It has an annual enrollment of more than 5000 students.The school was established in 1935 at the height of the East Texas oil boom...
, a junior college. After two years, he was asked to leave the team, he later contended, for befriending a black teammate. From Texas, Alzado moved on to Yankton College
Yankton College
Yankton College was a small liberal arts college in Yankton, South Dakota, affiliated with the Congregational Christian Churches .Founded in 1881, it was the first institution of higher learning in the Dakota Territory...
in South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
, a now-defunct school whose campus is currently the site of a federal prison. Though playing in relative obscurity in the NAIA
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics is an athletic association that organizes college and university-level athletic programs. Membership in the NAIA consists of smaller colleges and universities across the United States. The NAIA allows colleges and universities outside the USA...
, Alzado nonetheless gained notice by the NFL when a scout for the Denver Broncos, having been taken off the road by automobile trouble, decided to pass the time by screening film of Montana Tech, one of Yankton's opponents. Impressed by the unknown player squaring off against Montana's offense, the scout passed back a favorable report to his team. The Broncos ultimately drafted Alzado in the fourth round of the 1971 draft. Alzado went back to Yankton after his rookie season to get his college degree. He received a B.A. in physical education with an emphasis in secondary education.
Denver Broncos
When the Broncos' starting right defensive endDefensive end
Defensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...
was injured in 1971, Alzado took over the job and never gave it up. Alzado made various All-rookie teams for his contributions of 60 tackles and 8 sacks. The following year, Alzado began to get national attention as he racked up 10½ sacks to go with his 91 tackles. In 1973, Alzado posted excellent numbers as the Broncos had a winning record for the first time in team history with a 7–5–2 mark.
In 1974, Alzado gained more notice as one publication named him All-AFC, with his 13 sacks and 80 tackles (eight for a loss) he was being recognized with the NFL's top defensive ends, such as Elvin Bethea
Elvin Bethea
Elvin Lamont Bethea is a former American football defensive end who played his entire career with the Houston Oilers...
, Jack Youngblood
Jack Youngblood
Herbert Jackson "Jack" Youngblood, III is a former American college and professional football player who was a defensive end for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League for fourteen seasons during the 1970s and 1980s. He was a five-time consensus All-Pro and a seven-time Pro Bowl...
, L. C. Greenwood
L. C. Greenwood
L.C. Henderson Greenwood is a former American football defensive end for the 1970s Pittsburgh Steelers.-College career:...
, Claude Humphrey
Claude Humphrey
Claude B. Humphrey is a former American football defensive lineman in the National Football League for the Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles.-Professional career:...
, and Carl Eller
Carl Eller
Carl Eller is a former professional American football player in the National Football League who played from 1964 through 1979. He was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and attended the University of Minnesota...
. The Denver Broncos
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
posted their second consecutive winning season, going 7–6–1.
The 1975 season brought change, as Alzado moved to defensive tackle. He responded with 91 tackles and 7 sacks. Alzado took a step backward as did the Broncos with a 6–8 record. On the first play of the 1976 season, Alzado blew out a knee and missed that campaign. The Broncos were 9–5 but SPORT magazine
Sport magazine
SPORT magazine was an American sports magazine. Launched in September 1946 by the New York-based publisher, Macfadden Publications, SPORT pioneered the generous use of color photography – it carried eight full colour plates in its first edition – and almost immediately became half-bible, half-guru...
reported that 12 players, including Alzado, did not think the team could reach the playoffs with coach John Ralston. Ralston was replaced as coach by Red Miller
Red Miller
Robert "Red" Miller is a former professional football coach with the Denver Broncos.- Early life and career :Miller was born and raised in Macomb, Illinois and attended Macomb Public Schools and Western Illinois University, where he was later a star player and coach for the Leathernecks football...
for the 1977 season.
The 1977 season was the most successful in franchise history to that point; the Broncos had one of the NFL's best defenses, went 12–2 and then beat Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
and Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
, the team with which he would later star, in the playoffs to reach Super Bowl XII
Super Bowl XII
Super Bowl XII was an American football game played on January 15, 1978 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana to decide the National Football League champion following the 1977 regular season...
. In that game, played in New Orleans, they were beaten soundly 27–10 by the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
. Still, the year was a big success for Alzado, who was voted consensus All-Pro and consensus All-AFC as well as winning the UPI AFC Defensive Player of the Year.
UPI AFL-AFC Player of the Year
From 1960 to 1969, the United Press International gave the annual AFL Player of the Year award in the American Football League, whose teams in 1970 became the American Football Conference of the new National Football League ....
He also led the Broncos in sacks with 8, while making 80 tackles.
The Broncos again went to the AFC playoffs, losing the first round to the eventual champions Steelers. Alzado had 77 tackles and 9 sacks and recorded his first NFL safety. (Alzado would record two more in his career, which ties him in second place all-time). He was 2nd team All-Pro and a consensus All-AFC pick. In 1979 he had a contract dispute, and the Broncos traded him to 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...
.
Cleveland Browns
Alzado played well with the Browns, making second team All-AFC in 1979 while playing defensive end. He had 80 tackles that year to go with his seven sacks. The following year the Browns won the AFC Central division, losing to the Raiders in the Divisional round. Alzado led the Browns in sacks with nine, and was All-Pro and All-AFC. In 1981 he suffered some injuries, and at times his focus on football was diminished because of problems in his private life. Still, he recorded 83 tackles and led the Browns in sacks with 8½. However, the Browns traded him to the Los Angeles RaidersOakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in 1982.
Los Angeles Raiders
Being discarded by the Browns rekindled a fire in Alzado, and he worked out with a vengeance. In 1982 he was voted the NFL Comeback Player of the Year. Although he played a full season in 1981, his play was seemingly so superior in 1982 that he garnered the award. In the strike-shortened 1982 season of 9 games, Alzado recorded 7 sacks and 30 tackles while being voted All-AFC. This was the sixth season out of his first 12 campaigns that he received some sort of post-season honor.He continued to perform well for the Raiders in the 1983 season, helping lead them to a Super Bowl
Super Bowl XVIII
Super Bowl XVIII was an American football game played on January 22, 1984, at Tampa Stadium in Tampa, Florida, deciding the National Football League champion following the 1983 regular season. The American Football Conference champion Los Angeles Raiders defeated the National Football Conference...
victory that year while recording 50 tackles and 7½ sacks. He also had an outstanding 1984 season with 63 tackles and 6 sacks, but the next year his tackle and sack totals dipped to 31 and 3 following a mid-season injury.
Alzado retired at the end of the 1985 season. He attempted a comeback in 1990, but injured a knee during training camp and was released. In 196 career games, he racked up 112.5 sacks, 24 forced fumbles, and nearly 1,000 tackles, while earning Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
honors in 1977 and 1978. Following his retirement from playing, Alzado worked as a part-time color analyst for NBC
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...
's NFL coverage in 1988–89.
Style of play
Indeed, the man whom ESPNESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
would later find a "violent, combative player known for his short temper" inspired the league rule against throwing a helmet after having done so himself to an opponent's helmet. Peter Alzado, Lyle's brother, later identified the years of their youth—marked by an absent, alcoholic father and an over-worked mother—as the crucible for Alzado's unremittingly fierce style of play. "That violence that you saw on the field was not real stuff," his brother held. "Lyle used football as a way of expressing his anger at the world and at the way he grew up." Defensive end
Defensive end
Defensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...
Greg Townsend
Greg Townsend
Gregory Townsend is a former American football defensive end in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Raiders in the fourth round of the 1983 NFL Draft...
, a teammate on the Raiders, contended that the savagery for which Alzado became noted represented only part of a "split personality." "Off the field," remembered Townsend, "he was the gentle giant. So caring, so warm, so giving."
Outside of football
- Alzado was involved in "countless youth organizations", winning the Byron "Whizzer" White award for community service in 1977.
- Alzado pursued an acting career in both movies and television, appearing mostly in youth-oriented comedy and adventure roles. His most notable film roles include the bully construction worker in Ernest Goes to CampErnest Goes to CampErnest Goes to Camp is a 1987 Touchstone Pictures comedy film directed by John R. Cherry III and starring Jim Varney. It is the second film to feature the character of Ernest P...
and the unstoppable killer in Destroyer. - He appeared in Stop the MadnessStop the Madness"Stop the Madness" is an anti-drug music video uniquely endorsed and supported by United States President Ronald Reagan and the Reagan administration in 1985...
, a 1985 anti-drug music video sponsored by the Reagan administrationReagan AdministrationThe United States presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan administration, was a Republican administration headed by Ronald Reagan from January 20, 1981, to January 20, 1989....
. - He made a guest appearance on The Super Mario Bros. Super Show in 1989.
- He was an amateur boxer, and in 1979 fought an exhibition match against Muhammad AliMuhammad AliMuhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...
. - Alzado appeared in the series premiere of the short-lived 1991 sitcom Good SportsGood SportsGood Sports is an American sitcom that aired on the CBS network in 1991, starring Farrah Fawcett and Ryan O'Neal.-Synopsis:The show features the two main characters, Bobby Tannen, a once-famous former football player gone to seed and Gayle Roberts, an ex-Miss America , as mismatched anchors on an...
with Ryan O'NealRyan O'NealCharles Patrick Ryan O'Neal , better known as Ryan O'Neal, is an American actor best known for his appearances in the ABC nighttime soap opera Peyton Place and for his roles in such films as Paper Moon , Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon , A Bridge Too Far , and Love Story , for which he received...
and Farrah FawcettFarrah FawcettFarrah Fawcett was an American actress and artist. A multiple Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she first appeared as private investigator Jill Munroe in the first season of the television series Charlie's Angels, in 1976...
. - He appeared in an episode of It's Garry Shandling's ShowIt's Garry Shandling's ShowIt's Garry Shandling's Show is an American sitcom which was initially broadcast on Showtime from 1986 to 1990. It was created by Garry Shandling and Alan Zweibel. The show is notable for its frequent use of breaking the fourth wall to allow characters to speak directly to the audience...
.
Alzado also starred in the sitcom Learning the Ropes
Learning the Ropes
Learning the Ropes is a Canadian-produced sitcom that aired on CTV in Canada and in syndication in the United States from September 1988 to March 1989. The series stars Lyle Alzado as Robert Randall, a teacher who works as a professional wrestler in the evening. Although his children knew about...
where he played a high school principal whose secret alter ego is a professional wrestler known as "The Masked Maniac." NWA Wrestling
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
stars Ric Flair
Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world....
, Ronnie Garvin, Ron Simmons
Ron Simmons
Ronald "Ron" Simmons is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and retired American football player. He is recognised as being the first Black world heavyweight champion in professional wrestling and the first of only two African Americans to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship,...
, The Rock 'n' Roll Express, Jimmy Garvin
Jimmy Garvin
James Williams is a retired American professional wrestler. He is best known by his ring name "Gorgeous" Jimmy "Jam" Garvin and as a member of the legendary Fabulous Freebirds....
and the Road Warriors
Road Warriors
The Road Warriors were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Michael "Hawk" Hegstrand and Joseph "Animal" Laurinaitis. They performed under the name "Road Warriors" in the American Wrestling Association, the National Wrestling Alliance, and World Championship Wrestling, and the name Legion...
appeared on the show.
- Quotations:1) I don't really trust a sane person. 2) I never met a man I didn't want to fight.
From Brainyquote.com http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/verified.html
Steroid use and death
Alzado was one of the first major US sports figures to admit to using anabolic steroidAnabolic steroid
Anabolic steroids, technically known as anabolic-androgen steroids or colloquially simply as "steroids", are drugs that mimic the effects of testosterone and dihydrotestosterone in the body. They increase protein synthesis within cells, which results in the buildup of cellular tissue ,...
s. In the last years of his life, as he battled against the brain tumor
Brain tumor
A brain tumor is an intracranial solid neoplasm, a tumor within the brain or the central spinal canal.Brain tumors include all tumors inside the cranium or in the central spinal canal...
that eventually caused his death, Alzado asserted that his steroid abuse directly led to his fatal illness. According to some reports, Alzado was using natural growth hormone, harvested from human corpses, as opposed to synthetic growth hormones. However, shortly before his death, Alzado recounted his steroid abuse in an article in 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...
,
Alzado died at age forty-three. He is buried at River View Cemetery
River View Cemetery (Portland, Oregon)
River View Cemetery in the southwest section of Portland, Oregon, United States, is a non-profit cemetery founded in 1882. It is the final resting place of many prominent and notable citizens of Oregon, including many governors and United States Senators...
in Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
.
See also
- List of notable brain tumor patients
- List of doping cases in sport
- List of select Jewish football players