1972 Giants Wide Receivers Profiles

BOB GRIM 

Wide Receiver

No. 27

Oregon State

"Perhaps Bob's most crucial catch of the 1971 season came against the Giants on October 31, when he caught a 52-yard touchdown pass from Norm Snead with 1:04 remaining in the game, to give the Vikings a 17-10 triumph.

Bob was a running back and receiver at Oregon State. He was MVP of the Senior Bowl."

-1972 Topps No. 76

RICH HOUSTON

Wide Receiver

No. 84

East Texas State

The Giants are counting on Rich to be a deep receiving target for Randy Johnson and Norm Snead this year. In 1971 he caught 24 passes for 426 yards and a 17.8 average and four touchdowns. Three of those touchdowns came in the Giants' opening day victory over the Packers in Green Bay, including an 81-yard pass from Fran Tarkenton in the third quarter.

At East Texas State, Rich set a school record with a 79-yard touchdown reception.

ROCKY THOMPSON

Wide Receiver-Kickoff Returner

No. 22

West Texas State

"Splash! When New York Giants wide receiver Rocky Thompson departed for his Bermuda home following the 1971 season, he was reminded by the coaches to work on his pass-catching, with emphasis on concentrating on the ball. Thompson felt that a simple pass-and-catch drill with a friend might be interrupted by distractions. It had to be more secluded.

So, Rocky found a small cliff,  overhanging a small Bermuda inlet of the Atlantic Ocean. He tucked a football under one arm, and climbed out on the cliff, about 15 or 20 feet above the ocean blue. He then threw the football out over the water- and jumped off the cliff, trying to catch the ball on the way down. A single splash represented success; two splashes, failure.

'It really was a good way to practice,' claims Thompson. 'The idea was to learn to relax while concentrating on the ball. Hitting the water was something like being tackled, or making an off-balance catch. Sometimes I hit the water pretty hard on my back or stomach, but I learned to hold the ball.' "

-Football Digest, January 1973

ELDRIDGE SMALL

Wide Receiver-Defensive Back

1st Round

Texas A&I

"Eldridge Small, a 6-1, 190 flash out of Texas A&I, is considered by many scouts the outstanding wide receiver from a good crop of wide receivers."

-Bob Billings, Football Digest, January 1972

"Small is a versatile guy who may be shifted by the Giants to wide receiver if they trade away some of their veteran pass catchers. He won Associated Press Little All-America honors and also was on the Coaches All-America team.

Small caught 167 passes in three seasons, and twenty of those catches were good for touchdowns. He was used as a cornerback on defense in passing situations and had five interceptions. Eldridge starred on both offense and defense for the South team in the Senior Bowl."

-John Devaney, The Complete Handbook of Pro Football, 1972 Edition

THOM GATEWOOD

Wide Receiver

5th Round

Notre Dame

"Tom Gatewood, Notre Dame's record setter, has the size, speed and moves to go in the first round."

-Bob Billings, Football Digest , January 1972