Wednesday, December 30, 2015

1976 Profile: Jim Lee Howell

Director of Player Personnel
"Jim Lee Howell, a towering figure in the past and present of the New York Giants, lends a wealth of experience and football savvy to his position as Director of Player Personnel. It was 39 years ago that Jim Lee arrived on the New York scene, a long-legged rookie end out of the University of Arkansas, and since then he has filled a variety of key roles for the Giants: player, assistant coach, head coach and now, of course, a top-ranking administrator.
Howell's record speaks boldly for itself. During his nine years as a player (1937-42, 1946-48), the Giants posted a mark of 55-37-9 and played in four world championship games (1938-39-41-46). After his playing days, the 6-6 Arkansan served as end coach under Coach Steve Owen from 1949-53 and, when Owen departed after the 1953 campaign, Jim Lee was named head coach.
The winning pattern Howell had established as a player continued during his reign as coach. Over the next seven years, the Giants won 56 games, lost just 36 and tied four, and they made the world championship game three times, beating the Bears in 1956 and losing classic struggles to the Colts in 1958 and 1959."

-1976 New York Giants Media Guide

Monday, December 28, 2015

1976 Profile: Jay Fry

Defensive Line Coach
"The veteran coach joined the Giants in the off-season from Memphis of the WFL, replacing Floyd Peters who moved on the San Francisco 49ers.
The 46-year-old Fry is a native of Hamilton, Ohio and played his college football at Miami of Ohio as a linebacker for three seasons under Woody Hayes. Jay had a brief trial with the Los Angeles Rams before entering the coaching field, initially at Colina High School in Ohio.
He then moved on to Guelph University in Canada as head coach of both football and wrestling for three years before returning to his alma mater as an assistant coach for seven years. In 1963, Jay moved to Yale University for two seasons as line coach, then moved on to Indiana University in 1965 as offensive coordinator.
Jay held that post for five seasons, including a Rose Bowl appearance in 1969, before moving on again- this time to the Canadian Football League where he was both offensive and defensive line coach with Ottawa for four seasons. In 1974, he went to Memphis as line coach and remained there with that powerful club until joining the Giants in January of 1976.
Jay is the holder of a Master's degree from Miami of Ohio."

-1976 New York Giants Media Guide

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

1976 Profile: Marty Schottenheimer

Linebackers Coach
"Marty joined the Giants coaching staff from Portland of the World Football League where he served as linebackers coach, a responsibility he has with New York. The 32-year-old coach is a former NFL linebacker himself, having played the position with both the Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots.
Born in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, Marty starred at Fort Cherry High School there and then went on to become an All-American linebacker at the University of Pittsburgh. He played in the Senior Bowl in his final year at Pitt and was subsequently drafted by both Baltimore of the NFL and Buffalo of the AFL.
The seventh round choice of the Bills, he played four seasons in Buffalo as a linebacker, appearing in both the 1965 and 1966 AFL championship games, and had six career interceptions for 133 yards returned and one touchdown, as well as earning top ratings for his hitting abilities on special teams. He concluded his playing career with the Patriots in 1970 and then went into the real estate development business in both the Miami and Denver areas through 1973 when he returned to pro football with Portland."

-1976 New York Giants Media Guide

Saturday, December 19, 2015

1976 Profile: Allan Webb

Offensive Backfield Coach
"The former Giants defensive back has a diversified background as both player and coach. A Little All-American at Arnold College in Connecticut in 1952 as both a running back and a defensive back, Allan had a tryout with the Los Angeles Rams in 1955 after two years of service in the Navy, then played for the Montreal Alouettes that season in the CFL as a two-way back.
He subsequently played for the Stamford Golden Bears in the minor leagues before getting a tryout with the Giants in 1961. He made the club as a safety and played through the 1965 season. As a safety in the championship years of 1962 and 1963, he won starting roles and had three interceptions in each of those campaigns.
In 1966, he was an assistant coach with the Scranton Miners of the ACFL, then moved on to the Westchester Bulls in that league. He was head coach of the Long Island Bulls in 1971, then became a Giant scout in 1972 and special assistant in 1973.
Born in Washington, D.C., Allan starred in football, baseball and basketball at Ansonia High School in Ansonia, Connecticut before entering Arnold College. He had a brief tryout with baseball's Milwaukee Braves in 1953 before entering the Navy. He resides in Glen Rock, New Jersey."

-1976 New York Giants Media Guide

Thursday, December 17, 2015

1976 Profile: Ed Rutledge

Special Teams Coach
"The veteran coach and scout joined the Giant staff in 1974 after five years with the NFL's CEPO scouting organization and rejoined head coach Arnsparger with whom he had previously worked at both Baltimore and the University of Kentucky. With the Colts from 1966 through 1969, Rutledge served under Don Shula as a linebackers coach as well as being the man who scouted the upcoming opponents. His previous association with Shula and Arnsparger was at the University of Kentucky where Rutledge served for seven years from 1956 through 1962 under Blanton Collier as both freshman coach and varsity offensive backfield coach.
Ed was born in Ironton, Ohio, played his high school football there and went on to Western Kentucky where he lettered in football (as a two-way end), track and swimming. He spent the next six years in the U.S. Navy (1941-47) as a pilot, reaching the rank of Lieutenant Commander with service in the Caribbean and Panama areas.
He entered FBI School after his discharge and was a special agent in the FBI through 1948 at which time he decided to return to football, taking a job as head coach at Danville High School in Kentucky; he also coached in Paducah, Kentucky. After leaving the University of Kentucky in 1965, he initially worked for CEPO as a scout, prior to going to the Colts."

-1976 New York Giants Media Guide

Monday, December 14, 2015

1976 Profile: Ted Plumb

Offensive Backfield Coach
"36-year-old Plumb had been the offensive backfield coach at Kansas University for two seasons where he helped develop All-American David Jaynes.
Ted was an outstanding receiver at Baylor for three seasons, playing in both the Gator Bowl and the Gotham Bowl. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills of the AFL in 1962, but a training camp injury ended his pro playing career before it began and he entered the coaching profession.
Ted first coached at Raymondville High School in Texas, then at Lubbock High School in Lubbock, Texas. He moved on to Cerritos Junior College in California in 1966 and was then named an assistant coach at TCU in 1968. Plumb coached at TCU for three seasons, helping develop Norm Bulaich and Ross Montgomery, then moved on to Tulsa University in 1971 and then to Kansas in 1972.
Ted was born in Reno, Nevada, moved to California as a youngster and starred at Mount Diablo High School in Concord, California in football, basketball and track. He played a year at Mount Diablo Junior College before entering Baylor."

-1976 New York Giants Media Guide

Saturday, December 12, 2015

1976 Profile: Ray Wietecha

Offensive Line Coach
"The highly respected aide returns for his fourth season as offensive line coach and is the only holdover from the previous staff. A No. 12 'future pick' of the Giants in 1950 out of Northwestern, Ray joined the Giants in 1953 after a season of minor league baseball in the Washington Senators' farm system and two years in the Marines as a Captain.
He was a center, linebacker and even defensive back in his rookie year, and then went on to become a star for 10 seasons, winning All-NFL and Pro Bowl honors five times, appearing with five Eastern Division title winners and the NFL championship team of 1956.
Wietecha joined the Los Angeles Rams as an assistant coach in 1963, then moved on to the Green Bay Packers under Vince Lombardi from 1965 through 1970 where he was offensive line and running game coach with the championship Packers of that era. He was a Giant scout in 1971, then became offensive line coach in 1972.
Ray was born in East Chicago, Indiana and starred at Roosevelt High School in that city. At Northwestern, he was an All-Big 10 choice at center, winning three letters in both football and baseball."

-1976 New York Giants Media Guide

Thursday, December 10, 2015

1976 Profile: John Symank

Defensive Secondary Coach
"The 40-year-old Symank, a former defensive back with the Green Bay Packers, brings a fine blend of collegiate and professional coaching with him to the Giants. For three years, John was the head coach at the University of Texas at Arlington and prior to that was the head coach for two years at Northern Arizona University. From 1966 through the 1968 season, Symank was defensive backfield coach for the Atlanta Falcons and prior to his tenure with the Falcons was a defensive coach at both the University of Virginia and at Tulane. He was on the same staff at Tulane as Bill Arnsparger.
John was both a running back and a defensive back at the University of Florida after a transfer from Arlington State Junior College in Texas. He was drafted by the Packers in 1957 and played on championship teams through 1962 before concluding his playing career with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1963.
As a rookie safety in 1957, Symank intercepted nine passes for the Packers to rank second in the NFL that year. The 5-10, 190-pounder was also rated as a rugged tackler.
Born in LaGrange, Texas, John was a football and track star at Caldwell High School in Caldwell, Texas and also earned two letters in track at Florida."

-1976 New York Giants Media Guide

Monday, December 7, 2015

1976 Profile: Hunter Enis

Quarterbacks Coach
"Enis returned to the coaching lines for the final three games of the 1975 season after having left at the end of the 1974 season to return to his family's business interests in Fort Worth, Texas. The 39-year-old former NFL quarterback had been in the real estate and construction business prior to initially joining the staff in 1974. Prior to that period, Hunter had been the offensive backfield coach for the Denver Broncos under Lou Saban from 1967-71.
A 6-2, 195-pounder, Enis was a star quarterback at TCU for three years, winning All-Southwest Conference honors twice and appearing in the Cotton Bowl both of those years. He began his pro career with the Chicago Cardinals of the NFL in 1959, then signed with the Dallas Texans of the AFL in 1960. He was subsequently a quarterback for the San Diego Chargers, Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders in the AFL. Hunter returned to TCU for a Masters degree in 1963, then served as an assistant coach at TCU prior to taking the assistant's job at Denver.
A native of Fort Worth, Enis was a three-sport standout at Polytechnic High School in his hometown before entering TCU. He's a veteran of six years in the Air Force Reserve."

-1976 New York Giants Media Guide