Herb Rich
Born:(1928-10-07)October 7, 1928
Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
Died:March 28, 2008(2008-03-28) (aged 79)
Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Career information
Position(s)Safety
CollegeVanderbilt
NFL draft1950 / Round: 6 / Pick: 67
Career history
As player
1950Baltimore Colts
1951–1953Los Angeles Rams
1954–1956New York Giants
Career stats

Richard Herbert Rich (October 7, 1928 – March 28, 2008) was an All-Pro American football safety in the National Football League (NFL) for the Baltimore Colts, Los Angeles Rams and New York Giants.[1]

Early and personal life

Rich was born in Newark, New Jersey, and was Jewish.[2][3] He graduated from Miami Beach High School in Florida.[3]

He was married to the former Carla Blocker, and they had a son, Jonathan, and two daughters, Terry and Tracey.[3] The family lived in Nashville, Tennessee.[4]

College

He played college football at Vanderbilt University, as well as basketball and baseball, and was president of his class.[5][3] In football, he earned All-SEC honors at tailback, rushing for 1,282 yards during the 1948–49 seasons.[3]

Professional career

Rich was drafted in the sixth round of the 1950 NFL Draft, and played defensive back and returned punts during his career.[3] In his rookie season he averaged 23 yards on 12 punt returns, an NFL record that stood for over 50 years.[3][6][7][8] He was a two-time All-Pro defensive back.[3]

In 65 career games, he had 29 career interceptions, including three for touchdowns.[3] In 1992, he was elected to the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame. Rich also became Vanderbilt's seventh "SEC Football Legend".[3]

After football

Rich was a 1954 graduate of Vanderbilt Law School.[3] After his football career ended, Rich was an attorney in Nashville.[5] He was president of the Nashville Jewish Community Center in 1971-72, and was a board member of Temple Ohabai Sholom in Nashville.[3]

Rich died at 79 years of age in 2008.[5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Herb Rich, former NFL star, dies at 79". Nfl.com. November 18, 2008. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  2. ↑ Wechsler, Bob (2008). Day by day in Jewish sports history. ISBN 9781602800137. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "Vanderbilt Official Athletic Site - Vanderbilt University". Archived from the original on 2018-04-23. Retrieved 2018-04-22.
  4. ↑ Herb Rich, NFL star, lawyer – The Mercury News
  5. 1 2 3 Dorman, Lee (2010). Nashville's Jewish Community. ISBN 9780738566801. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  6. ↑ Patterson, Ted (2000). Football in Baltimore: history and memorabilia. ISBN 9780801864247. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  7. ↑ Get Your Own Damn Beer, I'm Watching the Game!: A Woman's Guide to Loving Pro Football. Rodale. 2005. ISBN 9781594861635. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
  8. ↑ NFL Football Top 10. DK Pub. 2002. ISBN 9780789488411. Retrieved January 12, 2011.


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