Paul Christman
refer to caption
Christman, circa 1950
No. 15, 44, 28
Position:Quarterback
Personal information
Born:(1918-03-05)March 5, 1918
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Died:March 2, 1970(1970-03-02) (aged 51)
Lake Forest, Illinois, U.S.
Career information
High school:Maplewood-Richmond Heights
(Maplewood, Missouri)
College:Missouri (1938–1940)
NFL Draft:1941 / Round: 2 / Pick: 13
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Passing attempts:1,140
Passing completions:504
Completion percentage:44.2%
TD–INT:58–76
Passing yards:7,294
Passer rating:54.8
Rushing touchdowns:8
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Paul Joseph Christman[1] (March 5, 1918 – March 2, 1970) was an American football quarterback. He played college football for the Missouri Tigers and professionally for the Chicago Cardinals and the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted in the second round of the 1941 NFL Draft by the Cardinals.[2] He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1956.

Collegiate career

A St. Louis native, Christman led the Missouri Tigers to a 20–8 record during his three seasons (1938–40) as their starting quarterback. He was a two-time All-American, and led the nation in touchdown passes in 1940. Christman was Missouri's all-time leading passer until 1976, when he was surpassed by Steve Pisarkiewicz. While at Mizzou, he was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity. His jersey number, 44, is one of seven retired by the school. In 1956, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

NFL career

Christman played six seasons in the National Football League, from 1945 to 1950. He was a member of the so-called "Dream Backfield", which led the Chicago Cardinals to victory in the 1947 NFL Championship Game. A notoriously poor ball-handler, at one time he owned the record for most fumbles in a game (five) and most own fumbles recovered in a season (eight).

Broadcasting career

After retiring as a player, Christman worked as a television color commentator, first-teaming with play-by-play announcer Joe Boland to call Cardinals games for CBS in 1958 and 1959. In 1960 and 1961, he called college football games for ABC Sports alongside Curt Gowdy. In 1962, he began calling American Football League games on ABC with Gowdy, a pairing that continued after AFL rights shifted to NBC in 1965. Christman called Super Bowl I with Gowdy for NBC in January 1967. In 1968–69 he returned to CBS, teaming with Ray Scott on NFL broadcasts.

Christman also called the collegiate Orange Bowl game for several years, teaming with Boland (1960), Scott (1961), and Gowdy (1962–67). He and Gowdy then called the Rose Bowl game in 1968.

Personal

Christman's daughter is noted Scientology critic Tory Christman. His older brother was Major League Baseball infielder Mark Christman (1913–1976).

Death

Christman died three days shy of his 52nd birthday in 1970 in Lake Forest, Illinois, from a heart attack. He had a history of heart trouble and was admitted to the hospital, where he died less than two days later.[3][4] Christman was buried at All Saints Cemetery in Des Plaines, and was survived by his wife Inez and three adult children.

References

  1. ↑ "Paul Christman Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  2. ↑ "1941 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 31, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Heart attack kills Paul Christman, top player and announcer". Milwaukee Journal. press dispatches. March 3, 1970. p. 10, part 2.
  4. ↑ "Sports commentator Paul Christman dies". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. March 3, 1970. p. 17.
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