Jim Otto
| Jim Otto | |
|---|---|
 |
|
|
Position (s): Center |
Jersey numbers: 00, 50 |
| born January 5, 1938 in Wausau , Wisconsin | |
| Career information | |
| Active : 1960 - 1974 | |
| College : University of Miami | |
| Teams | |
|
|
| Career statistics | |
| Games | 217 |
| as a starter | 207 |
| Fumble secured | 5 |
| Stats at NFL.com | |
| Stats at pro-football-reference.com | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
|
| Pro Football Hall of Fame | |
James Edwin "Jim" Otto (born January 5, 1938 in Wausau , Wisconsin , USA ) is a former American American football player . He played in the American Football League (AFL) and in the National Football League (NFL) with the Oakland Raiders as a center .
Player career
College career
Jim Otto already played American football in high school . As a center, he was elected to the Wisconsin state selection. From 1957 to 1959 he studied at the University of Miami and played for their football team , the "Miami Hurricanes" as a center and in defense as a linebacker . During his student days, he set the school record for most tackles scored in a career.
Professional career
After completing his studies, no NFL team had any interest in signing him. It was considered too easy. However, Otto had noticed the coach of the Oakland Raiders, who started playing in the newly founded AFL in 1960. James Otto should initially be used as linebacker with the Raiders, but thought himself too vulnerable to injury to be able to take this position. He was able to convince in training as a center and was then used by the Raiders in this position.
The first two years of the game were not very successful for the Raiders. Otto was used as the center by quarterback Tom Flores , but the team could not establish itself as a top team. The team performance was at odds with the performance of Jim Otto, who turned out to be one of the best centers in professional football. In 1963, Al Davis took over as coach and the team's performance increased. In 1967 Daryle Lamonica took over the quarterback position with the team from Oakland . After a season with 13 wins in one defeat, the players around Jim Otto and Daryl Lamonica were able to move into the AFL championship game in the same year. Opponents in the encounter were the Houston Oilers , who could be defeated 40: 7. The victory brought the entry into the AFL-NFL Championship Game, which was later renamed Super Bowl II . The team of John Rauch , who acted as trainer of the Raiders since 1966, had to compete against the Green Bay Packers supervised by Vince Lombardi . The Packers won the Super Bowl 33:14. Rauch also managed to lead the Raiders into the AFL final next year, where they lost to the New York Jets with 27:23.
Even under John Madden , who had replaced John Rauch as coach of the team in 1969, the Raiders remained a top team in the AFL. With the exception of 1971, the team moved regularly into the play-offs in the next rounds , but Otto was no longer able to win the title. The team from California failed four times in the AFL final, and from 1970 in the AFC Championship Game - 1969 to the Kansas City Chiefs 17: 7, 1970 to the Baltimore Colts 27:17 and 1973 with the new starting quarterback Ken Stabler to the Miami Dolphins with 27:10, as well as in Otto's last professional year, 1974, with 24:13 at the Pittsburgh Steelers .
Jim Otto was considered an exceptionally tough player. He suffered 40 injuries during his career. His nose was broken ten times. He was operated on three times on his left knee and six times on his right knee. Still, he never missed a team game. After a knee operation in 1974, Otto decided to end his career after the season.
After the playing career
Jim Otto is married. His daughter died of thrombus in 1997 at the age of 39 . He runs several restaurants for the fast food chain Burger King near Sacramento . Since 1995 he has been working again in the organization of the raiders. In 2002 Jim Otto was diagnosed with prostate cancer .
Honors
Jim Otto played twelve times in the Pro Bowl or in the AFL All-Star Game, the final game of the best players of the season. He was elected All-Pro 13 times . In 1999, The Sporting News magazine voted him 78th on the list of the 100 best football players of all time. Jim Otto is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame , the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame , the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame, and the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame. The Miami Hurricanes honored him in their stadium, the Orange Bowl Stadium , on the "Ring of Honor" .
Web links
- Jim Otto in the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame
- Short biography ( memento from September 12, 2012 in the web archive archive.today )
- Biography (PDF file; 29 kB)
- Jim Otto in the Wisconsin Sports Hall of Fame
- Jim Otto in college
- Jim Otto in the Las Vegas Raiders
Individual evidence
- ↑ Annual statistics of the Raiders 1967
- ↑ Statistics AFL final 1967
- ↑ Statistics Super Bowl II
- ^ Annual statistics of the Raiders 1968
- ↑ Annual statistics of the Raiders 1969
- ^ Annual statistics of the Raiders 1970
- ^ Annual statistics of the Raiders 1973
- ↑ Annual statistics of the Raiders 1974
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Otto, Jim |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Otto, James Edwin |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American football player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 5, 1938 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Wausau , Wisconsin |