Raymond Berry
| Raymond Berry | |
|---|---|
|
Position (s): Wide Receiver |
Jersey number (s): 82 |
| born February 27, 1933 in Corpus Christi , Texas | |
| Career information | |
| Active : 1955 - 1967 | |
| NFL Draft : 1954 / Round: 20 / Pick: 232 | |
| College : Southern Methodist (SMU) | |
| Teams | |
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as a player
as assistant trainer and head coach
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| Career statistics | |
| Games | 154 |
| Gaining space through passing play | 9,275 yards |
| Touchdowns | 68 |
| Stats at NFL.com | |
| Stats at pro-football-reference.com | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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| Pro Football Hall of Fame | |
Raymond Emmett Berry (* 27. February 1933 in Corpus Christi , Texas ) is a former American American football poker players and - coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a wide receiver with the Baltimore Colts , with whom he won two NFL championships , and was head coach of the New England Patriots , with whom he reached Super Bowl XX . Berry is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame .
youth
Raymond Berry attended from 1946 to 1950 in Paris , Texas , the High School . In the football team there, trained by his father Raymond, he played as the end and was responsible for announcing the moves. The passing game was not very pronounced in American football at that time and Berry caught only 33 passes during his school days and could only achieve one touchdown .
player
college
After a year of preparation at Schreiner College , Raymond Berry studied from 1951 to 1954 at Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas . There he was Forrest Gregg's teammate . In 1951 he did not get any time with the "Southern Methodist University Mustangs" and a year later he got only 50 minutes of playing time during the season and caught only five passes. 1953 Berry played both in defense and in the offense of the team and was able to achieve eleven passes . Nevertheless, he was considered a leader in his team and was elected deputy team captain in 1954. In 1954 he caught 16 passes and was elected to the league selection. In the same year he was voted All-American for his academic achievements . Berry was nearsighted and later became the first professional player to wear contact lenses. He also had a chronic back problem, which forced him to wear special body protection. It was all the more astonishing that Raymond Berry became one of the best wide receivers in NFL history.
NFL
Raymond Berry was selected in the 20th round in the 1955 NFL Draft in 232 place by the Baltimore Colts. The late commitment initially gave Berry no hope of a long professional career. The Colts coach was Weeb Ewbank , who succeeded in the course of the next few years from young, success-hungry players such as fullback Alan Ameche , halfback Lenny Moore or offensive line player Jim Parker , as well as veteran professionals such as defensive end Gino Marchetti or the Defensive Tackle Art Donovan to form a top team.
Ray Berry initially had difficulties finding his way in the team and was about to be released after the first season. He only caught 13 balls and gained 205 yards. Ewbank stuck to Berry and in 1956 the Colts signed quarterback Johnny Unitas , which turned out to be a stroke of luck for Berry, but also for his team. Unitas succeeded in staging Berry again and again over the next few years. 1956 Berry was able to achieve his first touchdown as a professional. In 1958, Berry won his first NFL title. The Colts qualified for the 1958 NFL Championship Game and competed in that game against the New York Giants . Berry played brilliantly. He caught passes to a space gain of 178 yards and was able to score a touchdown. The game was balanced for a long time. The Baltimore team equalized only a few seconds before the end of the game . Alan Ameche scored the decisive touchdown in overtime and the Colts won 23:17. The game is still considered by many football fans to be the best football game of all time.
In 1959 Berry was able to win his second title. Again the Giants were the opponents in the NFL final. They had to admit defeat again, this time with 31:16. In this game, too, Unitas was able to put his teammates in the limelight. Berry caught five of his passes and gained 68 yards.
In 1963, Don Shula took over as coach with the Colts. He led the team to their third NFL final the following year. This time, however, the Cleveland Browns proved to be superior and won 27-0. Also in 1965 the Colts could not win the final and lost against the Green Bay Packers trained by Vince Lombardi with 13:10.
Disabled by numerous injuries, Raymond Berry had to end his career after the 1967 season. Berry set numerous NFL annual bests. He scored the most touchdowns in 1958 and 1959 and in 1960 with 1298 yards the highest gain of space of the season. During his season in Baltimore, Berry only caused a fumble .
Trainer
After his professional career, Raymond Berry was first assistant coach of Tom Landry at the Dallas Cowboys in 1968 . He was responsible for training the wide receivers. In 1968 and 1969 he was able to qualify with the team for the play-offs .
In 1976 and 1977 he was after a three-year stint at the University of Arkansas and the Detroit Lions for two years assistant to his former teammate Forrest Gregg with the Cleveland Browns .
From 1978 to 1981 he worked as an assistant coach with the New England Patriots . Due to a bad season in 1981 , the entire coaching staff was dismissed. 1984 Berry returned mid-season as head coach to the Patriots and just failed to get into the play-offs. The following year he managed to win the AFC Championship Games . There the Patriots were able to prevail against the Miami Dolphins , who were supervised by Berry's old coach Don Shula, with 31:14, which meant the move into the Super Bowl . The Super Bowl XX was clearly lost against the Chicago Bears trained by Mike Ditka with 46:10. Nevertheless, numerous Patriots players, such as Irving Fryar or Andre Tippett, played in the Pro Bowl after this season . 1986 Berry failed with his team early in the play-offs at the Denver Broncos . After a disappointing season in 1989, Berry was fired by the Patriots.
In 1991, Raymond Berry was hired by the Detroit Lions as an assistant coach . He was in charge in Detroit , the quarterback of the team. Again he moved in 1991 with a team in the play-offs. However, he was denied a title win. Before the 1992 season, Berry moved in the same role to the Denver Broncos , where he was responsible for looking after John Elway .
Honors
Raymond Berry was elected six times to the Pro Bowl and six times to the All-Pro . He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team , the NFL 1950s All-Decade Team , the Southern Methodist University Athletics Hall of Fame, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame . His shirt numbers are no longer assigned to the Colts and Mustangs. In 1985, Berry was named NFL Coach of the Year . The Sporting News magazine named him one of the Top 100 Football Players of All Time. The Baltimore Ravens honor him on the Ring of Honor .
Off the field
Raymond Berry served in the Maryland National Guard from 1957 to 1963 . He is married with two daughters and one son. The family lives in Murfreesboro , Tennessee .
Web links
- Raymond Berry website
- Short biography ( memento from January 25, 2013 in the web archive archive.today )
- Coach statistics
- Raymond Berry at college
Individual evidence
- ↑ Annual statistics of the Colts 1958
- ↑ NFL final 1958 statistics
- ↑ History of the Game in the Chicago Tribune
- ↑ Annual statistics of the Colts 1959
- ↑ NFL final 1959 statistics
- ^ Annual statistics of the Colts 1964
- ↑ 1964 NFL Final Statistics
- ^ Annual statistics of the Colts 1965
- ^ NFL final 1965 statistics
- ^ Annual statistics of cowboys 1968
- ↑ Annual statistics of the cowboys 1969
- ↑ Annual statistics of the Patriots 1985
- ^ AFC final 1985 statistics
- ↑ Super Bowl XX statistics
- ↑ Newspaper report on Berry's engagement
- ↑ Lions annual statistics for 1991
- ↑ Berry signed with the Broncos
- ↑ Berry at number 40 on the list of the 100 best football players of all time ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Berry, Raymond |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Berry, Raymond Emmett (real name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American football player and coach |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 27, 1933 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Corpus Christi , Texas |