Ordell Braase
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mitchell, South Dakota, U.S.
Bradenton, Florida, U.S.
.jpg) Braase in 1968 | |||||||||
| No. 81 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Defensive end | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | March 13, 1932 Mitchell, South Dakota, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | March 25, 2019 (aged 87) Bradenton, Florida, U.S. | ||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||
| Listed weight | 245 lb (111 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Mitchell (SD) | ||||||||
| College | South Dakota | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1954: 14th round, 160th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Ordell Wayne Braase (/ˈbreɪsiː/ BRAY-see;[2] March 13, 1932 – March 25, 2019) was an American professional football defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He played with the Baltimore Colts throughout his career. While Braase was with the Colts they won the NFL Championship three times, in 1958, 1959 and 1968. He was a Pro Bowl pick in both 1966 and 1967. In his final season (1968), the Colts went to Super Bowl III, on January 12, 1969, only to lose to the New York Jets.
Braase was born on March 13, 1932, in Mitchell South Dakota.[3] He attended Mitchell High School, where he was an all-state basketball player, and his basketball team won the state Class-A title in 1950.[4][5] Braase was selected to the Class-A All-Tournament team at center by the eight participating coaches.[6]
In March of 1969, Braase announced his retirement from professional football at Mitchell's Corn Palace, during an annual sports banquet. A few years earlier, representatives from Mitchell had honored Braase with "Ordell Braase Day" in neighboring Minnesota, when the Colts were playing a game against the Minnesota Vikings.[7]
College
Braase attended the University of South Dakota on a basketball scholarship. In the 1953-54 basketball season, he led the team averaging 12.4 points and 11.1 rebound per game, and was All-North Central Conference (NCC). He also excelled on the football team, receiving All-NCC honors in both 1953 and 1954.[4]
In 1977, he was inducted into the University of South Dakota Coyote Sports Hall of Fame. Braase was named to both the South Dakota all-time high school and all-time collegiate football teams.[4] He is also a member of the South Dakota Hall of Fame.[8]
Professional career
After playing at South Dakota, the Colts selected Braase in the 14th round of the 1954 NFL draft (160th overall).[9] However, he did not join the team until 1957, delayed by three years of service in the U. S. Army which included a tour of duty in Korea.[10][11][3][8] He joined the Colts in 1957 and played on the Colts for 12 years.[3] From 1957-59, Braase played in every game, splitting time with Don Joyce (who started all but three games at right defensive end during those years).[12][13] From 1960-68, Braase was the Colts starter at right defensive end.[3]
In Braase's second season, he won an NFL title with the Colts in the 1958 NFL Championship Game, a sudden death overtime victory over the New York Giants. It is a game widely considered one of the best in NFL history, often referred to as "The Greatest Game Ever Played".[14] The Colts won again over the Giants in the 1959 NFL Championship Game, 31–16.[15]
In his first two full seasons starting (1960-61), he had 10.5 and 12 quarterback sacks, respectively. He had 80 total sacks between 1960-68, and double-digit sacks five times in those nine years, with a career high 13.5 in 1964 (the Colts losing to the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 NFL Championship game).[3][16]
Braase was considered a fine defensive end, but he played opposite the Colts Hall of fame defensive end Gino Marchetti (one of the top players in NFL history),[17][18] and was typically overshadowed by his hero.[11][19] After Marchetti retired, Braase stepped up and was named to the Pro Bowl in 1966 and 1967.[20][21][11] He was named second-team All Pro both years by the Associated Press (AP), Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), and United Press International (UPI).[22][23]
In his final year, 1968, the Colts won the 1968 NFL Championship game over the Cleveland Browns.[24] Braase played one of his best career games, with three quarterback sacks.[11] The Colts defense held the Browns to 56 yards rushing and 151 passing yards in a 34–0 shutout.[24] The defense set a record that year, allowing only 144 points in 14 games.[19] However, the Colts went on to lose Super Bowl III to the New York Jets, in Braase's last game.[25] The Jets successful offensive strategy was to avoid upcoming young stars at left defensive end, Bubba Smith, and left side linebacker, Mike Curtis; and instead rush 220-pound Matt Snell to the right side of the Colts defense at the nearly 37-year old Braase, and 33-year old linebacker Don Shinnick.[26]
NFL Players Association
From 1964 to 1967, Braase served as president of the NFL Players Association for two terms.[11][10] He was elected as NFLPA president following Pete Retzlaff, who had been a star college football player in South Dakota (South Dakota State University) contemporaneously with Braase.[27][28]