Ralph Hawkins (American football)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ralph Hawkins (May 4, 1935 – September 9, 2004)[1] was an American football coach. He worked 35 years in the National Football League (NFL) for nine teams.[2] In addition to a long career as a college coach, Hawkins coached some of the top defensive units in the NFL.
Hawkins played at St. John's High School in Washington, D.C., winning Catholic league championships in baseball, basketball and football. During the '52-'53 school year, Hawkins was 1st team POST All Met in both Football and Basketball. After high school Hawkins attended the University of Maryland on a football scholarship, where he played quarterback, running back and defensive back.[3] Hawkins played in the 1955 Orange Bowl, and later graduated with a degree in physical education.
College coaching
Hawkins had a brief playing stint with the New York Titans before becoming head coach of football and an assistant basketball coach at Bishop Denis J. O'Connell High School in Arlington, Virginia in 1958. In June, 1959, he was replaced as head football coach by his St John's and Maryland teammate Bob Rusevlyan to return to the University of Maryland to complete his studies and help coach the Freshman football team. Hawkins served as graduate assistant at the University of Maryland, and went on to coach at several colleges: Southern Methodist University, U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the University of Kentucky and the University of Cincinnati.