| No. 18, 14 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Positions | Quarterback •Defensive back | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1942-05-24)May 24, 1942 Plainfield, New Jersey, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | February 12, 2022(2022-02-12) (aged 79) Wenatchee, Washington, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 200 lb (91 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Plainfield (Plainfield, New Jersey) | ||||||||
| College | Penn St. (1961-1963) | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1963: 10th round, 130th overall pick | ||||||||
| AFL draft | 1963: 15th round, 115th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Career NFL/AFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Peter Adrian Liske (/ˈlɪsk/LISK;[1] May 24, 1942 – February 12, 2022) was an American professionalfootballquarterback and later a university athletics administrator.
Liske played hishigh school football inPlainfield, New Jersey, and graduated fromPlainfield High School in 1959.[2] He was good enough to go on to the powerhousePenn State Nittany Lions, and was later (on October 6, 2000) elected to the Plainfield High School Hall of Fame (as wasVic Washington, another football player, who coincidentally played against Liske in theCFL's56th Grey Cup.)
He played forPenn State from 1961 to 1963, quarterbacking winning teams each year. In 1961, he saw limited action (17 for 32 and 216 yards) but was a starter in the other years. In 1962, he completed 91 of 162 passes for 1,037 yards and 12 touchdowns (with four interceptions.) In 1963, he completed 87 of 161 passes for 1,117 yards and ten touchdowns (with five picks.)
Prior to his fifth-year senior season at Penn State, Liske was drafted in 1963 by both American professional football leagues, theNFL andAFL. ThePhiladelphia Eagles picked him in thetenth round, 130th overall, of theNFL draft and theAmerican Football LeagueNew York Titans picked him in the 15th round, 115 overall of theAFL draft. He chose the AFL, and played with the newly renamedNew York Jets.
Liske saw limited playing time in1964 with New York, playing in only four games (only 18 passes). His career took a turn up north, with theToronto Argonauts of theCanadian Football League. Canadian teams of this time were still a very viable career option, as they paid comparable money and offered more playing time. Liske played 11 games with Toronto in 1965.
From 1966 to 1968, he moved to theCalgary Stampeders, where he enjoyed his greatest success as a professional. In 1967, he threw for 4,479 yards, a whopping figure for that era, and 40 touchdowns, the latter breakingTobin Rote's league record of 38 in 1960 for Toronto. His touchdown record lasted untilDoug Flutie surpassed him in 1993. He was named an all-star and won theCFL's Most Outstanding Player Award. In 1968, after a season comprising 4,333 yards passing and 31 touchdowns (though with 28 interceptions), he led his team to the56th Grey Cup, losing a close and exciting game to theOttawa Rough Riders. Liske's passing records were eventually eclipsed byDoug Flutie's in a more wide-open era.
Liske chose to return to the AFL in1969, joining theDenver Broncos and playing seven games with them. In 1970, now in the NFL, he played 11 games with Denver. He moved on to thePhiladelphia Eagles for the 1971 and 1972 seasons, playing 14 games in each season. Unfortunately, he did not enjoy the success he had in the CFL, as none of his teams had a winning season. His combined total American professional record was: 50 games over five seasons, with 396 of 778 passes completed, for 5170 yards and 30 touchdowns with 46 interceptions.
Canada beckoned once again, and in 1973 he rejoined the Stampeders. He remained in Calgary until part way through the 1974 season, when he joined theBritish Columbia Lions. In Calgary for a second time around, he did not enjoy the same success, throwing more interceptions than touchdowns in 1973 and 1974. In 1975, his last season, still with the Lions, he completed 152 of 280 passes for 2310 yards and 13 touchdowns with 9 picks.
In 2002 Liske's number 14 was added to theCalgary Stampeders' Wall of Fame. He was agame official in the NFL from 1983 through 1988, aback judge wearing uniform number 21.
Liske left the private sector in 1985 for theUniversity of Washington inSeattle, where he started as an associate athletic director, with a focus on fundraising and promotions.[3] He became the athletic director at theUniversity of Idaho inMoscow in 1992, and moved to theUniversity of Toledo in 1996.[4][5] In late 2001, Liske returned to his alma mater,Penn State, where he was appointed director of major gifts for intercollegiate athletics, with special emphasis on developing funding for the improvement of athletic facilities.[6]
Liske died on February 12, 2022, in Wenatchee, Washington, due to Alzheimer's disease.[7]