| No. 55, 44, 67 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Guard | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born | (1917-03-10)March 10, 1917 San Antonio, Texas, U.S. | ||||||
| Died | October 26, 1991(1991-10-26) (aged 74) Aransas Pass, Texas, U.S. | ||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||
| Listed weight | 219 lb (99 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school | Rockport-Fulton (Rockport, Texas) | ||||||
| College | SMU | ||||||
| NFL draft | 1939: 17th round, 160th overall pick | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
Playing | |||||||
Coaching | |||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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Jack Sanders (March 10, 1917 – October 26, 1991)[1] was an American professionalfootballguard who played for four seasons in theNational Football League (NFL). After playingcollege football forSMU, he was drafted by theNew York Giants in the 17th round of the1939 NFL draft.[2] He played for thePittsburgh Steelers from 1940 to 1942, before enlisting in theUnited States Marine Corps duringWorld War II.[3] He fought in theBattle of Iwo Jima as afirst lieutenant in March 1945, and had part of his left arm amputated due to injuries sustained from an explosion while testing underwater demolitions.[4] On August 17, 1945, he signed a contract with thePhiladelphia Eagles, and became the first World War II disabled veteran to sign an NFL contract.[5] He played in three games for the Eagles in 1945.[6] In the first game of the season, against theGreen Bay Packers, theUnited States Armed Forces paid to send 22,000 amputees to the game to watch Sanders play.[4]
Sanders became the line coach for theTrinity University football team in 1946, but the school did not field a team that season due to budgetary limitations.[7] On October 10, 1947, he was named temporary head coach of the team to allow previous head coach and athletic director Bob Coe to spend more time overseeing the entire athletic department.[8] Sanders resigned as head coach on January 4, 1949, and accepted a position as an assistant superintendent of a construction company.[9]
On August 29, 1966, Sanders announced his application to the NFL in a bid to be awarded the ownership of an expansionNew Orleans franchise as the 16th NFL team. He said that if the New Orleans franchise were selected and awarded to him, he would enlist 30,000 minority owners and own 52% of the team himself. He was advised by formerChicago Cardinals,Detroit Lions, andPittsburgh Steelers head coachBuddy Parker.[10] On November 1, 1966, the NFL awarded the 16th franchise to New Orleans.[11] William G. Helis Jr.,Herman Lay,John W. Mecom Jr., Louis J. Roussel Jr., Sanders, andEdgar B. Stern Jr. were the six bidders for the franchise.[12] TheNew Orleans franchise was awarded to Mecom on December 15, 1966, with his winning bid of $8.5 million.[13]
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trinity Tigers(Lone Star Conference)(1947–1948) | |||||||||
| 1947 | Trinity | 4–2–1[n 1] | 2–1–1[n 1] | 4th | |||||
| 1948 | Trinity | 6–2–2 | 2–2–2 | T–4th | |||||
| Trinity: | 10–4–3 | 4–3–3 | |||||||
| Total: | 10–4–3 | ||||||||