Bobby Kuntz |
|
| Date of birth: | January 10, 1932 |
| Place of birth: | Detroit, Michigan |
| Date of death: | February 7, 2011 (aged 79) |
| Place of death: | Waterloo, Ontario |
| Career information | |
|---|---|
| Status: | Retired |
| CFL status: | Non-import |
| Position(s): | LB |
| University: | McMaster University |
| Organizations | |
| As player: | |
| 1956-1961 1962-1966 |
Toronto Argonauts Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| CFL All-Star: | 1964 |
| Awards: | 1957, 1961 - Lew Hayman Trophy |
Robert John "Bobby" Kuntz Sr. (January 10, 1932[1] – February 7, 2011), was a former professional Canadian football linebacker who played eleven seasons in the Canadian Football League for the Toronto Argonauts and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. He was a part of the Tiger-Cats 1963 and 1965 Grey Cup winning teams.
Kuntz's football career began [2] when he moved from Cleveland to Kitchener, Ontario. He was discouraged by football coaches in Cleveland, but at St. Jerome's High School he found Clem Faust, a coach willing to support his desire to play. After playing for McMaster University in Hamilton, and a senior football team in Ontario, he was signed by the Argonauts in 1955 to play his first full season in the CFL. Ten years later, his older brother David died and he was forced with a difficult decision: to return home to join the family electroplating business, or to continue playing football. His decision to return home was short-lived, after only a few months he was coaxed out of retirement by Jim Trimble, coach of the Argo's main rival, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
During his time in the CFL, Bobby was a fan favourite, particularly in his home town of Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario. Upon his return home after retirement, and rejoining the family business, he become heavily involved in the community.[3] Bobby was a founding member of St. Francis Assisi Parish, and involved with St. Mary’s General Hospital Foundation, Mosaic Counselling and Family Services, the United Way, the Congregation of the Resurrection and St. Jerome’s University.
Kuntz was the co-owner of the family's surface finishing company Kuntz Electroplating. He was involved with the business from his retirement in 1966 from football until shortly before his death along with his brother Paul who predeceased him in early 2011.[4] Bobby was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2000, and lived in nursing homes in the last years of his life.[5]
On February 7, 2011, Kuntz died due to complications from Parkinson's disease at the age of 79 in Waterloo, Ontario, surrounded by his wife and children.[6]