| Date of birth: | March 9, 1945 |
| Place of birth: | Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Career information | |
|---|---|
| Position(s): | Punter |
| College: | Tennessee |
| NFL Draft: | 1967 / Round: 4 / Pick: 81 |
| Organizations | |
| As player: | |
| 1968-1971 1972-1973 |
Dallas Cowboys Green Bay Packers |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Pro Bowls: | 1 |
| Playing stats at DatabaseFootball.com | |
George Ronald "Ron" Widby (born March 9, 1945) is a retired American basketball and football player. Widby was the last four-sport letterman at the University of Tennessee to date, becoming an All-America in football and basketball and also earning one letter in both baseball and golf.[1] In his two best sports, he was the nation's leading punter in football and an All-America basketball wing.
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From his childhood in Knoxville, Widby showed tremendous athletic promise. One retired Knoxville sportswriter, Marvin West, recalled for a 2011 story on Widby that "he was good for his age. Every step of the way in his career, he was smooth for his age." Widby himself would recall, "I grew up with the idea I was going to win a scholarship to the University of Tennessee." He did just that, signing with Tennessee after starring as a quarterback, safety, and punter at Fulton High School in Knoxville. However, near the end of his senior football season at Fulton, he broke his arm and shoulder. Widby recovered well enough to have a strong senior basketball season.[1]
When arriving at his hometown university, Widby initially decided to concentrate on basketball due to his high school injury. Even though he did not attend spring or fall practice with the freshman football team—at the time, freshmen were not allowed to play NCAA varsity sports—the football team kept him on scholarship in hopes he would change his mind. As it turned out, the football coaching staff went to head basketball coach Ray Mears, telling him they needed a punter. Mears had no problem with Widby playing that position, and as Widby himself recalled in 2011, "I always enjoyed punting a football." He also played on the freshman team in another of his high school sports, baseball, hitting nearly .400.[1]
The following year (1964–65), he had won starting positions in both football and basketball. He also hit nearly .300 in what would be his only varsity baseball season, but felt bored by that sport. He then met Tennessee's golf coach, who upon finding out that Widby had also been on Fulton's varsity golf team invited him to try out for the team. Widby would go on to earn a letter in golf in his junior year.[1]
Sportswriter Ron Higgins would say in 2011, "Few athletes in SEC history enjoyed a better senior year in 1966-67 than Ron in both football and basketball." In football, he led the nation in punting average at 43.8 yards, while in basketball, he averaged 22.1 points and 8.7 rebounds while leading the Volunteers to a conference title. He was named a first-team All-American in both sports, and was also the SEC's basketball Player of the Year. He also thought about continuing with golf, but decided against it because it interfered with NFL contract negotiations.[1]
Widby was selected in three professional drafts in two sports. The New Orleans Saints selected him in the fourth round of the 1967 NFL Draft.[1] In the same year, he was chosen by the New Orleans Buccaneers in the ABA Draft and was selected in the 12th round of the NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls. After failing to make the Saints' regular roster,[1] he signed with the Buccaneers, playing with that team during the 1967-68 American Basketball Association season.[2][3]
Widby then had a six-year career in the National Football League from 1968 to 1973 as a punter. He played in Super Bowl V and Super Bowl VI as a member of the Dallas Cowboys, and was selected to the Pro Bowl after the 1971 season. After his Pro Bowl season, he was traded to the Green Bay Packers, where he played two seasons before suffering a ruptured spinal disc in a freak accident, which ended his career.[1]
He later became a club pro at a country club in Texas, and once he turned 50, he entered the qualifying school for the Senior PGA Tour twice, just missing out on his second attempt. As of 2011, he is now semi-retired and living in Wichita Falls, Texas.[1]
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