Frank Budd

Frank Budd
No. 20
Date of birth: July 20, 1939
Place of birth: Long Branch, New Jersey
Date of death: April 29, 2014 (aged 74)
Place of death: Marlton, New Jersey
Career information
Position(s): Wide receiver / Return specialist
Height: 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight: 175 lb (79 kg)
College: Villanova
NFL Draft: 1962 / Round: 7 / Pick: 96
Organizations
As player:
1962
1963		 Philadelphia Eagles
Washington Redskins
Career highlights and awards
Records: 100 yard dash[1]
Career stats
Receptions 10
Receiving yards 236
Receiving TDs 1
Playing stats at NFL.com

Francis Joseph "Frank" Budd (July 20, 1939 – April 29, 2014) was an American football wide receiver in the National Football League for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Redskins. Budd was an Olympic athlete who competed in the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, where he finished fifth in the finals of the 100 meter event and was part of the team that finished first in the 4x100-meter relay before being disqualified on a baton pass. He set the world record in the 100-yard dash with a time of 9.2 seconds in 1961, breaking the record that had been set by Mel Patton in 1948.[1]

Early life

Born in Long Branch, New Jersey, Budd played high school football at Asbury Park High School in Asbury Park.[2]

He ran track at Villanova University but never played a down of college football. At Villanova he was coached by their legendary track coach James 'Jumbo' Elliott.

Amazingly. Budd achieved his success despite a deformed right calf, the legacy of a childhood disease, possibly polio.[3]

Track Career

Budd was considered the world's best 100 y/m sprinter in 1961. That year he was to equal the world record for 100 y at 9.3 s, set a new world record at 9.2 s for that distance, and was a member of a team that set a world record in the 4x100 m relay of 39.1 s.[4]

The next year, 1962, he equaled the world record for 200 m/220 y on a straight track of 20.0 s.[4]

1960 Rome Olympics

Budd had finished second behind Ray Norton in the United States Olympic trials at 100 m in a closely fought contest between the first four finishers, all recording the same time of 10.4 s. At the Olympics themselves, Budd was to finish fifth in the final with perhaps his inexperience at major championships telling against him.[5]

Budd was to experience further disappointment in the 4x100 m relay. The United States team (of Budd-Norton-Stone Johnson-Dave Sime) finished first in a world record time of 39.4 s but were disqualified because the at the first exchange from Budd to Norton, Norton started too early and the exchange happened outside the changeover box. The West German team who finished second in 39.5 s received the gold medals and became the new world record holders.

World Records

In 1961, Budd was to equal twice the then world record for 100 y of 9.3 s:[6]

This record had stood since 1948 having first been set by Mel Patton and subsequently equaled by 12 other athletes.

Then on the 24 June 1961, Budd became the first man to run the 100 y in 9.2 s. He was competing in the AAU Championships at Downing Stadium in New York City.[7]

Further to this, on 15 July 1961, in a dual USA-USSR meet, Budd was a member of team that set a new world record for the 4x100 m relay of 39.1 s.[8]

The next year, 1962, he equaled the world record for 200 m/220 y on a straight track of 20.0 s. It is claimed that Budd, feeing a twinge in a muscle, was easing-up the last 70 m.[9]

Rankings

Budd was ranked among the best in the USA and the world in both the 100 and 200 m sprint events during the period 1960-62, according to the votes of the experts of Track and Field News.[10][11][12][13]

100 meters
Year World rank US rank
1960 9th 4th
1961 1st 1st
1962 4th 2nd
200 meters
Year World rank US rank
1960 - -
1961 5th 1st
1962 7th 2nd

USA Championships

Budd achieved notable success at the AAU championships, the USA national championships.[14]

USA Championships
Year 100y 220y
1960 4th -
1961 1st 3rd


American football career

Budd was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the seventh round of the 1962 NFL Draft and played for the Eagles in 1962 as a wide receiver. He played for the Washington Redskins in 1963 before switching to the Canadian Football League, where he played for the Calgary Stampeders.[15]

Budd had both sporting and financial reasons for giving up the chance of further glory on the track for the possibility of glory and wealth on the football field; as his wife, Barbera, has stated, "...you've got to remember that Frank loved football, too,....He didn't think it was a mistake at all. There was no money available then in track. He'd been a terrific player at Asbury Park, and he thought, with all his speed (despite no college football experience), he'd have a long career in the NFL.".[16]

Accolades and Awards

In 1995, Budd was one of the seven former Villanova athletes chosen to be a member of the first induction class of the Villanova Wall of Fame.[17]

Later life

Budd has been reported to have worked in later life for the New Jersey Department of Corrections and retired in 2002.[18][19]

A resident of Mount Laurel, New Jersey, Budd died on April 29, 2014, in the Marlton section of Evesham Township, New Jersey. He was 74.[15]

See also

Frank Budd, Sportsreference.com, http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/bu/frank-budd-1.html

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Published in The New York Times, June 25, 1961, 73rd NATIONAL A.A.U. Track & Field Championships Of The U.S.A. at John J. Downing Memorial Stadium
  2. ↑ Frank Budd profile, database Football. Accessed June 4, 2007.
  3. ↑ http://articles.philly.com/2014-05-06/news/49636874_1_world-record-apache-indian-sports-illustrated Frank Budd, 74, the "world's fastest human" in 1961, John F. Morrison, phillynews.com, May 6, 2014. Accessed July 13, 2014.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Progression of IAAF World Records 2011 Edition, Editor Imre Matrahazi, IAAF Athletics, p 460.
  5. ↑ http://www.usatf.org/statistics/champions/OlympicTrials/HistoryOfTheOlympicTrials.pdf The History of the United States Olympic Trials - Track & Field, R Hymans, USA Track & Field, 2008
  6. ↑ Progression of IAAF World Records 2011 Edition, Editor Imre Matrahazi, IAAF Athletics, p 16.
  7. ↑ Roy Terrell (July 3, 1961). "Record Dash en Route To Moscow". Sports Illustrated.
  8. ↑ Roy Terrell (July 24, 1961). "The High Meet The Mighty". Sports Illustrated.
  9. ↑ Progression of IAAF World Records 2011 Edition, Editor Imre Matrahazi, IAAF Athletics, p 38.
  10. ↑ "World Rankings Index--Men's 100 meters" (PDF). Track and Field News.
  11. ↑ "U.S. Rankings Index--Men's 100 meters" (PDF). Track and Field News.
  12. ↑ "World Rankings Index--Men's 200 meters" (PDF). Track and Field News.
  13. ↑ "U.S. Rankings Index--Men's 200 meters" (PDF). Track and Field News.
  14. ↑ http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/index.php/archivemenu/33-archive/1976-a-history-of-the-usa-championships A History Of The Results Of The National Track & Field Championships Of The USA From 1876 Through 2003, Track and Field News, Retrieved 5 July 2014.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Litsky, Frank. "Frank Budd, Once Known as World’s Fastest Human, Dies at 74", The New York Times, May 1, 2014. Accessed May 30, 2014.
  16. ↑ Elliot Denman (May 6, 2014). "A tribute to Frank Budd". runblogrun.com.
  17. ↑ "Villanova Legend Frank Budd Passes Away". Villanova Athletics. April 20, 2014.
  18. ↑ "‘World’s Fastest Human,’ a Former NJDOC Employee, Dies at Age 74" (PDF). Spring 2014 Newsletter. NJDOC. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
  19. ↑ http://espn.go.com/olympics/trackandfield/story/_/id/10872319/former-100-yard-dash-record-holder-frank-budd-dies "Sprinter Frank Budd dies", Associated Press, May 2, 2014.