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Dave Meggyesy

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Dave Meggyesy
No. 60
Position:Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1941-11-01) November 1, 1941 (age 83)
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Career information
College:Syracuse
NFL draft:1963 / round: 17 / pick: 226
Career history
Career highlights and awards
  • First-team All-East (1962)
Career NFL statistics
Games played:82
High school coaching record:0–11
Stats at Pro Football Reference

David Michael Meggyesy (born November 1, 1941) is a former American football player, author, and union organizer. Meggyesy played college football at Syracuse University, and for the St Louis Cardinals in the National Football League (NFL).[1]

Meggyesy wrote Out of Their League (1970), a controversial memoir about his experiences in football. The book was included in Sports Illustrated Top 100 sports books of all time.[2]

Early life and education

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Meggyesy was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and is of Hungarian descent. His father was a machinist and union organizer. When he was five, his family moved to Glenwillow, Ohio, where he "was, literally, raised on a pig farm next to a dynamite factory."[3] At Solon High School, in Solon, Ohio, he played football and other sports. He attended Syracuse University on an athletic scholarship.[4]

NFL career

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Meggyesy was drafted in the 17th round of the 1963 NFL draft by the St. Louis Cardinals, where he played for seven seasons as a linebacker.

During his early years in the NFL, Meggyesy was a graduate student in sociology at Washington University in St. Louis.[3] He became involved in civil rights and anti-war activities while with the Cardinals.

Meggyesy retired from the game at age 29 and released his book Out Of Their League, which spoke about the "dehumanizing side of the game" and the "incredible violence".

Post-NFL career

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Meggyesy spent four months in 1970 at Jack Scott's Institute for the Study of Sport and Society in Oakland, California, where he wrote his memoir.[5] He was interviewed on the Dick Cavett Show shortly before its publication.[6][7] According to the San Jose Mercury News, the book was "the first critical look at the dehumanizing aspects of pro football."[4] In 1973, Meggyesy was a co-founder of the Esalen Sports Center.[8] After living in Colorado for several years, Meggesey's family returned to California. He began teaching courses at Stanford University, including Sports Consciousness and Social Change, and The Athlete and Society.

In 1980, while still teaching part-time at Stanford, he was hired as head football coach at Tamalpais High School, in Mill Valley, California. His son was one of three seniors on the varsity team, which had gone 2–8 the year before. In 1980, they were 0–11. Meggyesy later said, "We went 0-11, but it was a great experience to see them mature and gain confidence even when we were losing. High school football is football in its purest form. It struck me what a crucible for learning it was."[1]

He was hired by the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) as Western Regional Director. He retired in 2007.

References

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  1. ^ a b Remnick, David (October 5, 1987). "Still On The Outside". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  2. ^ The TOP 100 Sports books of all time. Retrieved 14 August 2024
  3. ^ a b Zirin, David (2005). What's My Name, Fool?: Sports and Resistance in the United States. Haymarket Books.
  4. ^ a b White Jr., Gordon S. (November 4, 1970). "Meggysey says Syracuse paid him and others to play". The Miami News. The New York Times News Service. p. 36. Retrieved December 24, 2020 – via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  5. ^ "Jeremiah of Jock Liberation". Time. May 24, 1971. Archived from the original on December 21, 2008. Retrieved November 11, 2008.
  6. ^ "Dave Meggyesy On How Football Glorifies Violence: The Dick Cavett Show". YouTube.com. August 3, 1970. Retrieved March 21, 2020.
  7. ^ The Dick Cavett Show: Rock Icons (DVD). Los Angeles: Shout! Factory. 2005. 49 minutes in. ISBN 0-7389-2998-0.
  8. ^ "Esalen Initiatives: Sports Psychology". In the Air. Esalen Institute. Archived from the original on July 31, 2012. Retrieved November 11, 2008.

Further reading

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