E. J. Holub
No. 55 | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position: | Linebacker, Center | ||||||
Personal information | |||||||
Born: | Schulenburg, Texas, U.S. | January 5, 1938||||||
Died: | September 21, 2019 | (aged 81)||||||
Height: | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||
Weight: | 236 lb (107 kg) | ||||||
Career information | |||||||
High school: | Lubbock (TX) | ||||||
College: | Texas Tech | ||||||
NFL draft: | 1961 / Round: 2 / Pick: 16 | ||||||
AFL draft: | 1961 / Round: 1 / Pick: 6 | ||||||
Career history | |||||||
| |||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||
| |||||||
Career NFL statistics | |||||||
| |||||||
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR | |||||||
Emil Joseph Holub (January 5, 1938 – September 21, 2019) was an
Early years
E.J. Holub graduated from
He accepted a football scholarship from Texas Technological College, where he was a two-way player and was nicknamed "The Beast" by his teammates.[2] As a senior he had 15 unassisted tackles and 8 assisted tackles against Baylor. He had 18 unassisted tackles, 10 assisted tackles and returned an interception for a 40-yard touchdown against Arkansas. He also became a two-time All-American center.
He was the first player in Texas Tech football history to have his jersey number (55) retired. In 1977, he was inducted into the Texas Tech Hall of Fame. In 1982, he was inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. In 1986, he was inducted into the National Football Foundation College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Indiana. In 2008, he was selected as Texas Tech's Big 12 Legend. In 2012, he was inducted into the Texas Tech Football Ring of Honor. In 2013, he was inducted into the Southwest Conference Hall of Fame.[3]
Professional career
Holub was selected by the
Holub began his professional career as a two-way player, playing center on offense and linebacker on defense — a rarity during the two platoon era (Holub had begun professional play the year after Chuck Bednarik, the last full-time two-way player in the National Football League, had retired). In one game in 1962, Holub played 58 of 60 minutes, alternating on offense and defense; in another he racked up a total of 56 minutes played.[2]
As a rookie he became a starter at left
In the early years he played both at
Even after eleven knee surgeries (six on the left and five on the right) as a player,[5] Holub was a leader, a "holler guy", and he was a team player, enduring pain to lead his team. He would spend hours in the training room, watching blood and liquid drain from his knee, then go out to the field and perform as though he was suffering from no physical problem.
He was an
With his knees wearing out, the Chiefs selected his eventual successor,
In 1976, he was inducted into the
Personal life
On September 21, 2019, Holub died of natural causes.[7]
References
- ^ "Texas Sports Hall of Fame bio". Retrieved June 29, 2020.
- ^ a b AFL All Stars. 1963. p. 65.
{{cite book}}
:|work=
ignored (help) - ^ "Tough As Nails". Retrieved October 7, 2017.
- ^ "CONCRETE CHARLIE". Retrieved October 7, 2017.
- ^ "THIS STRANGE AND PERILOUS JOINT". Retrieved October 7, 2017.
- ^ "E. J. HOLUB FACES 10TH OPERATION". The New York Times. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
- ^ "Texas Tech Hall of Famer Holub dies at 81". Retrieved June 29, 2020.