Dieter Brock

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Dieter Brock
No. 5
Born: (1951-02-12) February 12, 1951 (age 70)
Birmingham, Alabama
Career information
CFL statusAmerican
Position(s)QB
CollegeAuburn
Jacksonville State
Career history
As coach
1994UAB (OC)
1995Hamilton Tiger-Cats (OC)
1996Ottawa Rough Riders (OC)
1997Alabama State (OC)
1998Meadowview Christian School (OC)
1999Edmonton Eskimos (co-OC/QB)
2000–2004Tusculum (OC)
2005Cumberland (OC)
2006Smiths Station HS (OC)
As player
1974–1983Winnipeg Blue Bombers
1983–1984Hamilton Tiger-Cats
1985Los Angeles Rams
Career highlights and awards
CFL All-Star1980, 1981
Awards2× CFL MOP (1980, 1981)
Career stats

Ralph Dieter Brock (born February 12, 1951) is a former Canadian Football League and National Football League player and coach. He is best remembered as the quarterback for the CFL Winnipeg Blue Bombers where he led the league in passing for four years.[1]

Early life[]

Brock was born in Birmingham, Alabama.[2] He attended Auburn University and Jacksonville State University,[3] and graduated from Jacksonville State University in 1974.

Professional career[]

After college graduation, Brock signed a one-year contract with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and was a starting quarterback in 1975. Nicknamed "The Birmingham Rifle", Brock is the only Blue Bombers player to win back-to-back CFL Most Outstanding Player awards in the 1980 and 1981 CFL seasons. In 1981, Brock broke Sam Etcheverry's 1956 record of 4,723 passing yards with 4,796 yards. Brock started his illustrious pro football career as a little used back-up quarterback for the Bombers in 1974. That season the team traded away their aging star passer Don Jonas to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for the much younger Chuck Ealey. About midway through the 1975 season Brock became the starter and that resulted in Ealey being sent to the Toronto Argonauts.

In 1983, Brock was traded to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for quarterback Tom Clements. This trade led to an exciting Grey Cup in 1984, as the Tiger-Cats and Blue Bombers faced each other in the championship game. Brock's Tiger-Cat team lost the game to Clements's Blue Bombers 47-17 and Brock ended his career with many accomplishments, but without a Grey Cup victory.

Brock left the CFL after ten seasons and joined the National Football League for the 1985 season. In what would be his only season playing in the NFL, Brock signed with the Los Angeles Rams as a 34-year-old rookie, setting the NFL record for oldest rookie quarterback in history. Despite the team's star running back Eric Dickerson holding out the first two games over a contract dispute, Brock led the team to a 7-0 start, a feat no other quarterback would accomplish in their first season with a team again until Ben Roethlisberger started 13-0 with the Steelers in 2004.[4] Brock led the team to a division title, the #2 seed in the NFC playoffs, and set team rookie records for passing yards (2,658), touchdown passes (16), and passer rating (81.8) (most of his rookie passing records have since been broken). Brock's final game was the 1985 NFC Championship Game against the Chicago Bears, where he only managed 66 yards passing and lost a fumble that Wilber Marshall returned for a touchdown to close out the scoring in a 24-0 game.

In the 1986 preseason, Brock suffered an injury to his left knee on a tackle by Bo Eason of the Houston Oilers in the first exhibition game on August 2. Brock underwent arthroscopic knee surgery the following week and went on the injured reserve list the next month.[5] Although the Rams had Steve Bartkowski as backup, they elected to deal with the Oilers and their new draft pick Jim Everett (who they had a dispute with over signing).[6]

When Brock did tests with the team later in the month to test his knee, he aggravated his back (which he stated had been a chronic problem since 1982). Tests revealed he had a "degenerative disk in his lower back", one that could not be corrected by surgery due to the nature of his throwing position, in which he would wrench his back each time he moved to let go of a pass (cortisone injections proved futile). [7] One of five quarterbacks on the roster, he was released by the team after the a year ended; he chose to move on from playing football to a coaching career.

Brock still holds the Blue Bombers record for career passing yards with 29,623. In 2005, for the commemoration of the Blue Bombers 75th anniversary, Brock was named one of the 20 All-Time Blue Bomber Greats. He was elected into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1995.[8]

In popular culture[]

In every episode of the Dave Dameshek Football Program on iTunes Dave and compete in who can make the best organic reference to Dieter Brock. He appeared as a guest on their 100th episode.

References[]

  1. ^ 2007 CFL Facts, Figures, and Records. Canadian Football League. p. 274. ISBN 978-0-9739425-2-1.
  2. ^ "Dieter Brock". NFL Historical Players. NFL.com. Retrieved 2008-08-08.;
    15 February in Gadsden is recorded by "Ralph Dieter Brock". Alabama Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2008-08-08.
  3. ^ "Dieter Brock". Pro-Football-Reference.Com. Retrieved September 6, 2012.
  4. ^ "Dieter Brock: Mythbusting NFL's last 7-0 rookie QB".
  5. ^ "Brock's Career Takes a Detour : Injured Ram Quarterback May Have Reached End of Trail". Los Angeles Times. 10 October 1986.
  6. ^ "Brock's Career Takes a Detour : Injured Ram Quarterback May Have Reached End of Trail". Los Angeles Times. 10 October 1986.
  7. ^ "SPORTS PEOPLE; Rams Drop Brock". The New York Times. 14 December 1986.
  8. ^ "Dieter Brock". Canadian Football Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 6, 2012.

External links[]

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