Larry Ball

American football player (born 1949)

American football player

Larry Ball

No. 51, 53, 52

Position:

Linebacker

Personal information

Born:

(1949-09-27) September 27, 1949 (age 74)
Iowa City, Iowa, U.S.

Height:

6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)

Weight:

232 lb (105 kg)

Career information

High school:

Rushville (IL)

College:

Louisville

NFL draft:

1972 / Round: 4 / Pick: 91

Career history

Miami Dolphins (1972–1974)
Detroit Lions (1975)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1976)
Miami Dolphins (1977–1978)

Career highlights and awards

2× Super Bowl champion (VII, VIII)

Career NFL statistics

Games played:	79
Interceptions:	2
Fumble recoveries:	3

Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Larry Lavern Ball (born September 27, 1949) is a former American football linebacker.

Ball was drafted out of University of Louisville in the 1972 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins. He also played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Detroit Lions. During his National Football League (NFL) career, he participated in 79 games. Ball is the only player in NFL history to play an entire season for both an undefeated team, the 1972 Miami Dolphins (where he won Super Bowl VII), and a winless team, the 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. (Maulty Moore also played for the 1972 Dolphins and 1976 Buccaneers, but while he was with the Dolphins for the entire 1972 season, he was signed by the '76 Bucs late in the season, playing in only five games, starting only in the final game. A third player who also played for the '72 Dolphins, Doug Swift, was taken by the Buccaneers in the expansion draft, but retired from football to enter medical school and never reported to the team.)^[1]

After football, Ball worked as a guidance counselor, department head, and coach for Miami-Dade County Public Schools in Miami, Florida. He retired in 2011 after more than 30 years of service. He is active in the South Florida community, participating in numerous charity events along with his fellow '72 Undefeated Team teammates.

References

^ Martz, Ron (17 July 1976). "Bear sizes up the Bucs". St. Petersburg Times.

External links

NFL.com article on Ball

Miami Dolphins 1972 NFL draft selections

Mike Kadish
Gary Kosins
Larry Ball
Al Benton
Charlie Babb
Ray Nettles
Bill Adams
Calvin Harrell
Craig Curry
Greg Johnson
Ed Jenkins
Ashley Bell
Archie Robinson
Willie Jones
Bill Davis
Al Hannah
Vern Brown

v t e Miami Dolphins Super Bowl VII champions
1 Garo Yepremian 7 Billy Lothridge 11 Jim Del Gaizo 12 Bob Griese 13 Jake Scott (MVP) 15 Earl Morrall 20 Larry Seiple 21 Jim Kiick 22 Mercury Morris 23 Charles Leigh 25 Tim Foley 26 Lloyd Mumphord 28 Ed Jenkins 32 Hubert Ginn 39 Larry Csonka 40 Dick Anderson 42 Paul Warfield 44 Tom Curtis 45 Curtis Johnson 49 Charlie Babb 51 Larry Ball 53 Bob Matheson 54 Howard Kindig 56 Jesse Powell 57 Mike Kolen 59 Doug Swift 60 Al Jenkins 62 Jim Langer 65 Maulty Moore 66 Larry Little 67 Bob Kuechenberg 68 Mike Kadish 72 Bob Heinz 73 Norm Evans 75 Manny Fernandez 77 Doug Crusan 78 Jim Dunaway 79 Wayne Moore 80 Marv Fleming 81 Howard Twilley 82 Otto Stowe 83 Vern Den Herder 84 Bill Stanfill 85 Nick Buoniconti 86 Marlin Briscoe 88 Jim Mandich 89 Karl Noonan
Head coach: Don Shula
Coaches: Bill Arnsparger Monte Clark Tom Keane Mike Scarry Howard Schnellenberger Carl Taseff

v t e Miami Dolphins Super Bowl VIII champions
1 Garo Yepremian 10 Don Strock 12 Bob Griese 13 Jake Scott 15 Earl Morrall 20 Larry Seiple 21 Jim Kiick 22 Mercury Morris 23 Charles Leigh 25 Tim Foley 26 Lloyd Mumphord 28 Ed Jenkins 29 Tom Smith 34 Ron Sellers 36 Don Nottingham 39 Larry Csonka (MVP) 40 Dick Anderson 42 Paul Warfield 45 Curtis Johnson 48 Henry Stuckey 49 Charles Babb 51 Larry Ball 53 Bob Matheson 54 Howard Kindig 55 Irv Goode 56 Jesse Powell 57 Mike Kolen 58 Bruce Bannon 59 Doug Swift 62 Jim Langer 64 Ed Newman 65 Maulty Moore 66 Larry Little 67 Bob Kuechenberg 70 Larry Woods 72 Bob Heinz 73 Norm Evans 75 Manny Fernandez 76 Willie Young 77 Doug Crusan 79 Wayne Moore 80 Marv Fleming 81 Howard Twilley 82 Bo Rather 83 Vern Den Herder 84 Bill Stanfill 85 Nick Buoniconti 86 Marlin Briscoe 88 Jim Mandich 89 Charlie Wade
Head coach: Don Shula
Coaches: Bill Arnsparger Monte Clark Tom Keane Bill McPeak Mike Scarry Carl Taseff

v t e Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1976 inaugural season roster
Tom Alward Larry Ball Joe Blahak Cedric Brown Louis Carter Bert Cooper Mark Cotney Mike Current Charlie Davis Ricky Davis Parnell Dickinson Freddie Douglas Jimmy DuBose Howard Fest Dave Green Jimmy Gunn Isaac Hagins Terry Hanratty Charlie Hunt Larry Jameson Essex Johnson Curtis Jordan Vince Kendrick Larry Lawrence Mike Lemon Everett Little Don Martin Ed McAleney Lee McGriff John McKay Rod McNeill Bob Moore Manfred Moore Maulty Moore Jack Novak Frank Oliver Morris Owens Fred Pagac Dave Pear Cal Peterson Jim Peterson Reggie Pierson Dave Reavis Danny Reece Steve Reese Glenn Robinson Mirro Roder Council Rudolph Dan Ryczek Dewey Selmon Lee Roy Selmon Jimmy Sims Barry Smith Steve Spurrier Ken Stone Pat Toomay John Ward Mike Washington Ed Williams Steve Wilson Richard Wood Roscoe Word Randy Young Steve Young Head coach: John McKay Assistant coaches: Tom Bass Willie Brown Wayne Fontes Jerry Frei Dennis Fryzel Abe Gibron Phil Krueger John Rauch Harry Smith Dick Voris

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1976 inaugural season roster