Farewell to Eagles' King Hill... and a Dave Stoessel look at "selected veterans"...
I was just a small kid when I watched him play. I remember vividly though that he backed up Sonny Jurgensen and Norm Snead in those days, and if King Hill was in the game at QB it was generally not a good sign. It meant either we were losing badly or Sonny or Norm were hurt. My father invented a rubber brick called the "King Hill" brick. Any time Hill threw an interception, Dad tossed the rubber brick at the Philco.
King Hill (6-3, 212, Rice University) was the NFL's #1 Draft pick in 1958 (by the Chicago Cardinals, who moved to St. Louis in 1960)...
I also remember King Hill was a prety good punter. In fact, he was one of the last of the 3-way players coming out of the NCAA in 1958, where at Rice he not only quarterbacked the team and did the punting, but also played in the defensive secondary.
I also remember King Hill's greatest game as an Eagle. It was a 35-27 loss to the Giants on October 17, 1965, in a game televised from New York on CBS. Hill was magnificent in defeat. He was filling in for the injured Norm Snead. The Giants had a ferocious defense back then and a great QB of their own in Y.A. Tittle. King Hill took everything the Giants gave him, including a fierce beating in the pocket. He kept the Eagles in the game until the end. He ended up throwing for 321 yards on 23-of-41 attempts, with 3 TD's and 4 INT's.
That was one game where Dad kept the rubber brick in his pocket. It was a valiant performance by King Hill.
Looking back at old film of Hill, he was a very accurate passer on short routes...but his intermediate and long passes seemed to float a bit, which explains his not-so-great INT numbers.
He threw for 5,553 yards with 71 INT's against his 37 TD's over a 12-year career. It graded out to a 49.3 QB rating, which is not very shiny.
But he brought that punting game to the mix, which in the days of smaller rosters was a bonus for the Eagles. And Hill averaged over 40 yards a punt for most of his NFL career.
After he retired as an active player in 1971, Hill went back to Houston, Texas, where he eventually became the offensive coordinator for the Houston Oilers under Bum Phillips. He also coached under Phillips when Bum moved on to the New Orleans Saints.
Bum Phillips is still very much alive and called it "a sad day" when he learned of Hill's passing. "He was the most polite and gentle man," said Phillips to the Houston Chronicle yesterday. "He was different from anybody I ever worked with...And on the football field, he may have been polite, but he was direct---when he said something, you knew he meant it."
Losing King Hill now seems premature to me. Selfishly, I must wave goodbye to another piece of my childhood. But I'm just beginning to learn more about King Hill, the player and the man, and the wild era of the '60's Eagles. I still have his football card...
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Checking up on our friend Dave Stoessel, whose Eagles Addict column is still grinding away and doing great after he launched the blog last year. If you're looking for some entertaining commentary during the dry spells of the NFL season, give Dave a visit...
Dave answers a question that many of us forget to ask: What does the term "rookies and selected veterans" really mean when we refer to the Eagles who must report to camp on July 22, three days ahead of the rest of the team?
The closest thing Dave could find to a real answer as to who makes up the list of selected veterans is as follows: Quarterbacks and injured players.
That’s basically it.
Dave breaks down the entire Eagles roster for who actually qualifies as "injured" or "rehabbing from injury" to be reporting to Lehigh this coming weekend ahead of the non-selected veterans. Give him a look at http://www.eaglesaddict.com. This particular column was also picked up by Bleacher Report, so you might see it there. Great work by Dave Stoessel, whom we can claim as one of our alumni...
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Put Pete in the HOF and he will happily disappear from the limelight......He Fed up...but that should not negate the past
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@tboned208 I say enuf is enuf...........put him in, with a big sign around his bust that says..............this man bet on baseball as a manager. But he needs to be in there.
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Anybody want to watch the Pete Rose Reality Show? Count me out.
Though how he got a 30 year old Korean model for a wife is beyond me. What's she after......the money?...........he has none. Probably signed up to do this show.
And rumor has it she gets a breast reduction in the show...........though I don't see how just removing the breast implants she already has is a huge draw...........besides, she's going the wrong way.
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@dutchrubb Welp... if TO and Bruce Jenner can get reality shows... why not? I'll bet Loops watches it...
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@dutchrubb oh dear look what I've started... Palmetto and Abe must be shaking their collective head.
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@atvcar Palmer can just be glad I did not post the pictures of Pete's wifey........she did pose nude in Playboy....................not afraid to show the goods.............or shall I say, her "moonbeam"?
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@Spiffo that's the rumor... of which I cannot find any fax to dispute it... so, it must be true.
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@atvcar If the pictures I saw are of a guy who got a "dickectomy".......that doctor did a really good job.
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@dutchrubb I see Charlie Hustle every time I'm at Caesars... he and Dick Butkus must share a cot in the back of the memorabilia store in the forum shops!!!
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What a dunce Nat is... bitchin on how the Djax make a wish got him coverage... it's not about HIM... it's about the poor kid with the disease... how cool do you think that kid feels right now to have seen that story on ESPN.... guess that's us ugly american's again putting a light on a sick kid... how dare we exploit him lol
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@dutchrubb methinks beans has a perfect word for her... but I wouldn't dare repeat it... after all, I wouldn't want to the level of the bored to drop... charter and all...ahem
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@atvcar @dutchrubb why not comment? he asked you a question!!! ohhhh... wait.... aaahhhh... hahahaha.... never mind...
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Great flick on right now... 7. Not that I expect PP or Palmetto to have seen it... they might get scurred.
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An NFL executive tells ESPN's Ross Tucker a suspension for conduct detrimental or substance abuse defaults Marshawn Lynch's four-year, $31 million contract and voids guaranteed money.
If true, it was a prudent move by Seattle, realizing the suspension risk inherent in locking up a player who had already run afoul of the league's personal conduct policy. The Seahawks brass may have to confer with ownership to determine the future of their offensive focal point after his recent DUI. The contract Lynch signed in March contains $17 million in guarantees. Rookie Robert Turbin should be owned in all fantasy leagues while we await Lynch's fate with the organization and the NFL.
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I was just watching "The Toy" the other night... great flick and another Jackie Gleason classic character... YOU ASS... or US
Well, they are putting granite vanity tops in all bathrooms. Lots of noise and confusion.
Think I'll hide in my little gym and snooze until they are finished.
Such a bloody nuisance--say what?
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@sunbutts Granite...how pedestrian.....Marble would be the way I would go...but......that's the diff between tastes i guess
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@tboned208 @sunbutts Granite is much cheaper than marble.... though marble actually increases your home's worth....
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Asante trying to get rid of Eagle Fans? LOL........there must be a certain Eagles fan stalking him with marrage proposals.
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@Spiffo @dutchrubb @sunbutts Actually he said the dump told him he wasn't wanted... Imagine that
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@atvcar @sunbutts @dutchrubb Long way to go to reach lame though............keep trying. maybe you would fit in better over at the dump.....all Bri did was kiss Spudzy's ass....and is now on the starting team.
