Dave Meggyesy
| No. 60 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Linebacker | ||||
| Personal information | |||||
| Born: | November 1, 1941 Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. | ||||
| Career information | |||||
| College: | Syracuse | ||||
| NFL draft: | 1963 / Round: 17 / Pick: 226 | ||||
| Career history | |||||
| |||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||
| |||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||
| |||||
| Player stats at NFL.com · PFR | |||||
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[edit]
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[edit]
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[edit]
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[edit]
- ^ a b Remnick, David (October 5, 1987). "Still On The Outside". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2008-11-10.
- ^ https://vault.si.com/vault/2002/12/16/the-top-100-sports-books-of-all-time
- ^ a b Zirin, David (2005). What's My Name, Fool?: Sports and Resistance in the United States. Haymarket Books.
- ^ a b White Jr., Gordon S. (4 November 1970). "Meggysey says Syracuse paid him and others to play". The Miami News. The New York Times News Service. p. 36. Retrieved 24 December 2020 – via Newspapers.com
.
- ^ "Jeremiah of Jock Liberation". Time. May 24, 1971. Archived from the original on December 21, 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
- ^ "Dave Meggyesy On How Football Glorifies Violence: The Dick Cavett Show". YouTube.com. August 3, 1970. Retrieved 2020-03-21.
- ^ The Dick Cavett Show: Rock Icons (DVD). Los Angeles: Shout! Factory. 2005. 49 minutes in. ISBN 0-7389-2998-0.
- ^ "Esalen Initiatives: Sports Psychology". In the Air. Esalen Institute. Archived from the original on 2012-07-31. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
Further reading[edit]
- Meggyesy, Dave (1970). Out of Their League (1st ed.). Berkeley, California: Ramparts Books. p. 263. ISBN 978-0-671-20776-2. OCLC 60664258.
- Zirin, David (2005). "'We really just hate to lose': Unions and Sport". What's My Name, Fool?: Sports and Resistance in the United States. Haymarket Books. pp. 114–123. ISBN 978-1-931859-20-2.
External links[edit]
- David Meggyesy, President, bio at Athletes United for Peace
- David Meggyesy contributor profile at Integral Life
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
- 1941 births
- Living people
- American football linebackers
- Trade unionists from Ohio
- Syracuse Orange football players
- St. Louis Cardinals (football) players
- High school football coaches in California
- Washington University in St. Louis alumni
- Sportspeople from Cleveland
- People from Mill Valley, California
- People from Cuyahoga County, Ohio
- Players of American football from Cleveland
- American people of Hungarian descent
- Sportspeople of Hungarian descent