James Whittington "Jimbo" Elrod (May 25, 1954 – December 12, 2016) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

who was an All-American at the

University of Oklahoma , mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State" , type = Public research university , established = , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.7billion (2021) , pr ...

and played professionally for the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The ...

and the

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 a ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

. Elrod graduated from East Central High School in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

, in 1972 and was a member of the

National Championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...

football teams of 1974 and

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

. Elrod earned consensus

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

honors in 1975, when he had 20

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position), a position in American football and Canadian football ** Dump tackle, a forceful move in rugby of picking u ...

for loss. His 44 tackles for loss led the career list at the University of Oklahoma until 2001 (it now stands as sixth-best all-time). Elrod starred in the 1976 Orange Bowl a 14–6 victory over the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

that secured the Sooners a fifth national championship. The Oklahoma defense allowed only 202 total yards in the game. He was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the 5th round (144th overall) of the 1976 NFL Draft where he played three seasons and in 1979 he played one season with the Oilers. He earned a dual scholarship to the University of Oklahoma, where he was a member of the 1974 National Championship Wrestling team. Elrod earned a degree in public relations and business administration and after his NFL career he worked in the personal health care business and well as radio hosting and analysis. Elrod later became a radio talk show host at

KOKC (AM) KOKC (1520 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It is locally owned by the Tyler Media Group and airs a Talk radio format. The studios and offices are located on East Britton Road in Northeast Oklahoma City. ...

1520, the flagship station for the University of Oklahoma located in Oklahoma City. Elrod was killed in a car accident on December 12, 2016.http://newsok.com/article/5530521

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elrod, Jimbo 1954 births 2016 deaths All-American college football players American football linebackers Houston Oilers players Kansas City Chiefs players Oklahoma Sooners football players Oklahoma Sooners wrestlers Players of American football from Memphis, Tennessee Road incident deaths in Oklahoma Sportspeople from Memphis, Tennessee