James England "Bo" Burris Jr. (born October 16, 1944) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

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who played three seasons with the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He was selected by the Saints in the second round of the

1967 NFL/AFL draft The 1967 NFL/AFL draft was conducted March 14–15, 1967, at the Gotham Hotel in New York City. It was the first common draft between the National Football League (NFL) and the American Football League (AFL), part of the AFL–NFL merger agreeme ...

. He played

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at the

University of Houston The University of Houston (; ) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas, United States. It was established in 1927 as Houston Junior College, a coeducational institution and one of multiple junior colleges formed in ...

as a

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

Early life

James England Burris Jr. was born on October 16, 1944, in Luling, Texas. He attended Brazosport High School in

Freeport, Texas Freeport is a city in Brazoria County, Texas, United States, located on the Gulf of Mexico, founded in 1912. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city population was 10,696, down from 12,049 in 2010, where Hispanic (U.S. ...

College career

Burris was a member of the

Houston Cougars The Houston Cougars are the athletic teams representing the University of Houston. Informally, the Houston Cougars have also been referred to as the Coogs, UH, or simply Houston. Houston's nickname was suggested by early physical education inst ...

from 1963 to 1966 as a quarterback. He was a three-year

letterman Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

from 1964 to 1966. He completed 24 of 61 passes (39.3%) for 326 yards, one touchdown, and nine interceptions in 1964 while also rushing for 154 yards and two touchdowns. In 1965, he totaled 81 completions on 175 passing attempts (46.3%) for 1,256 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions, and 81 rushing yards. As a senior in 1966, he recorded 98 completions on 204 attempts (48.0%) for 1,666 yards, 22 touchdowns, and 21 interceptions while also rushing for 180 yards and four touchdowns. His 22 passing touchdowns led the country that season while his 21 interceptions were the fourth-most in the country. Burris also played for the

Houston Cougars baseball The Houston Cougars baseball team is the college baseball team of the University of Houston. Along with the university's other athletic teams, the baseball team is a member of the Big 12 Conference as a NCAA Division I, Division I team. They play ...

team in 1967 as an

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

, totaling one home run, one triple, 15 RBIs, and 11 runs while tying for the team-lead with 15 stolen bases. The Cougars advanced to the final round of the 1967 College World Series. He graduated from the University of Houston College of Business Administration. He was inducted into the University of Houston Athletics Hall of Honor in 1982.

Professional career

Burris was selected by the

in the second round, with the 27th overall pick, of the 1967 NFL draft as a

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

. He officially signed with the team on July 7, 1967. He played in all 14 games, starting two at

, for the Saints during the team's inaugural 1967 season and recovered one fumble. He appeared in all 14 games for the second straight season, starting 13, in 1968 and intercepted three passes for 129 yards and one touchdown while also recovering two fumbles. The Saints finished the 1968 season with a 4–9–1 record. Burris played in 12 games, starting seven, in 1969, recording one interception. On May 4, 1970, Burris and Norman Davis were traded to the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

for Joe Scarpati and a 1971 tenth round draft pick. Burris was released on September 15, 1970.

Personal life

After his football career, Burris started a landscaping company called Landscape Innovations. He appeared as an extra in the 1969 film '' Number One''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burris, Bo Living people 1944 births Players of American football from Texas Baseball players from Caldwell County, Texas American football safeties American football quarterbacks Houston Cougars football players Houston Cougars baseball players New Orleans Saints players People from Luling, Texas Baseball outfielders Philadelphia Eagles players 20th-century American sportsmen

Early life

College career

Professional career

Personal life

See also

References