Robert Shaw (May 22, 1921 – April 10, 2011) 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 wit ...

end in 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 ma ...

(NFL). Shaw lettered three times each in football, basketball and track at

Fremont Ross High School Fremont Ross High School (FRHS) is a public high school in Fremont, Ohio, United States. It is the only high school in the Fremont City School District, and one of two high schools in Fremont, the other being Saint Joseph Central Catholic High ...

. He was first-team All-Ohio in both football and basketball and won the shot put and discus in the state track and field meet. At

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best pu ...

, he lettered twice in football. Playing right end, on both offense and defense, Shaw was part of the Buckeyes' first NCAA National Championship team in 1942 and was named a first-team All American for that season. He also lettered in basketball and track, helping the Buckeyes to their first Western Conference track crown in 1942. Shaw was inducted into Ohio State University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1996. He served with the

104th Infantry Division 104th Division may refer to: * 104th Division (1st Formation)(People's Republic of China), 1948–1951 * 104th Division (2nd Formation)(People's Republic of China), 1951–1955 * 104th Jäger Division (Wehrmacht), a unit of the German Army * 10 ...

in the European Theater during WWII, and was awarded a Bronze Star. He later completed his bachelor's degree in education at

Otterbein College Otterbein University is a private university in Westerville, Ohio. It offers 74 majors and 44 minors as well as eight graduate programs. The university was founded in 1847 by the Church of the United Brethren in Christ and named for United Bre ...

. His

career began in 1945 when he joined the Cleveland Rams. The Rams won the Championship in his rookie year. In the off-season, he played for the Toledo Jeeps of the National Basketball League. He played for the Cleveland/Los Angeles Rams (1945–1949) and the

Chicago Cardinals The professional American football team now known as the Arizona Cardinals previously played in Chicago, Illinois, as the Chicago Cardinals from 1898 to 1959 before relocating to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 1960 through 1987 seasons. Roots ...

(1950). He was the NFL leader in receiving

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Americ ...

s with 12 in

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 crashes in a snowstorm. All 19 ...

and was the first player to catch five touchdowns in a game. He played two seasons for the

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium and are the third ...

, winning the Dave Dryburgh Memorial Trophy in 1951 and 1952. After his release by Calgary, he signed with the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...

in late September 1953 on the strength of his place-kicking. After his retirement, Shaw served as an assistant coach with the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from its founding in 1953 to 1984. The team now plays in Indianapolis, as the Indianapolis Colts. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breed ...

, and

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

before becoming head coach of the

New Mexico Military Institute New Mexico Military Institute (NMMI) is a public military junior college and high school in Roswell, New Mexico. Founded in 1891, NMMI operates under the auspices of the State of New Mexico, under a dedicated Board of Regents that reports to the ...

in 1960. In three seasons at NMMI, Shaw had a 22–6–1 record. He later moved to the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ...

where he coached the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded i ...

to a 16–14–2 record over two seasons and the

to an 8–20 record from 1965 to 1966. In 1976, he won the

Annis Stukus Trophy The Annis Stukus Trophy is a Canadian Football League trophy, which is presented annually by the Edmonton Eskimos Alumni Association to the Coach of the Year, as determined by the members of the Football Reporters of Canada. The Trophy is named aft ...

(coach of the year) while with the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Tim Hortons Fiel ...

. He lived in Cooksville during his time coaching the Argos. Shaw died April 10, 2011 at his home in

Westerville, Ohio Westerville is a city in Franklin County, Ohio, Franklin and Delaware County, Ohio, Delaware counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. A northeastern suburb of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus, the population was 39,190 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 ...

, after a brief illness at the age of 89. He was predeceased by his wife of 63 years, Mary Garr

Head coaching record

College

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shaw, Bob 1921 births 2011 deaths American football ends American players of Canadian football Baltimore Colts coaches Buffalo Bills coaches Chicago Bears coaches Chicago Cardinals players Cleveland Allmen Transfers players Cleveland Rams players Calgary Stampeders players Hamilton Tiger-Cats coaches Hamilton Tiger-Cats general managers Los Angeles Rams players New Orleans Saints coaches Ohio State Buckeyes football players Otterbein Cardinals football coaches San Francisco 49ers coaches Toledo Jeeps players Youngstown Bears players Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players United States Army personnel of World War II Otterbein University alumni People from Richwood, Ohio Players of American football from Ohio