Treva Gene "Bookie" Bolin (born June 17, 1940) 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 ...

player who a

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

in 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) from 1962 through 1969. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Ole Miss Rebels The Ole Miss Rebels are the 18 men's and women's College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that are funded by and represent the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford, Mississippi, Oxford. The first was the Ole ...

and was a member of their 1960 national championship team.

Early life

Bookie Bolin was born June 17, 1940, in

Hamilton, Alabama Hamilton is a city in and the county seat of Marion County, Alabama, United States. It incorporated in 1896 and since 1980 has been the county's largest city, surpassing Winfield, Alabama, Winfield. It was previously the largest town in 1910. At ...

. He attended

Okolona High School Okolona High School is a public high school located in Okolona, Mississippi, United States. It serves grades 9–12. It is part of the Okolona Municipal Separate School District. The school nickname is "The Chieftains". They used to boast athle ...

Okolona, Mississippi Okolona is a city in and one of the two county seats of Chickasaw County, Mississippi, Chickasaw County, Mississippi, United States. It is located near the eastern border of the county. The population was 2,692 at the 2010 United States Census, ...

.John Duxbury and Larry Shainman (eds.), ''Football Register, 1969.'' St. Louis: The Sporting News, 1969; p. 32. Bolin was called "Bookie" from his youth and later indicated that he had no recollection about the origin of the nickname.Don Smith (ed.), 1968 NY Football Giants: Press / Radio & Television. New York: New York Football Giants, Inc., 1968, p. 12.

College career

He attended the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (Epithet, byname Ole Miss) is a Public university, public research university in University, near Oxford, Mississippi, United States, with a University of Mississippi Medical Center, medical center in Jackson, Miss ...

where he started at

for the varsity team during his sophomore and junior seasons. He was part of the 1960 national championship team. He also played in the 1961

Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed only ...

and 1962 Cotton Bowl games.

Professional career

Bolin was selected in the 5th round of the

1962 NFL draft The 1962 NFL draft was held on December 4, 1961 at the Sheraton Hotel in Chicago, Illinois. The Washington Redskins used the first overall pick of the draft to select running back Ernie Davis, then subsequently traded him to the Cleveland Bro ...

by the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

as a "future" for the 1963 season, but was ruled ineligible for further competition by the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

and signed immediately with the team for the 1962 season. He saw action in 9 games in a reserve role in 1962 before emerging as the starting right guard for the Giants in

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...

, playing in the

1963 NFL Championship Game The 1963 NFL Championship Game was the 31st annual championship game, played on December 29 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois. The game pitted the visiting New York Giants (11–3) of the Eastern Conference against the Chicago Bears (11– ...

. Bolin was moved to the left side in

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 6 – Vietnam War: United States Marine Corps and Army of ...

, although only starting 3 times of 13 total appearances. He was released by the Giants on September 3, 1968, as the team was made its final cut down to the 43-man roster limit for the forthcoming season. He was not long unemployed, however, signing a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

deal with the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

on September 20. With the start of the season imminent, Bolin was initially assigned to the Vikings'

taxi squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scout ...

.Dick Gordon
"Brain Surgery for Bowie,"
''Minneapolis Star,'' Nov. 8, 1968, p. 34. Bolin was activated to the 43-man roster on November 8, following the loss of starting guard Larry Bowie to emergency brain surgery to deal with a possible blood clot. He saw action in six games for the Vikings as a reserve during the latter part of the

1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...

. A return was made with the Vikings for

1969 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 2nd millennium, the 69th year of the 20th century, and the ...

, with Bolin seeing action in 6 games and making one start for the Norsemen.

Life after football

In the off-season, Bolin worked for the Modern Dixie Life Insurance Company, holding the post of regional vice president by 1967."Modern Dixie Life Insurance Company: Annual Report, 1967,"
''Vicksburg Post,'' Feb. 18, 1968, p. 8. An avid outdoorsman, Bolin enjoyed hunting and fishing in his spare time.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bolin, Bookie 1940 births Living people American football offensive linemen Minnesota Vikings players New York Giants players Ole Miss Rebels football players People from Hamilton, Alabama Players of American football from Alabama 20th-century American sportsmen