Richard Herbert Alban (January 17, 1929 – April 8, 2016) was an American 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 ...

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 ...

who played eight seasons for the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

and

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

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). Alban 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 ...

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

, where he was used at halfback and on

defense Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

. Alban was selected in the ninth round of the

1952 NFL draft The 1952 NFL draft was held on January 17, 1952, at Hotel Statler in New York. Selections made by New York Yanks were assigned to the new Dallas Texans. This was the sixth year that the first overall pick was a bonus pick determined by lottery ...

and started all 12 games for the Redskins his rookie year. His best season came in 1954, where he finished second in the league in

interception In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for ...

s with nine and was selected to his only

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...

. He was traded to the Steelers in 1956 and retired after the 1959 campaign.

Early life and college

Alban was born in

Hanover, Pennsylvania Hanover is a borough in York County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 16,429 at the 2020 census. Located southwest of York and north-northwest of Baltimore, Maryland, the town is situated in a productive agricultural region. It i ...

, and attended La Porte High School in

La Porte, Indiana La Porte () is a city in LaPorte County, Indiana, United States, of which it is the county seat. Its population was estimated to be 21,341 in 2022. It is one of the two principal cities of the Michigan City-La Porte, Indiana metropolitan stat ...

, where he graduated in 1948. While in La Porte, Alban was named to the

United Press International United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ce ...

All-State football team in 1946 and 1947. For his accomplishments, Alban was later inducted to the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in 1980. Alban played college football for Northwestern between 1949 and 1951. Alban joined a team that won the

Rose Bowl Rose Bowl or Rosebowl may refer to: * Rose Bowl Game, an annual American college football game * Rose Bowl (stadium), Pasadena, California, site of the football game, and the home stadium of the UCLA Football team * Rose Bowl (cricket ground), West ...

the previous year. He was injured at the start of his first season, however, Alban caught a 29-yard touchdown pass from

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 ...

Don Burson in a 38–20 victory against

Colgate University Colgate University is a Private university, private college in Hamilton, New York, United States. The Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college was founded in 1819 as the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York ...

on November 12. He teamed up with Chuck Hren at halfback for the 1951 campaign. He rushed for 101 yards, including a 69-yard carry for a touchdown during an October 20 victory over Navy. He was selected to participate as a member of the East squad in the

East–West Shrine Game East West (or East and West) may refer to: *East–West dichotomy, the contrast between Eastern and Western society or culture Arts and entertainment Books, journals and magazines *'' East, West'', an anthology of short stories written by Salm ...

and as a member of the North squad at the

Senior Bowl The Senior Bowl is a post-season college football all-star game played annually in late January or early February in Mobile, Alabama, which showcases the best NFL Draft prospects of those players who have completed their college eligibility. Pr ...

at years' end.

Professional career

In 1954, Alban had nine interceptions and was selected to his only

. On April 24, 1956, Alban was traded to the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

for

Dick Stanfel Richard Anthony Stanfel (July 20, 1927 – June 22, 2015) was an American professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a guard, and his college and professional career spanned more than 50 years fro ...

. The Lions then traded him to the Pittsburgh Steelers for offensive tackle

Dick Modzelewski Richard Blair Modzelewski (February 16, 1931 – October 19, 2018) was an American professional football defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for the Washington Redskins, Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Giants, and Cleveland Brow ...

. In 1958, Alban had five interceptions for 25 yards and a forced fumble. Three of the interceptions came in a 24–16 win against his old team the Redskins on November 2. He finished fourth in the league with six interceptions in 1959. During an October 11 loss against 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 ...

, Alban returned an interception for 46 yards, the longest in his career. He announced his retirement at the end of the year. He finished his career with 30 interceptions in 96 games played. He died on April 8, 2016, at the age of 87.Obituary
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Personal life

Alban later became an executive for an athletic clothing manufacturer in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Alban, Dick 1929 births 2016 deaths American football cornerbacks Players of American football from York County, Pennsylvania Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players Northwestern Wildcats football players Sportspeople from Hanover, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh Steelers players Washington Redskins players