Gregory Lamarr Kindle (born September 16, 1950) 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 ...

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

who played four seasons 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) with the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

and

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

. He was selected by the Cardinals in the second round of the

1974 NFL draft The 1974 NFL draft took place at the Americana Hotel in New York City, New York, on January 29–30, 1974. Each of the 26 NFL teams were granted 17 selections for a total of 442 picks. Many experts consider the Pittsburgh Steelers to have had t ...

after playing

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 ...

Tennessee State University Tennessee State University (Tennessee State, Tenn State, or TSU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, it is the only state-funded historically black university in Tennes ...

Early life

Gregory Lamarr Kindle was born on September 16, 1950, in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

. He attended Weavey High School in Houston. He mainly played basketball in high school and did not play football until his senior year.

College caree

Kindle was a four-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 ...

for the

Tennessee State Tigers The Tennessee State Tigers and Lady Tigers are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Tennessee State University (TSU), located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. The Tigers athletic program is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) an ...

from 1970 to 1973. The Tigers were

black college football national champions The Black college football national championship, also named the HBCU football championship, is a national championship honor that, since 1920, has been regularly bestowed upon the best College football teams among historically Black colleges and ...

in 1970, 1971, and 1973. In 1973, they also went undefeated and were named AP small college national champions. As a senior, Kindle earned ''

Pittsburgh Courier The ''Pittsburgh Courier'' was an African American weekly newspaper published in Pittsburgh from 1907 until October 22, 1966. By the 1930s, the ''Courier'' was one of the leading black newspapers in the United States. It was acquired in 1965 by ...

'' first-team Black

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

and

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second-team small college All-American honors. After his senior season, he was invited to play in the

Chicago Charities College All-Star Game The Chicago Charities College All-Star Game was a preseason American football game played from 1934 to 1976 between the National Football League (NFL) champions and a team of star college seniors from the previous year. It was also known as the ...

Blue–Gray Football Classic The Blue–Gray Football Classic was an annual American college football all-star game held in Alabama, usually in late December and often on Christmas Day. The brainchild of Alabama college football legend Champ Pickens, the contest began in ...

North–South Shrine Game The North–South Shrine Game was an annual postseason college football all-star game played each December from 1948 to 1973 in Miami, and a final time in 1976 in Pontiac, Michigan. The game was sponsored by the fraternal group Shriners Interna ...

, and

Coaches All-America Game The Coaches All-America Game was a postseason college football all-star game that served as the concluding game of the college football season, held from 1961 to 1976. All 15 games in the series were played sometime between mid-June and mid-July, ...

Professional career

Kindle was selected by the

in the second round, with the 33rd overall pick, of the

. He signed with the team on January 31, 1974. He played in ten games, starting two, for the Cardinals during his rookie year in 1974. He appeared in all 14 games in 1975 as the Cardinals finished with an 11–3 record. Kindle also played in the team's playoff game, a divisional round loss to the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

. On August 23, 1976, Kindle and a 1977 first round draft pick were traded to the

for

John Zook John Eldon Zook (September 24, 1947 – June 6, 2020) was an American professional football player who was a defensive end for 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the St. Louis Cardinals and the Atlanta Falcons. Zook ...

. Kindle played in ten games, all starts, for the Falcons in 1976 and recovered one fumble. In August 1977, it was reported that Kindle wanted to be traded due to a contract dispute with the Falcons. He appeared in one game during the 1977 season before being released on October 25, 1977. Kindle signed with the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

in March 1978. However, in May 1978 he failed a physical and was released. Kindle was then signed by the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division (CFL), West division. They play thei ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

and played in 13 games for them during the 1978 season. On September 30, 1978, against the

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions playe ...

, Kindle and four other Blue Bombers players were ejected for fighting. They were all later fined $100. Kindle played in seven games in 1979.

References

External links

Stats Crew profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kindle, Greg Living people 1950 births Players of American football from Houston Players of Canadian football from Houston American football offensive linemen Canadian football offensive linemen Tennessee State Tigers football players St. Louis Cardinals (football) players Atlanta Falcons players Denver Broncos players Winnipeg Blue Bombers players 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen