Keith Eck (born November 28, 1955) is a former
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, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numb ...
who played one season for 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 club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...
of 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 ...
. He played college football at
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...
.
Early life
Eck attended
Crespi Carmelite High School in
Encino, California
Encino ( Spanish for "oak") is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California.
History
In 1769, the Spanish Portolá expedition, first Europeans to see inland areas of California, traveled north through Sepulved ...
where he played baseball and football. As a senior, he was voted the El Camino Real League’s most valuable lineman and earned recognition from the United Savings Helms Athletic Foundation of All Southern California High School Football First-team. IN 2008 he was inducted into the Crespi Athletic Hall of Fame.
College
At the
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...
, Eck played center and guard. As a senior, he was Second-team All-Pac-8 as well as receiving the UCLA award for most improved player.
Professional career
In 1977 Eck played 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 club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) ...
professional football team, but was placed on injured reserve for the 1977 season. The following year, he returned to UCLA to coach the offensive tackles and tight-ends. In 1979 Eck played for the New York Giants, backing up
Jim Clack
James Thomas Clack (October 26, 1947 – April 7, 2006) was an American football center and guard in the National Football League. He played for 11 seasons between 1971 and 1981. He died of heart failure in 2006 after suffering from ...
at center as well as being the special teams snapper for punts and field goals.
In 1980 his football career ended abruptly when he suffered a heart attack on an airplane en route to his first pre-season training camp for his second year with the New York Giants.
[Bill Verigon, "Hard Year On, Off Field for Parcells", '']New York Daily News
The New York ''Daily News'', officially titled the ''Daily News'', is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, NJ. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in Ta ...
'', November 29, 1983, reprinted in ''Parcells'' (Sports Publishing LLC, 2000), , p. 27
Excerpts available
at Google Books
Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical ...
.
Personal life
After football, Eck has worked in the financial services industry, and in 1990 founded his own financial and insurance company. He lives in
La Costa, California, with his wife, Marcela, and their three children.
References
External links
Keith Eck Financial & Insurance Services websiteCrespi Carmelite High School Football- Player Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eck, Keith
1955 births
Living people
American football offensive guards
American football centers
New York Giants players
UCLA Bruins football players