Paul Wiggin
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Paul David Wiggin (born November 18, 1934) is an American former
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 and coach. He played professional as a
defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...
with the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...
of 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). He later coached in the NFL as well as in
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.


Early life

Wiggin was born on November 18, 1934, in
Modesto, California Modesto ( ; ) is the county seat and largest city of Stanislaus County, California, United States. With a population of 218,069 according to 2022 United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau estimates, it is the List of cities and towns in Ca ...
, and attended Manteca High School in
Manteca, California Manteca is a city in San Joaquin County, California. The city had a population of 83,498 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census. It is part of the Stockton-Lodi, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Manteca is a city in the Ce ...
, where he competed in four sports. When he graduated Manteca High School in 1952, he was named the Most Outstanding Athlete. Wiggin played tackle in football, was on the school's championship football team, and was selected to the All-Central California team in 1951. He received honorable mention twice for the all Northern-California team, and was selected as an all-star to play in the California high school North-South Shrine game in 1952. Wiggin also established a shot put record competing in track. He attended Modesto Junior College, where he was a standout in football and track. Wiggin played both offense and defense on the football team. He is a member of the Modesto Junior College Athletics Hall of Fame. ''
The Modesto Bee ''The Modesto Bee'' is a California newspaper. It has about 70 employees and is delivered throughout central California, reaching places such as Modesto, Turlock, Oakdale, Ceres, Patterson and Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y ...
'' selected him at
offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tendency to cause acts of violence by the ...
to its all-Big Seven Conference team in 1952.


College football

Wiggin went on from Modesto Junior College to
Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
, where he graduated in1957. He later earned a
master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...
from Stanford in 1959. At 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) and 228 pounds (103.4 kg), he played defensive tackle on Stanford's football team from 1954-56. He was a two-time first team
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 All-
PAC-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level for all sports, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl ...
(1955–56), and played in the 1956
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 the 1957 Hula Bowl. Fans voted him Stanford's defensive player of the century. In 2005, he was inducted into the
College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...
.


Professional football

The Cleveland Browns selected Wiggin in the sixth round of the 1956 NFL draft, 73rd overall. He started three games as a rookie in 1957, under future hall of fame coach
Paul Brown Paul Eugene Brown (September 7, 1908 – August 5, 1991) was an American American football, football coach and executive in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC), the National Football League (NFL), and the American Football League (AFL). ...
. The Browns finished first in the NFL's East Division, but lost the 1957 NFL Championship game to the Detroit Lions. Wiggin spent his entire 11-year playing career with Cleveland until his retirement following the
1967 NFL season The 1967 NFL season was the 48th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 16 teams with the addition of the New Orleans Saints. The two eight-team divisions became two eight-team conferences split into two divisio ...
. He never missed a game, playing in 146 straight games. He started eight games in 1958, all 12 games in 1959 (at right defensive end), and nine games in 1960 (at left defensive end). From 1961-66, he started all 14 games every year (chiefly at left defensive end); and started 11 of 14 games in his final season (1967). Twice earning
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 ...
honors as a starter (1965, 1967), Wiggin was a key member of the team's defensive line (consisting of Wiggin at left end, Dick Modzelewski at left tackle, Jim Kanicki at right tackle, and Bill Glass at right end), when it won the 1964 NFL championship with a 27–0 shutout of the
Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983, when owner Robert Irsay moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breeding and racing. It w ...
; including a fumble recovery by Wiggin in the championship game. On the season in 1964, he had 8.5
quarterback sack In gridiron football, a sack occurs when the quarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackle (football move), tackled behind the line of scrimmage before throwing a forward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the l ...
s, and three fumble recoveries, one of which he returned for a
touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...
. In 1965, the Brown lost in the NFL championship game to the
Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...
. Over his career, Wiggins had 19 fumble recoveries, including four in 1966, and a league leading four in 1967. He had three interceptions, including a 20-yard touchdown return, and 60.5 sacks. His career high in sacks was nine in 1960. Over his career, the Browns were in three NFL championship games (winning one), and lost in two divisional playoff games in other years (1958, 1967). As of 2025, he is tied for second all-time in fumble recoveries for the Browns, sixth in sacks, and 19th in games played. As a professional, he played at 242 pounds (109 kg). In 2008, he was inducted into the Browns Legend Club.


Coaching and personnel career


San Francisco 49ers

He was named an assistant coach with the
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the 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 ...
on February 14, 1968, spending the next seven seasons with the team. He was defensive line coach from 1968-1973, and both defensive coordinator and defensive line coach in 1974, under head coach Dick Nolan each of those years. He coached Pro Bowl defensive end Cedrick Hardman, who had 18 quarterback sacks in his first full (14-game) season (1971).


Kansas City Chiefs

He was hired as head coach of the
Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...
on January 23, 1975, replacing future hall of fame coach Hank Stram, who led the Chiefs to an upset victory in Super Bowl IV. After compiling an 11–24 mark in less than three seasons, Wiggin was fired following a 44–7 loss against his old team, the Browns, on October 30, 1977, that left the team 1–6.


New Orleans Saints

After Dick Nolan was named as head coach of the
New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...
in 1978, he once again hired Wiggin as the team's defensive coordinator, where he spent two years. Minnesota Viking coach
Bud Grant Harry Peter "Bud" Grant Jr. (May 20, 1927 – March 11, 2023) was an American professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL) and Canadian Football League (CFL). Grant was head coach of the NFL's Minnesota Viki ...
had also offered Wiggin an assistant's position, but Wiggin chose Nolan with whom he was so familiar.


Stanford Cardinal

Wiggin then was hired as head coach at his alma mater, Stanford, on February 1, 1980. Despite the presence of future hall of fame quarterback
John Elway John Albert Elway Jr. (born June 28, 1960) is an American former professional football quarterback who spent his entire 16-year career with the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). Following his playing career, he then spent 1 ...
on the team during his first three years, Wiggin was unable to lead Stanford to a bowl game during his tenure and was dismissed following the 1983 season with a 16–28 record over four years. Wiggin's efforts to reach a bowl game had come agonizingly close in 1982, when his team fell victim to what simply became known as The Play on November 20. In an incredible finish against the
University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...
, the school's arch-rival, Cal lateraled five times in the closing seconds to score the winning touchdown.


Minnesota Vikings

Wiggin's longest football connection is his four decades with the Minnesota Vikings. In 1985, he became the Vikings defensive line coach under Bud Grant, a position he held through 1991; though under head coach Jerry Burns from 1986-91. Some of the Vikings defensive linemen Wiggins developed include pro football hall of fame members Chris Doleman and John Randle, first team All-Pro Keith Millard, and Pro Bowl player
Henry Thomas Henry Jackson Thomas (born September 9, 1971) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor and had the lead role of Elliott Taylor in the film '' E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (1982), for which he won a Young Artist Award and rece ...
. In 1989, the Vikings defense produced 71 quarterback sacks, the second best ever in a single season. Doleman had 21 sacks and Millard 18. In 1992, the Vikings hired Wiggin in a scouting capacity, as the head of their new professional personnel department, which he built up as it did not previously exist. He started with 11 people, which grew to over 200 staff in the ensuing decades. As of 2023, the 88-year old Wiggin was still working as a senior consultant for the Vikings in evaluating players over 30 years later. He received the 2022 Bud Grant Distinguished Minnesotan Award by the Minnesota Chapter of the National Football Foundation.


Head coaching record


College


NFL


Personal life

In 1956, Wiggin married Stanford student Carolynn Curlee Clark, who had been selected a beauty queen a number of times in her native New Mexico. Wiggin was a part of the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympic Games Organizing Committee.


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wiggin, Paul 1934 births Living people American football defensive ends Cleveland Browns players Kansas City Chiefs head coaches Minnesota Vikings executives Modesto Pirates football players New Orleans Saints coaches San Francisco 49ers coaches Stanford Cardinal football coaches Stanford Cardinal football players NFL defensive coordinators College Football Hall of Fame inductees Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players Manteca High School alumni Coaches of American football from California Players of American football from Modesto, California Players of American football from San Joaquin County, California