Samuel Etcheverry (May 20, 1930 – August 29, 2009), nicknamed "the Rifle", was a professional
American and
Canadian football
Canadian football, or simply football, is a Sports in Canada, sport in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete on a field long and wide, attempting to advance a Ball (gridiron football), pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposi ...
player and
head coach
A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...
. Etcheverry played the quarterback position, most famously with the
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...
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 was named Canadian football's
Most Outstanding Player in 1954. Etcheverry's jersey #92 is one of seven
retired by the Alouettes.
Etcheverry is a member of the
Canadian Football Hall of Fame
The Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates achievements in Canadian football. It is maintained by the Canadian Football League (CFL). It includes displays about the CFL, ...
, and in 2006, was voted one of the
CFL's Top 50 players (#26) of the league's modern era by Canadian sports network
TSN.
College career
Etcheverry was the son of Basque sheep farmers who emigrated to New Mexico.
Known as "the Rifle", Etcheverry played for the
University of Denver
The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1864, it has an enrollment of approximately 5,700 undergraduate students and 7,200 graduate students. It is classified among "R1: D ...
from 1949 to 1951 where he still holds most of the
Pioneers' football records for passing offense.
Professional football career

In 1952, Etcheverry joined the
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...
of the
Interprovincial Rugby Football Union
The East Division is one of the two regional divisions of the Canadian Football League, its counterpart being the West Division. Although the CFL was not founded until 1958, the East Division and its clubs are descended from earlier leagues.
T ...
(which became part 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 ...
in 1958 and was renamed the
Eastern Football Conference in 1960). As his team's
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 ...
, he was twice voted "Most Outstanding Player" of the eastern union and was named an eastern all-star six times (1953–1957,
1960
It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism.
Events January
* Janu ...
). In 1954, Etcheverry was awarded the
Schenley Award (most outstanding player in the
Canadian Rugby Union).
Etcheverry set a single-game passing record of 586 yards in 1954 that stood for 39 years until the
1993 CFL season. He also set a season passing record in 1954 of 3,610 yards that was not only a CFL record but also eclipsed the
NFL record set in the
1947 NFL season by
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of profes ...
r
Sammy Baugh
Samuel Adrian Baugh (March 17, 1914 – December 17, 2008) was an American professional football quarterback who played 16 seasons with the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the TCU Horne ...
of 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 ...
. He led the CFL in
passing from 1954 to 1959. In 1956, he became the first professional quarterback to pass for over 4,000 yards; his record of 4,723 passing yards would stand until 1981 when it was passed by
Dieter Brock and
Dan Fouts. Etcheverry still holds the record for most passing yards in a
Grey Cup
The Grey Cup () is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested between the winners ...
game with 508 set in a loss to the
Edmonton Eskimos
The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at Commonwealth Stadium. The E ...
in the
1955 game.
A sports icon in the city of
Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, when Etcheverry and star receiver
Hal Patterson
Harold Edward Patterson (October 4, 1932November 21, 2011), nicknamed "Prince" Hal, was an American star college basketball player at the University of Kansas, and a professional Canadian football player with the Canadian Football League Montrea ...
were traded to the last-place
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home game ...
in
1960
It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism.
Events January
* Janu ...
, it caused an enormous public outcry and led to Etcheverry leaving the Canadian Football League and signing 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 ...
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 ...
, playing for St. Louis during 1961–62. During 1963 Training Camp, he was demoted to third string by the Cardinals, and asked to be released from his contract. After the Cardinals released him, he signed 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 ...
, but was released before the
1963 season started.
Career regular season statistics
Coaching career
Etcheverry returned to Canada in 1964 as the head coach of the
Quebec Rifles of the
United Football League. The league folded at the end of the season and Etcheverry remained out of coaching until 1967 when he became an assistant at
Loyola College in Montreal.
On December 9, 1969, Etcheverry was hired to coach the Alouettes. In his first season, he led the Alouettes to a 3rd-place finish in the Eastern Football Conference with a 7–6–1 record (worst out of the six teams that qualified for the playoffs in the league, which had nine teams at the time that gave three spots to both conferences). They beat Toronto 16–6 to advance to the best-of-2 Eastern Finals against Hamilton. They won 32–22 and 11–4 to advance to the
58th Grey Cup championship game versus the
Calgary Stampeders
The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium a ...
. In a muddy natural grass field (the last for a Grey Cup for over a decade) detested by both teams in Toronto, Montreal prevailed 23–10. The next year, they went 6–8 and missed the playoffs after Ottawa beat them on tiebreakers. They finished 4–10 the next year, but as three teams were guaranteed to make it from the East, Montreal's one game advantage over fourth place Toronto meant a playoff berth. Facing Ottawa in the semifinals, they lost 14–11 to the Rough Riders. He resigned at the end of the
1972 CFL season. His overall record is 14–24–1.
In 1982, he became the general manager and president of the
Montreal Concordes
The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...
. Etcheverry was fired shortly before the start of the
1983 season and head coach
Joe Galat replaced him as general manager.
Following the demise of the Concordes, Etcheverry joined a group interested in bringing an NFL franchise to Montreal. He was one of the group's representatives at the 1988 NFL owners meeting.
Head coaching record
Awards and honours
Etcheverry was inducted into the
Canadian Football Hall of Fame
The Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates achievements in Canadian football. It is maintained by the Canadian Football League (CFL). It includes displays about the CFL, ...
in 1969 and was an inaugural inductee into the
University of Denver Athletics Hall of Fame upon its formation in 1996.
In November, 2006, Etcheverry was chosen 26th amongst the
CFL's 50 Greatest Players in a
TSN poll.
Death
Etcheverry died of
cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
in Montreal on August 29, 2009.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Etcheverry, Sam
1930 births
2009 deaths
American football quarterbacks
Players of Canadian football from New Mexico
Canadian football quarterbacks
Denver Pioneers football players
Montreal Alouettes coaches
Montreal Alouettes general managers
Montreal Alouettes players
Montreal Alouettes team presidents
St. Louis Cardinals (football) players
United Football League (1961–1964) coaches
Canadian Football Hall of Fame inductees
Canadian Football League Most Outstanding Player Award winners
People from Carlsbad, New Mexico
Players of American football from New Mexico
American people of Basque descent
Deaths from cancer in Quebec