Ivan Charles "Tucker" Frederickson (born January 12, 1943) 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 ...
player who was a
running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...
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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
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 was an
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 ...
in college at
Auburn, a
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...
runner-up, the
first overall pick of the
1965 NFL draft
The 1965 NFL draft was held at the Summit Hotel in New York City on Saturday, November 28, 1964. The first player selected was Tucker Frederickson, back from Auburn, by the New York Giants.
The draft was marked by the failure of the St. Loui ...
, and a
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 ...
fullback with the Giants.
Biography
Frederickson graduated from
South Broward High School
South Broward High School (SBHS) is a marine science magnet school located in the Royal Poinciana neighborhood of Hollywood, Florida, United States. The school is a part of the Broward County Public Schools district.
South Broward High had a ...
in
Hollywood, Florida
Hollywood is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. It is a suburb in the Miami metropolitan area. The population of Hollywood was 153,067 as of 2020, making it the Broward County#Communities, third-largest city in Broward County, th ...
. A
two-way player
In sports that require a player to play on offense and defense (such as basketball and ice hockey), a two-way player refers to a player who excels at both. In sports where a player typically specializes on offense or defense (like American footb ...
, he then attended
Auburn University
Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...
in Alabama, averaging 4.4 yards per carry on offense and leading the
Tigers football team in interceptions as a safety on defense. In 1963, he won the Jacobs Award as the best blocking back in the
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...
. He won it again in 1964, and was sixth in the
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...
race. Coach
Shug Jordan called him "the most complete football player I've ever seen". He was an
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 ...
in 1964.
Frederickson was taken as the first overall pick in the
1965 NFL draft
The 1965 NFL draft was held at the Summit Hotel in New York City on Saturday, November 28, 1964. The first player selected was Tucker Frederickson, back from Auburn, by the New York Giants.
The draft was marked by the failure of the St. Loui ...
by the New York Giants, playing six seasons for them before a knee injury forced his retirement in 1971. He was inducted in 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 ...
in 1994.
Frederickson is referred to by
Brian Piccolo
Louis Brian Piccolo (October 31, 1943 – June 16, 1970) was an American professional football player who was a halfback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) for four years. He played college football for the Wake Forest ...
(
James Caan
James Edmund Caan ( ; March 26, 1940 – July 6, 2022) was an American actor. He came to prominence playing Sonny Corleone in ''The Godfather'' (1972), for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, Academy Award an ...
) as the man to beat in 1971's ''
Brian's Song
''Brian's Song'' is a 1971 ABC Movie of the Week that recounts the life of Brian Piccolo ( James Caan), a Chicago Bears football player stricken with terminal cancer, focusing on his friendship with teammate Gale Sayers ( Billy Dee Williams) ...
'' as both of them went to the same high school. In fact they went to different high schools, Frederickson to South Broward and Piccolo to Central Catholic (now St. Thomas Aquinas). Tucker went to the coveted Auburn University while Piccolo had to "settle" for
Wake Forest.
External links
Hall of Fame Bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frederickson, Tucker
1943 births
Living people
All-American college football players
American football running backs
First overall NFL draft picks
Auburn Tigers football players
New York Giants players
Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
Players of American football from Broward County, Florida
South Broward High School alumni
College Football Hall of Fame inductees