Edgar Thomas Chandler, Jr. (August 31, 1946October 17, 1992) was an American Professional Football

Professional football

In the United States and Canada, the term professional football includes the professional forms of American and Canadian gridiron football. In common usage, it refers to former and existing major football leagues in either country...

 player who played linebacker

Linebacker

A linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...

 for six seasons, for the Buffalo Bills

Buffalo Bills

The Buffalo Bills are a professional football team based in Buffalo, New York. They are currently members of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 in the American Football League

American Football League

The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...

 and the NFL, and for the NFL New England Patriots

New England Patriots

The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...

. Chandler was a two-time All-America

All-America

An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...

n at the University of Georgia

University of Georgia

The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...

 (1966

1966 College Football All-America Team

The 1966 College Football All-America team is composed of various organizations that choose College All-America teams that season. The organizations that chose the teams were Associated Press, United Press International, Newspaper Enterprise Association, Central Press Association, Football Writers...

 and 1967

1967 College Football All-America Team

The 1967 College Football All-America team is composed of various organizations that choose College All-America teams that season. The organizations that chose the teams were Associated Press, United Press International, Newspaper Enterprise Association, Central Press Association, Football Writers...

).

Biography

Edgar Thomas Chandler, Jr. (August 31, 1946 in Cedartown, Georgia) was a professional two-time All American football player. Chandler played linebacker 5 years for the Buffalo Bills, and 1 year for the New England Patriots. He was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 1988. A very short time after that Edgar Chandler would start the long battle to fight colon cancer. He died on October 17, 1992 breaking the heart of family, friends, and fans.

Early years

Edgar Chandler was raised in Cedartown, Georgia, by his mother Nova Chandler, and his father, Edgar Chandler Sr. Chandler Jr. would attend school in Cedartown, Georgia and was a great student as well as athlete. He strived in three sports during his high school days at Cedartown High school. Chandler was starter for the varsity basketball Bulldogs. He also competed in track and field, becoming a Georgia state high school shot put champion with a toss of 53 feet and 1 ½ inches. But Chandler first gained acclaim as an All American offensive lineman his senior year of 1963. He helped his future Georgia Sports Hall of Fame coach, Doc Ayers, and the Cedartown Bulldogs to their first state football championship. That championship sent Doc Ayers to coach for Vince Dooley at the University of Georgia, and he brought his high school all American Edgar Chandler with him.
Edgar Chandler’s college career as an offensive tackle was and still is recognized as one of the greatest in the South Eastern Conference history. Chandler was an offensive right tackle for the University Of Georgia from 1964-1967. Edgar Chandler would end up accepting an invitation to three different bowl games in his senior year. The Liberty Bowl, the North South Bowl, and the Hula Bowl. He would be first team SEC in 1966, along with Doc Ayers, who was Edgar’s prep coach in Cedartown, and Vince Dooley, who was also in the Hall of Fame. The Bulldogs finished the 1966 year 10-1 overall with an undefeated 5-0 record versus the SEC. Chandler would help lead the Bulldogs to the 1967 Cotton Bowl Championship.

College years

Edgar Chandler’s college career as an offensive tackle was and still is recognized as one of the greatest in the South Eastern Conference history. Chandler was an offensive right tackle for the University Of Georgia from 1964-1967. Edgar Chandler would end up accepting an invitation to three different bowl games in his senior year. The Liberty Bowl, the North South Bowl, and the Hula Bowl. He would be first team SEC in 1966, along with Doc Ayers, who was Edgar’s prep coach in Cedartown, and Vince Dooley, who was also in the Hall of Fame. The Bulldogs finished the 1966 year 10-1 overall with an undefeated 5-0 record versus the SEC. Chandler would help lead the Bulldogs to the 1967 Cotton Bowl Championship.

Professional career

Chandler was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the 4th round pick in the 1968 NFL/AFL common draft. He was converted into playing inside linebacker as a professional to take advantage of his speed and agility. Chandler played 1968-1972 for the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots in 1973. Before ending his football career he played his last year with the Birmingham Americans of the then World Football League where he helped them to win the World Championship. But Chandler’s biggest moment happened on November 1, 1970 during week 7 of the American football league season. Chandler scored his one and only touchdown as a professional player. It came in the first quarter against the then Boston Patriots when he intercepted the ball and returned it 58 yards to the end zone. Chandler also played with NFL greats like (the Juice) O.J. Simpson, and the honorable congressman Jack Kemp. In 1974, he signed up with the Birmingham Americans

Birmingham Americans

The Birmingham Americans were a professional American football team located in Birmingham, Alabama. They were members of the four-team Central Division of the World Football League . The Americans, founded in late December 1973, played in the upstart league's inaugural season in 1974...

 of the upstart World Football League

World Football League

The World Football League was a short-lived gridiron football league that played in 1974 and part of 1975. Although the league's proclaimed ambition was to bring American football onto a worldwide stage, the farthest the WFL reached was placing a team – the Hawaiians – in Honolulu, Hawaii. The...

.

Life after and outside of football

In 1988 Edgar Chandler was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. He was also entered into the Cedartown Football stadium ring of fame. He went on to serve as director of relations for International Inc. He went on to be a successful business man with offices in Atlanta, Georgia, Reno, Nevada, and Columbia, South Carolina.

Other

Chandler's size and grace can be appreciated in an improptu Tonight Show appearance where he is picked out of the audience by guest host Don Rickles, with hilarious consequences.