John Huarte
Encyclopedia
John Gregory Huarte is a former American football
quarterback
and the 1964 Heisman Trophy
winner.
after graduating from Mater Dei High School
in Santa Ana, California
. During his sophomore and junior years at Notre Dame, he played for only a few minutes per game. As a senior, however, he became the starting
quarterback as the Fighting Irish
won all but one game during the 1964 season, in which he was selected as an All-American
and won the Heisman Trophy
. By the end of the season, Huarte threw for 2,062 yards with only 205 passes, an average of over ten yards per pass attempt.
by the American Football League
's New York Jets
and by the National Football League
's Philadelphia Eagles
. He signed with the Jets, but was beaten out for the starting position by fellow-rookie
, Alabama's Joe Namath
, who had finished the 1964 season 11th ranked in the Heisman voting. The AFL Jets thus signed both the Heisman Trophy winner and the Alabama star away from the NFL. Prior to the 1966 season he was traded by the Jets to the Boston Patriots for the draft rights to Wichita State University linebacker/center Jim Waskiewicz
. Subsequently Huarte did see action as a back-up quarterback for several other professional teams from 1966-1972. He played his final two seasons of professional football as the starting quarterback of the Memphis Southmen
of the World Football League
.
National Intercollegiate All-American Football Players Honor Roll, and is also the CEO of Arizona Tile Supply, Inc.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
and the 1964 Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
winner.
Early years
Huarte played for the University of Notre DameUniversity of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
after graduating from Mater Dei High School
Mater Dei High School (Santa Ana, California)
Mater Dei High School is a private, Catholic, co-educational secondary school in Santa Ana, California. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange. With an enrollment of 2,100 students Mater Dei High School is one of the largest Catholic high schools in the United States...
in Santa Ana, California
Santa Ana, California
Santa Ana is the county seat and second most populous city in Orange County, California, and with a population of 324,528 at the 2010 census, Santa Ana is the 57th-most populous city in the United States....
. During his sophomore and junior years at Notre Dame, he played for only a few minutes per game. As a senior, however, he became the starting
Starting lineup
A starting lineup in sports is an official list of the set of players who will actively participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.The starters are commonly the best...
quarterback as the Fighting Irish
Notre Dame Fighting Irish football
Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the football team of the University of Notre Dame. The team is currently coached by Brian Kelly.Notre Dame competes as an Independent at the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision level, and is a founding member of the Bowl Championship Series coalition. It is an...
won all but one game during the 1964 season, in which he was selected as an All-American
1964 College Football All-America Team
The 1964 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers...
and won the Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
. By the end of the season, Huarte threw for 2,062 yards with only 205 passes, an average of over ten yards per pass attempt.
Professional career
Huarte was drafted in 1965AFL and NFL Era competitive college drafts
During the first seven years of existence of the American Football League , the AFL and the NFL held separate, competing drafts for college football talent....
by 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...
's New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
and by the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
's Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. He signed with the Jets, but was beaten out for the starting position by fellow-rookie
Rookie
Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of their sport or has little or no professional experience. The term also has the more general meaning of anyone new to a profession, training or activity Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of...
, Alabama's Joe Namath
Joe Namath
Joseph William "Joe" Namath , nicknamed "Broadway Joe" or "Joe Willie", is a former American football quarterback. He played college football for the University of Alabama under coach Paul "Bear" Bryant and his assistant, Howard Schnellenberger, from 1962–1964, and professional football in the...
, who had finished the 1964 season 11th ranked in the Heisman voting. The AFL Jets thus signed both the Heisman Trophy winner and the Alabama star away from the NFL. Prior to the 1966 season he was traded by the Jets to the Boston Patriots for the draft rights to Wichita State University linebacker/center Jim Waskiewicz
Jim Waskiewicz
James Allen "Jim" Waskiewicz is a former American football linebacker/center in the American Football League and the National Football League...
. Subsequently Huarte did see action as a back-up quarterback for several other professional teams from 1966-1972. He played his final two seasons of professional football as the starting quarterback of the Memphis Southmen
Memphis Southmen
The Memphis Southmen were a franchise in the World Football League which operated in 1974 and 1975. They played their home games at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee, United States.-From North to South:...
of the 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...
.
After football
Huarte is a member of The Pigskin Club Of Washington, D.C.The Pigskin Club of Washington, D.C.
The Pigskin Club of Washington, D.C., Inc. was founded in 1938 with the goals of "improving relationship between persons interested in the game of football; that there may be given encouragement for good, clean sport; that there may be a more perfect understanding among such persons; and, that...
National Intercollegiate All-American Football Players Honor Roll, and is also the CEO of Arizona Tile Supply, Inc.