Y. A. Tittle
Encyclopedia
Yelberton Abraham Tittle (born October 24, 1926), better known as Y. A. Tittle, is a former football
quarterback
in the National Football League
and All-America Football Conference
who played for the Baltimore Colts
, San Francisco 49ers
, and the New York Giants
. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
in 1971.
and played quarterback for the LSU Tigers football
team. He was named the MVP of the legendary 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic, which ended in a scoreless tie between LSU and Arkansas
during an ice storm.
also played quarterback extensively, and then from 1957 through 1960, John Brodie
took time on the field away from Tittle.
In 1961
, the 49ers traded Tittle to the New York Giants
for guard
Lou Cordileone
. (The rookie Cordileone was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y.A. Tittle? You're kidding," but later said he was surprised that the Giants would part with him for "a 42-year-old quarterback.") Tittle went on to lead the Giants to three straight Eastern Division titles, part of a team that featured such great players as Del Shofner
, Aaron Thomas
, Joe Walton
, Frank Gifford
, Alex Webster, Dick Lynch
, Jimmy Patton
, Roosevelt Brown, Andy Robustelli
, Sam Huff
, Erich Barnes
and Joe Morrison
. Tittle threw seven touchdown passes on October 28, 1962, in a game against the Washington Redskins
that the Giants won 49-34. In 1963, he set what was then an NFL record by throwing 36 touchdown passes. All told, Tittle threw a grand total of 86 touchdown passes from 1961-1963. According to pro football historian T.J. Troup, 80 of those touchdowns came in Giants victories and only 6 came in games the team lost.
The following year, Tittle's final season, the Giants were nowhere close to contention, falling to a 2-10-2 record. Tittle's performance fell from 36 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in 1963 to 10 touchdowns and 22 interceptions in 1964. He retired after the season.
14-10. In a career lasting 17 years, Tittle passed for 33,070 yards, and 242 touchdowns, and twice received the NFL Most Valuable Player Award
. In 1971, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. To this day, Tittle is the only quarterback in the Hall of fame who did not win a postseason game in his career.
Tittle's seven-touchdown game on October 28, 1962, still stands as the all-time record with four other players (Sid Luckman
, Adrian Burk
, George Blanda
and Joe Kapp
).
Y.A. Tittle was the first and one of only eight quarterbacks in NFL history to have achieved consecutive 30-touchdown passing seasons. The others are Steve Bartkowski
, Brett Favre
, Dan Fouts
, Dan Marino
, Peyton Manning
, Jeff Garcia
, and Drew Brees
. Tittle's 36 touchdown passes in the 1963 season would remain an NFL record until Marino threw 48 touchdown passes in 1984.
on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of sports. Tittle, who was in the final season of his career, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers
and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium
. The quarterback suffered from both a concussion and a cracked sternum on the play. He would go on to play out the rest of the season, but the Giants would finish a disappointing 2-10-2.
Post-Gazette editors at first declined to run the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was ineligible for a Pulitzer Prize
because it was not published, but it is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually would grow to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over."
Tittle and Berman weren't the only ones to profit from the famous image, Pittsburgh player John Baker (who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken) ran for Sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina
in 1978 and used the photo as a campaign tool. Baker went on to serve for 25 years.
The photo was identified so heavily with youthful years of the baby boom generation that Miller Beer used it in an iconic ad relaunching its "Miller High Life" brand in 2007-2008.
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...
in 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...
and All-America Football Conference
All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the nation's best players, and introduced many lasting innovations...
who played for the Baltimore Colts
Baltimore Colts (1947-50)
The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The first team to bear the name Baltimore Colts, they were members of the All-America Football Conference from 1947–1949, and then joined the National Football League for one season before folding...
, San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
, and the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
in 1971.
College career
Tittle attended Louisiana State UniversityLouisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
and played quarterback for the LSU Tigers football
LSU Tigers football
The LSU Tigers football team, also known as the Fighting Tigers or Bayou Bengals, represents Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States in NCAA Division I FBS college football. Current head coach Les Miles has led the team since 2005. Since 1999 when Nick Saban took over as...
team. He was named the MVP of the legendary 1947 Cotton Bowl Classic, which ended in a scoreless tie between LSU and Arkansas
Arkansas Razorbacks football
The Arkansas Razorbacks football program is a college football team that represents the University of Arkansas. The team is a member of the Southeastern Conference's Western Division, which is in Division I's Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
during an ice storm.
Professional career
Tittle began his career with the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) in 1948, who eventually joined the NFL in 1950. The Colts became defunct after that season, and Tittle joined the San Francisco 49ers. He played there for ten seasons, through 1960, often struggling for playing time. In 1951 and 1952, Frankie AlbertFrankie Albert
Frank Cullen "Frankie" Albert was an American football player. He played as a quarterback with the San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League...
also played quarterback extensively, and then from 1957 through 1960, John Brodie
John Brodie
John Riley Brodie is a former professional American football quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, and had a second career as a Senior PGA Tour professional golfer.-Early years and education:...
took time on the field away from Tittle.
In 1961
1961 NFL season
The 1961 NFL season was the 42nd regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 14 teams with the addition of the Minnesota Vikings, after the team's owners declined to be charter members of the new American Football League. The schedule was also expanded from 12 games per...
, the 49ers traded Tittle to the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
for guard
Guard (American football)
In American and Canadian football, a guard is a player that lines up between the center and the tackles on the offensive line of a football team....
Lou Cordileone
Lou Cordileone
Lou Anthony Cordileone is a former American football offensive lineman, primarily guard, who played nine seasons in the National Football League. He is more famous for being traded from the New York Giants to the San Francisco 49ers for quarterback Y. A. Tittle...
. (The rookie Cordileone was quoted as reacting "Me, even up for Y.A. Tittle? You're kidding," but later said he was surprised that the Giants would part with him for "a 42-year-old quarterback.") Tittle went on to lead the Giants to three straight Eastern Division titles, part of a team that featured such great players as Del Shofner
Del Shofner
Delbert Martin Shofner is a former American football wide receiver who played for eleven seasons with the Los Angeles Rams and the New York Giants from 1957 to 1967 in the National Football League. Shofner was a five-time consensus All-Pro and Pro Bowler in 1958, 1959, and from 1961 to 1963...
, Aaron Thomas
Aaron Thomas
Aaron Norman Thomas , is a former American football tight end in the National Football League for the San Francisco 49ers and New York Giants from 1961 to 1970....
, Joe Walton
Joe Walton
Joseph Frank Walton is an American football coach and former player who is currently the head coach of Robert Morris University. Walton played eight seasons in the National Football League and served as head coach of the New York Jets for seven seasons...
, Frank Gifford
Frank Gifford
Francis Newton "Frank" Gifford is a Hall of Fame former American football player and American sportscaster.-Early life:Gifford was born in Santa Monica, California, the son of Lola Mae and Weldon Gifford, an oil driller....
, Alex Webster, Dick Lynch
Dick Lynch
Richard Dennis "Dick" Lynch was an American football defensive back in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins and the New York Giants. He was a one-time Pro Bowler in 1963, when he led the NFL in interceptions...
, Jimmy Patton
Jimmy Patton
James Russell Patton was an American football defensive back in the National Football League for the New York Giants. He was a five-time Pro Bowler...
, Roosevelt Brown, Andy Robustelli
Andy Robustelli
Andrew Richard "Andy" Robustelli was an American football defensive end in the National Football League for the Los Angeles Rams and the New York Giants. He played college football at Arnold College and was drafted in the nineteenth round of the 1951 NFL Draft...
, Sam Huff
Sam Huff
Robert Lee "Sam" Huff is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League for the New York Giants and the Washington Redskins. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982....
, Erich Barnes
Erich Barnes
Erich Theodore Barnes was an American football defensive back in the National Football League. He was a six-time Pro Bowler. Before the NFL he was an outstanding all around athlete at Purdue University . Barnes was drafted fourth by the Bears in the 1958 NFL Draft and traded to the Giants in 1961...
and Joe Morrison
Joe Morrison
Joseph R. Morrison was an American football player in the National Football League for the New York Giants and a coach best known as the head coach at the University of South Carolina.-Playing career:...
. Tittle threw seven touchdown passes on October 28, 1962, in a game against the Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
that the Giants won 49-34. In 1963, he set what was then an NFL record by throwing 36 touchdown passes. All told, Tittle threw a grand total of 86 touchdown passes from 1961-1963. According to pro football historian T.J. Troup, 80 of those touchdowns came in Giants victories and only 6 came in games the team lost.
The following year, Tittle's final season, the Giants were nowhere close to contention, falling to a 2-10-2 record. Tittle's performance fell from 36 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in 1963 to 10 touchdowns and 22 interceptions in 1964. He retired after the season.
Legacy
The only thing missing from Tittle's impressive résumé was an NFL championship. The Giants lost the title game every year from 1961 to 1963. The 1963 game was especially disappointing, as Tittle hurt his leg while the Giants were losing to the Chicago BearsChicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
14-10. In a career lasting 17 years, Tittle passed for 33,070 yards, and 242 touchdowns, and twice received the NFL Most Valuable Player Award
NFL Most Valuable Player Award
The National Football League Most Valuable Player Award is given by various entities, most notably the Associated Press , to the player who is considered most valuable in the league. When the award is referred to without mentioning the organization, it generally means the AP award. The AP NFL MVP...
. In 1971, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. To this day, Tittle is the only quarterback in the Hall of fame who did not win a postseason game in his career.
Tittle's seven-touchdown game on October 28, 1962, still stands as the all-time record with four other players (Sid Luckman
Sid Luckman
Sidney Luckman, known as Sid Luckman, was an American football quarterback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League from 1939 to 1950...
, Adrian Burk
Adrian Burk
Adrian Matthew Burk was an American football quarterback in the National Football League for the Baltimore Colts and Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football at Baylor University and was drafted in the first round of the 1950 NFL Draft...
, George Blanda
George Blanda
George Frederick Blanda was a collegiate and professional football quarterback and placekicker...
and Joe Kapp
Joe Kapp
Joseph Robert Kapp is a former professional American and Canadian football quarterback. He is also a former college football head coach of the University of California, and a former general manager of the CFL's BC Lions. Kapp played primarily with the NFL's Minnesota Vikings and the CFL's BC Lions...
).
Y.A. Tittle was the first and one of only eight quarterbacks in NFL history to have achieved consecutive 30-touchdown passing seasons. The others are Steve Bartkowski
Steve Bartkowski
Steven Joseph "Steve" Bartkowski is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League who played for the Atlanta Falcons and the Los Angeles Rams...
, Brett Favre
Brett Favre
Brett Lorenzo Favre is a former American football quarterback who spent the majority of his career with the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League . He was a 20-year veteran of the NFL, having played quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons , Green Bay Packers , New York Jets and Minnesota...
, Dan Fouts
Dan Fouts
Daniel Francis Fouts is a retired Hall of Fame American football quarterback in the National Football League. Fouts played his entire professional career with the San Diego Chargers from 1973 through 1987...
, Dan Marino
Dan Marino
Daniel Constantine "Dan" Marino, Jr. is a retired American football quarterback who played for the Miami Dolphins in the National Football League...
, Peyton Manning
Peyton Manning
Peyton Williams Manning is an American football quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League . Manning holds the record for most NFL MVP awards with four. He was drafted by the Colts as the first overall pick in 1998 after a standout college football career with the...
, Jeff Garcia
Jeff Garcia
Jeffrey Jason "Jeff" Garcia is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He played college football at San Jose State University....
, and Drew Brees
Drew Brees
Drew Christopher Brees is a quarterback for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League. He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft. He played college football at Purdue....
. Tittle's 36 touchdown passes in the 1963 season would remain an NFL record until Marino threw 48 touchdown passes in 1984.
Famous photo
A photo of a dazed Tittle in the endzone taken by Morris Berman of the Pittsburgh Post-GazettePittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
on September 20, 1964, is regarded among the most iconic images in the history of sports. Tittle, who was in the final season of his career, was photographed helmet-less, bloodied and kneeling immediately after having been knocked to the ground by John Baker of the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
and throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown at the old Pitt Stadium
Pitt Stadium
Pitt Stadium was a stadium located on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania from 1925 to 1999. It served primarily as the home of the University of Pittsburgh's football team, the Pittsburgh Panthers...
. The quarterback suffered from both a concussion and a cracked sternum on the play. He would go on to play out the rest of the season, but the Giants would finish a disappointing 2-10-2.
Post-Gazette editors at first declined to run the photo, looking for "action shots" instead, but Berman entered the image into contests where it took on a life of its own, winning a National Headliner Award. The photo was ineligible for a Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
because it was not published, but it is regarded as having changed the way that photographers look at sports, having shown the power of capturing a moment of reaction. It now hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
After at first having failed to see the appeal of the image, Tittle eventually would grow to embrace it, putting it on the back cover of his 2009 autobiography. "That was the end of the road," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. "It was the end of my dream. It was over."
Tittle and Berman weren't the only ones to profit from the famous image, Pittsburgh player John Baker (who hit Tittle right before the picture was taken) ran for Sheriff in his native Wake County, North Carolina
Wake County, North Carolina
Wake County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the population was 900,993 making it North Carolina's second most populated county...
in 1978 and used the photo as a campaign tool. Baker went on to serve for 25 years.
The photo was identified so heavily with youthful years of the baby boom generation that Miller Beer used it in an iconic ad relaunching its "Miller High Life" brand in 2007-2008.
Post-retirement
During his NFL career, Tittle worked as an insurance salesman in the off-season and after retiring, founded his own company Y. A. Tittle Insurance & Financial Services (now operated by his son).NFL Regular season
- 3,817 passes attempted
- 2,118 passes completed
- 28,339 passing yards
- 242 passing touchdowns
- 248 passes intercepted
- 81.4 quarterback rating
AAFC Regular season
- 578 passes attempted
- 309 passes completed
- 4,731 passing yards
- 30 passing touchdowns
- 25 passes intercepted
- 82.1 quarterback rating