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List of Famous Dead People: Category - Sports
Joe Paterno was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions from 1966 through 2011. He was commonly referred to as “JoePa”. He is considered the winningest coach in college football, holding the record for the most victories by an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) football coach with 409 wins. A legend [...]
Burke was a Canadain freestyle skier, and a pioneer of the superpipe event. She was a four-time Winter X Games gold medalist, and was the halfpipe world champion in 2005. She lobbied the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to have the event added to the Winter Olympics for the 2014 games. She was considered the favorite [...]
Sean Collins was a famous surfer and the founder of Surfline. Surfline originated as a surfing hotline, but eventually became one of the most popular surfing sites on the web. Collins had a background in meteorology, which he applied to the needs of surfers, which was presumably a big part of what made his company [...]
Boogaard was a former professional NHL hockey player, who played for the Minnesota Wild and the New York Rangers. In 2007 Boogaard was named the second most intimidating player in the NHL, behind Georges Laraque.
Frazier, also known as “Smokin’ Joe”, was a former Olympic and Heavyweight boxing champion. His professional career lasted from 1965 – 1976, with a comeback in 1981. During the late 1960s Frazier emerged as the top contender, defeating the likes of Jerry Quarry, Oscar Bonavena, Buster Mathis, Eddie Machen, Doug Jones, George Chuvalo and Jimmy [...]
Wheldon was a race car driver for the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series. He won the Indianapolis 500 in 2005 and 2011.
Al Davis was the owner of the American football team the Oakland Raiders. It would be hard to sum up the Al Davis legacy any better than the official Raiders site itself: An unyielding total commitment to excellence has marked the three-time World Champion Raiders monumental rise during the last 48 years to the very [...]
Brown was a professional football player who played for both the Cleveland Browns and the Baltimore Ravens. Orlando “Zeus” Brown retired in 2005 and spent his post-football years franchising restaurants.
Flanagan was a major league pitcher who spent the better part of his career with the Baltimore Orioles. In 1979 he won the American League Cy Young Award, and was also a World Series Champion in 1983. During his later years he spent a few years with the Toronto Blue Jays, but eventually wound up [...]
Smith was a former athlete turned actor who is probably best known for his role of Moses Hightower in the comedy series Police Academy. He played his collegiate football at Michigan State, where he would go on to be the first pick in the 1967 draft. During his NFL career Smith played for three different [...]
Randall Mario Poffo, better known by his alter ego “Macho Man” Randy Savage, was a professional wrestling icon. During his career he wrestled for both the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW). During his tenure Macho Man was a seven-time world champion (2 time WWF Champion and 4 time WCW Champion). Aside [...]
Killebrew was a Major League Baseball left fielder, first baseman, and thrid baseman. His 22-year long career saw him play for only three different teams: Washington Senators, Minnesota Twins and the Kansas City Royals. At the time of his retirement he was second to only Babe Ruth in the American League in home runs, a [...]
Severiano “Seve” Ballesteros Sota was a former professional golfer, and a World No. 1. He is often remembered for his great short game and being the greatest Spanish golfer of all time. He burst on to the scene when he was only 19 and finished second at the British Open. He would go on to [...]
Duke Snider is a Hall of Fame center fielder, who many regard as the most famous Dodgers player ever. He’s an eight time all-star, who never received a MVP award. However, he won two World Series, and is considered to be the third piece of the legendary New York center fielder trio including Mickey Mantle [...]
Don Meredith is a famous member of the NFL, who is uniquely regarded as both a great player and a great commentator. He amassed 17,199 yards, and threw for 111 touchdowns, all while leading the Dallas Cowboys to two consecutive NFL Championship games in 1966 and 1967.
George “Sparky” Anderson lived up to his nickname by being known as one of the more energetic, and lively personalities in baseball. Along with his personality, Anderson amassed many accolades. He managed 2 different teams to 3 World Series victories, and is #6 on the all wins list.
Andy Irons is a world renowned professional surfer. He learned his trade by surfing on the reefs of the north shore in Kauai, Hawaii. In total, Irons earned three world championships, three Quiksilver Pro France titles, and two Rip Curl Pro Search titles.
George Blanda’s 26 year career span defines the term “iron man”. Blanda played for four different teams during his stint in both the AFL and NFL. His accolades ranges from AFL All Star selections to multiple AFL championships.
George Steinbrenner will go down in the history books as one of the most famous, and winningest owners in Major League Baseball history. Steinbrenner amassed 11 pennants and 7 World Series titles. Steinbrenner was born in Rocky River, Ohio, the son of Rita and Henry Steinbrenner II.
John Wooden is a basketball legend, who’s credentials as a coach are unmatched throughout the history of the sport. He boasts 10 national championships; the next in line on the men’s side of the sport is Adolph Rupp and Mike Krzyzewski who’ve each won four. He was born in Hall, Indiana and would live there [...]
Blasberg was born in Orange, California but was raised in Corona. During her high school days she played on the boys’ golf team. She attended the University of Arizona where she quickly became the country’s number 1 ranked college player as a freshman. She compiled six victories before leaving in her sophomore year to turn [...]
Keli McGregor was most notably known as the President of the Colorado Rockies. He began his stint with the organization in 1993 as the Senior Director of Operations. In 1996 he was given a promotion to Senior Vice President, then Executive Vice President in 1998.
Merlin Olsen is a man known for his football career, acting, broadcasting, and humanitarian efforts. He’s widely known for his legendary career with the Los Angeles Rams, and his stint as Jonathan Garvey on Little House on the Prairie.
Hopper was an actor, artist, and filmmaker. He got his start starring opposite James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause and Giant. He received critical praise for directing and starring in Easy Rider, a film in which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. After Easy Rider, Hopper’s career sort of [...]
Parker was a famous crime writer who is probably best known for his Spenser and Jesse Stone series of novels. The Spenser series was adapted into a television show for the ABC Network during the late 1980s entitled Spenser: For Hire, starring the late Robert Urich. The Jesse Stone series has also been turned into [...]
Gaines Adams played the defensive end position in the National Football League after a successful collegiate career at Clemson. He was the 4th overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, when he was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In his rookie season, he led defensive rookies in sacks with six. Adams played 47 games [...]
Chris Henry was a professional football player with the Cincinnati Bengals. He was drafted by the team in the third round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played his college ball at West Virginia.
Albano was a professional wrestler, actor and manager. During his prestigious wrestling career, Albano helped 15 different tag teams, and 4 singles, to championships. After his wrestling success Albano began to transition over to television and film projects. During the 1980′s you could see him featured on Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling, Miami Vice, Wise [...]
Stupak was the owner, founder and developer of the 1,149-foot-tall Stratosphere Hotel in Las Vegas. More than likely he’ll be remembered for the Stratosphere, but Stupak was very well known for getting his name in the media. Over the years he won $1 million dollars on a 1989 Super Bowl bet, challenged Donald Trump to [...]
Steve LaTreal McNair, who was often referred to as “Air” McNair played quarterback in the National Football League. After playing for Alcorn State University, he was drafted by the Houston Oilers in 1995, and went to the Tennessee Titans when the Oilers relocated to Nashville and changed their name.