Bears First-Round Draft Picks

 The first two players selected in the 1965 NFL draft, running backs Tucker Frederickson (New York Giants) and Ken Willard (San Francisco 49ers) ended up being good but not great. The next two picks belonged to the Bears, who selected two of the greatest players of all time--Dick Butkus and Gale Sayers.
     From 1975 (Walter Payton) through 1990 (Mark Carrier), every player selected by the Bears in the first round of the NFL draft became a productive player, and most became stars. For the past 30 years, it has been a lot more bad than good. Brian Urlacher is the only certified all-timer in the group, at least so far, while Tommie Harris and Kyle Long were stars that shone briefly. 

     The Bears' selection of quarterback Mitchell Trubisky with the second overall pick in 2017 will go down in history, and not in a good way. As every Bears fan knows all too well, general manager Ryan Pace traded up to get Trubisky while the great Patrick Mahomes was still available. Of course, the Bears also traded up this year to acquire Justin Fields--and let's hope that is where the comparison ends.

JUSTIN FIELDS

Below is the complete list of Bears first-round draft choices. The player's overall draft position is in parentheses, and an asterisk indicates a Hall of Famer. 

1936 - Joe Stydahar, tackle, West Virginia (6)*
1937 - Les McDonald, end, Nebraska (8)
1938 - Joe Gray, back, Oregon State (10)
1939 - Sid Luckman, quarterback, Columbia (2)*
1939 - Bill Osmanski, fullback, Holy Cross (6)

1940 - Bulldog Turner, center, Hardin-Simmons (7)*
1941 - Tom Harmon, halfback, Michigan (1)
1941 - Norm Standlee, fullback, Stanford (3)
1941 - Don Scott, back, Ohio State (9)
1942 - Frankie Albert, quarterback, Stanford (10)
1943 - Bob Steuber, halfback, DePauw (9)
1944 - Ray Evans, tailback, Kansas (9)
1945 - Don Lund, back, Michigan (7)
1946 - Johnny Lujack, quarterback, Notre Dame (4)
1947 - Bob Fenimore, halfback, Oklahoma State (1)
1947 - Don Kindt, defensive back, Wisconsin (11)
1948 - Bobby Layne, quarterback, Texas (3)*
1948 - Max Bumgardner, defensive end, Texas (10)
1949 - Dick Harris, center, Texas (11)

1950 - Chuck Hunsinger, halfback, Florida (3)
1950 - Fred Morrison, fullback, Ohio State (10)
1951 - Bob Williams, quarterback, Notre Dame (2)
1951 - Gene Schroeder, end, Virginia (12)
1952 - Jim Dooley, back, Miami - Florida (8)
1953 - Billy Anderson, defensive back, Compton - Calif. (6)
1954 - Stan Wallace, defensive back, Illinois (6)
1955 - Ron Drzewiecki, halfback, Marquette (11)
1956 - Tex Schriewer, end, Texas (10)
1957 - Earl Leggett, defensive tackle, LSU (13)
1958 - Chuck Howley, linebacker, West Virginia (7)
1959 - Don Clark, back, Ohio State (7)

1960 - Roger Davis, guard, Syracuse (7)
1961 - Mike Ditka, tight end, Pittsburgh (5)*
1962 - Ronnie Bull, running back, Baylor (7)
1963 - Dave Behrman, center, Michigan State (11)
1964 - Dick Evey, defensive tackle, Tennessee (14)
1965 - Dick Butkus, linebacker, Illinois (3)*
1965 - Gale Sayers, running back, Kansas (4)*
1965 - Steve DeLong, defensive end, Tennessee (6)
1966 - George Rice, defensive tackle, LSU (12)
1967 - Loyd Phillips, defensive end, Arkansas (10)
1968 - Mike Hull, running back, USC (16)
1969 - Rufus Mayes, tackle, Ohio State (14)

1970 - none
1971 - Joe Moore, running back, Missouri (11)
1972 - Lionel Antoine, tackle, Southern Illinois (3)
1972 - Craig Clemons, defensive back, Iowa (12)
1973 - Wally Chambers, defensive tackle, Eastern Kentucky (8)
1974 - Waymond Bryant, linebacker, Tennessee State (4)
1974 - Dave Gallagher, defensive end, Michigan (8)
1975 - Walter Payton, running back, Jackson State (4)*
1976 - Dennis Lick, tackle, Wisconsin (8)
1977 - Ted Albrecht, tackle, California (16)
1978 - none
1979 - Dan Hampton, defensive end, Arkansas (4)*
1979 - Al Harris, defensive end, Arizona State (8)

1980 - Otis Wilson, linebacker, Louisville (19)
1981 - Keith Van Horne, tackle, USC (11)
1982 - Jim McMahon, quarterback, Brigham Young (5)
1983 - Jimbo Covert, tackle, Pittsburgh (6)*
1983 - Willie Gault, wide receiver, Tennessee (18)
1984 - Wilber Marshall, linebacker, Florida (11)
1985 - William Perry, defensive tackle, Clemson (22)
1986 - Neal Anderson, running back, Florida (27)
1987 - Jim Harbaugh, quarterback, Michigan (26)
1988 - Brad Muster, fullback, Stanford (23)
1988 - Wendell Davis, wide receiver, LSU (27)
1989 - Donnell Woolford, defensive back, Clemson (11)
1989 - Trace Armstrong, defensive end, Florida (12)

1990 - Mark Carrier, defensive back, USC (6)
1991 - Stan Thomas, tackle, Texas (22)
1992 - Alonzo Spellman, defensive end, Ohio State (22)
1993 - Curtis Conway, wide receiver, USC (7)
1994 - John Thierry, defensive end, Alcorn State (11)
1995 - Rashaan Salaam, running back, Colorado (21)
1996 - Walt Harris, defensive back, Mississippi State (13)
1997 - none
1998 - Curtis Enis, running back, Penn State (5)
1999 - Cade McNown, quarterback, UCLA (12)

2000 - Brian Urlacher, linebacker, New Mexico (9)*
2001 - David Terrell, wide receiver, Michigan (8)
2002 - Marc Colombo, tackle, Boston College (29)
2003 - Michael Haynes, defensive end, Penn State (14)
2003 - Rex Grossman, quarterback, Florida (22)
2004 - Tommie Harris, defensive tackle, Oklahoma (14)
2005 - Cedric Benson, running back, Texas (4)

2006 - none

2007 - Greg Olsen, tight end, Miami - Florida (31)
2008 - Chris Williams, tackle, Vanderbilt (14)
2009 - none

2010 - none

2011 - Gabe Carimi, tackle, Wisconsin (29)

2012 - Shea McClellin, defensive end, Boise State (19)

2013 - Kyle Long, tackle, Oregon (20)

2014 - Kyle Fuller, cornerback, Virginia Tech (14)

2015 - Kevin White, wide receiver, West Virginia (7)

2016 - Leonard Floyd, linebacker, Georgia (9)

2017 - Mitchell Trubisky, quarterback, North Carolina (2)

2018 - Roquan Smith, linebacker, Georgia (8)

2019 - none

2020 - none

2021 - Justin Fields, quarterback, Ohio State (11) 

Check out our book Heydays: Great Stories in Chicago Sports on Amazon.   

'Twas Fifty Years Ago: Chicago Sports Memories of 1971

 In 1971, two of the all-time great Chicago athletes called it a career within three weeks of each other. Ernie Banks played the last of his 2,528 games for the Cubs on September 26, and Gale Sayers played the last of his 68 games for the Bears on October 17.

GALE SAYERS

 

 

Sadly, both players finished up as mere shadows of their former selves. Banks, 40, had only 83 at-bats for the season, hitting .193 with three homers and six runs batted in. Sayers, just 28, played in two games and rushed for 38 yards on 13 carries before conceding that his latest comeback from a succession of knee surgeries had run its course. Neither man would have to wait long for the call to join his sport's hall of fame. 

TONY ESPOSITO

The Blackhawks took an immediate liking to their new home in the NHL's Western Division, where they were the only established franchise among six four-year-old expansion teams. The Hawks won 26 and tied 5 of their first 37 games. They did not lose on home ice until January 6, compiling a home record of 16-0-2 prior to that. They ended up at 49-20-9, racking up 107 points to win the division going away. Mainstays of the club were goalie Tony Esposito, center Stan Mikita, forwards Bobby Hull and Dennis Hull, and defensemen Bill White and Pat "Whitey" Stapleton.
     In the playoffs, the Hawks dispatched the Philadelphia Flyers (four games to none) and the New York Rangers (four games to three) to advance to the Stanley Cup Final against the Montreal Canadiens. The Hawks won the first two games at home, dropped the next two at Montreal, then won again at home--in a 2-0 shutout by Esposito--to draw tantalizingly close to capturing the Cup. But the Canadiens won the next game in Montreal to even the series again.
     In Game 7 at the Stadium on May 18, Dennis Hull tallied in the last minute of the first period on a power play and Danny O'Shea lit the lamp seven minutes into the second to give the Hawks a 2-0 lead. The home team was closing in on the championship, and the old barn was rocking. Alas, the Canadiens scored three unanswered goals--two in the second period and one in the third--to win 3-2. As Montreal captain Jean Beliveau hoisted the Cup, the standing-room-only crowd of heartbroken Hawks fans politely applauded the champions. The trophy that Beliveau held in his hands would remain beyond the Hawks' grasp for 39 more years.
 

CHET WALKER

In their fifth year of existence, the Bulls had their first 50-win season in 1970-71. They played an intense, physical style of ball that mirrored the pugnacious personality of their coach, Dick Motta, and they had the Stadium turnstiles spinning. Forwards Bob Love and Chet Walker were All-Stars, guard Jerry Sloan was named second-team All-Defense, and Motta was voted Coach of the Year. Although the Bulls lost a hard-fought first-round playoff series to the Los Angeles Lakers in seven games, with the home team winning each game, the future was still bright. They won 50 or more games in each of the next three seasons, and they proved that a pro basketball franchise could not only survive but thrive in Chicago.

 

FERGIE JENKINS

The Cubs plodded to an 83-79 mark in Banks's 19th and final season, finishing tied for third place in the National League East, 14 games behind the Pittsburgh Pirates. The lanky 28-year-old righthander Fergie Jenkins went 24-13 with a 2.77 earned-run average and 277 strikeouts to earn the Cy Young Award. It was the fifth of six consecutive seasons in which Jenkins won 20 or more games. Jenkins was joined at the All-Star Game by second baseman Glenn Beckert, shortstop Don Kessinger, and third baseman Ron Santo. (Jenkins and Santo were among 19 future Hall of Famers who played in the ’71 midsummer classic, the most star-studded baseball game of all time.)

     A late-season clubhouse meeting almost turned into a free-for-all when manager Leo Durocher made some comments about Santo that caused the latter to attack him. After Santo was restrained and order restored, first baseman Joe Pepitone and pitcher Milt Pappas also got earfuls from Durocher, who then threatened to quit but was talked out of it by general manager John Holland.

WILBUR WOOD

Having bottomed out with a 56-106 record the year before, the White Sox welcomed a new manager, Chuck Tanner, a new broadcaster, Harry Caray, and a return to respectability. The Sox finished at 79-83, and attendance at Comiskey Park nearly doubled. Tanner and pitching coach Johnny Sain converted knuckleballing lefty reliever Wilbur Wood into a starter, and the experiment proved a success, to say the least. Wood went 22-13 with a 1.91 ERA while logging 334 innings. He finished third in Cy Young balloting and established himself as the South Siders' ace for the next several years. Wood and 25-year-old third baseman Bill Melton, who led the American League (and tied his own club record) with 33 home runs, represented the Sox in the All-Star Game.

 

DICK BUTKUS

After several years of mediocrity, the Bears galvanized fans by winning six of their first nine games. On November 14 against the Washington Redskins, a 40-yard touchdown run by Cyril Pinder tied the score 15-15 late in the fourth quarter. On the extra-point attempt, the snap went awry, but holder Bobby Douglass (also the Bears' quarterback) picked up the ball, scrambled around a while, and then fired a strike to Dick Butkus (of all people) in the corner of the end zone to give the Bears a dramatic 16-15 win.
     At 6-3, the Bears seemed headed for the playoffs, but they lost the next five games--four of them by very lopsided scores--to finish 6-8. Head coach Jim Dooley was fired after compiling a record of 20-36 for four seasons. He was replaced by Abe Gibron.
     The Bears' game at Detroit on October 24 was marred by the on-field death of Lions receiver Chuck Hughes from an apparent heart attack.

 

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In Memoriam, 2020

Too many noteworthy Chicago sports personalities passed away this year. The most prominent were two genuine Chicago legends--the electrifying Bears running back and kick returner Gale Sayers and the indomitable Bulls guard and coach Jerry Sloan. They were joined by luminaries such as Glenn Beckert, Pat Stapleton, and Roosevelt Taylor. There were Chicago fixtures Ed Farmer, Jimmy Collins, and Michael McCaskey. And then there were the likes of Tom Seaver, Lou Brock, Les Hunter, Dick Allen, and Jim Frey, who passed through Chicago briefly but nonetheless made their mark.

     Below is the list of Chicago sports figures who passed away in 2020. We thank them all for their contributions to the greatest sports town in the world. (If we have missed anyone, please let us know in the Comments and we will correct it.)

 

DICK ALLEN

 

Dick Allen, 78, White Sox first baseman 1972-1974, American League Most Valuable Player 1972, three-time All-Star with White Sox and seven-time All-Star overall (December 7). “He has magnetism,” Sox manager Chuck Tanner said of Allen. “Like Clark Gable, say, or Marilyn Monroe. He is above the ordinary.”

 

GLENN BECKERT

Glenn Beckert, 79, Cubs second baseman 1965-1973, four-time All-Star, one-time Gold Glove (April 12). “He’s some kind of player,” Cubs manager Leo Durocher said in 1968. “He’s the best damn second baseman in the league.”

Jim Bolger, 88, Cubs outfielder 1957-1958 (April 9).

 

LOU BROCK

Lou Brock, 81, Cubs outfielder 1961-1964, disastrously traded to St. Louis in 1964; White Sox broadcaster 1981; National Baseball Hall of Fame 1985 (September 6). “If I’d been here [in Chicago],” Brock once said, “the Cubs would have won the pennant in ’68 and ’69.”

Roger Brueggemann, 75, trainer of 2015 Arlington Million winner The Pizza Man and a fixture at Arlington Park and Hawthorne for three decades (December 14).

Ken Burmeister, 72, DePaul University men’s basketball assistant coach 1990-1994; Loyola University men’s basketball head coach 1994-1998 (May 19).

Kenneth Church, 90, leading jockey at Arlington Park in 1950 and at Washington Park in 1953 (July 13).

Gil Coan, 97, White Sox outfielder 1955 (February 4).

 

JIMMY COLLINS

Jimmy Collins, 74, Bulls guard 1970-1972; University of Illinois men’s basketball assistant coach 1983-1996; UIC men’s basketball head coach 1996-2010, qualified for NCAA tournament three times (December 13).

Ramon Conde, 85, White Sox third baseman 1962 (February 23).

Tony Curcillo, 89, Chicago Cardinals halfback and defensive back 1953 (December 8).

Jim Derrington, 80, White Sox pitcher 1956- 1957 (March 12).

Angel Echevarria, 48, Cubs first baseman/outfielder 2002 (February 7).

 

ED FARMER

Ed Farmer, 70, White Sox pitcher 1979-1981, All-Star in 1980; White Sox broadcaster 1991-2019 (April 1). “Ed grew up a Sox fan on the South Side of Chicago,” said chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, “and his allegiance showed every single night on the radio as he welcomed his ‘friends’ to the broadcast.”

Jesse Freitas Sr., 99, Chicago Rockets (AAFC) quarterback 1948 (May 18).

 

JIM FREY

Jim Frey, 88, Cubs manager 1984-1986, won division championship in 1984; Cubs broadcaster 1987; Cubs general manager 1988-1991 (April 12). “I don’t give a damn about what happened in 1969,” Frey said in 1984 when asked about the Cubs’ infamous collapse of 15 years earlier. “It has no interest or appeal to me at all.”

Carl Garrett, 72, Bears running back 1973-1974 (August 24).

Charlie Haeger, 37, White Sox pitcher 2006-2007 (October 3).

Jim Hicks, 80, White Sox outfielder 1964-1966 (October 29).

 

LES HUNTER

Les Hunter, 77, Loyola University men’s basketball center 1961-1964, member of NCAA championship team 1963, uniform number 41 retired in 1991, inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame with his Loyola teammates in 2013 (March 27). “Our whole premise was to get out and run,” Hunter said of the Ramblers. “We pressured regardless of how far we were ahead or behind. A lot of teams tried to freeze the ball and we stole it.”

 

BART JOHNSON

Bart Johnson, 70, White Sox pitcher 1969-1977 (April 22).

Ben Johnson, 88, Cubs pitcher 1959-1960 (May 8).

Lou Johnson, 86, Cubs outfielder 1960, 1968 (September 30).

 

JAY JOHNSTONE

Jay Johnstone, 74, White Sox outfielder 1971-1972; Cubs outfielder 1982-1984 (September 26).

Howie Judson, 94, White Sox pitcher 1948-1952 (August 18).

Matt Keough, 64, Cubs pitcher 1986 (May 1).

Don Larsen, 90, Cubs pitcher 1967 (January 1).

Phil Maloney, 92, Blackhawks center 1958-1960 (February 21).

John Matias, 75, White Sox outfielder/first baseman 1970 (April 7).

 

MICHAEL McCASKEY

Michael McCaskey, 76, Bears president 1983-1998; Bears chairman 1999-2011 (May 16).

Lindy McDaniel, 84, Cubs pitcher 1963-1965, National League Fireman of the Year 1963 (November 14).

Jeannie Morris, 85, Chicago sports journalist and broadcaster (December 14).

Howard Mudd, 78, Bears guard 1969-1970 (August 12).

 

MARKUS PAUL

 

Markus Paul, 54, Bears safety, 1989-1993 (November 25).

Don Pavletich, 81, White Sox catcher 1969 (March 5).

Mary Pratt, 101, Rockford Peaches (AAGPBL) pitcher 1943-1944 and 1946-1947 (May 6).

Jack Rosenberg, 94, WGN television and radio sports editor for more than forty years (December 27).

Eldred “Salty” Saltwell, 97, Cubs general manager 1976 (May 3).

 

GALE SAYERS

Gale Sayers, 77, Bears running back 1965-1971, nicknamed “the Kansas Comet,” NFL Rookie of the Year 1965, NFL leading scorer 1965, NFL leading rusher 1969, five-time All-Pro, four-time Pro Bowl, Pro Football Hall of Fame 1977, uniform number 40 retired in 1994, ranked No. 4 among Chicago Tribune 100 greatest Bears of all time in 2019 (September 23). “He looks no different than any other back when he’s coming at you,” 49ers defensive back George Donnelly said of Sayers, “but when he gets there he’s gone.”

 

TOM SEAVER

Tom Seaver, 75, White Sox pitcher 1984-1986, won his 300th career game for Sox in 1985; National Baseball Hall of Fame 1992 (August 31). “It was apparent in Tom Seaver’s minor-league debut that he was ready for the majors,” said Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver. “He had an excellent fastball and slider, and he put them precisely where he wanted to.”

Dick Scott, 86, Cubs pitcher 1964 (February 16).

 

JERRY SLOAN

Jerry Sloan, 78, Bulls guard 1966-1976, nicknamed “the Original Bull” and “Mr. Chicago Bull,” two-time All-Star, six-time All-Defensive team, uniform number 4 retired in 1978; Bulls head coach 1979-1982; Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame 2009 (May 22). “The fans responded to the kind of team we were,” Sloan said of the early Bulls, “because Chicago is a blue-collar city, and the players were much the same way.”

 

PAT STAPLETON

Pat “Whitey” Stapleton, 79, Blackhawks defenseman 1965-1973, captain 1969-1970, three-time All-Star; Chicago Cougars (WHA) defenseman and head coach 1973-1975; Cougars co-owner 1974-1975 (April 9). “He possessed superior acumen while defending,” wrote Bob Verdi, “but was also gifted at generating rushes. In 1968-69, he garnered 50 assists, a National Hockey League record [for defensemen] at the time.”

 

ROOSEVELT TAYLOR

Roosevelt “Rosey” Taylor, 82, Bears safety 1961-1969, All-Pro 1963, Pro Bowl 1963 and 1968, led NFL in interceptions 1963, member of 1963 world championship team, ranked No. 43 among Chicago Tribune 100 greatest Bears of all time in 2019 (May 29). “Bear opponents have learned, to their dismay, that the odds somehow seem to favor Taylor in a battle for the ball,” Cooper Rollow of the Tribune wrote. “Several reasons have been cited for this edge— competitive instinct, eyesight, reflexes—but the key may be Taylor’s tremendous jumping ability.”

Tony Taylor, 84, Cubs second baseman 1958-1960 (July 16).

Earl Thomas, 71, Bears wide receiver/tight end 1971-1973 (July 4).

Claudell Washington, 65, White Sox outfielder 1978-1980 (June 10).

 

RYAN WETNIGHT

Ryan Wetnight, 49, Bears tight end 1993-1999 (May 1).

George Yankowski, 97, White Sox catcher 1949 (February 25).

 

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