Hall of Fame Professional Football Player. For twenty-six seasons (1949 to 1975), he played at the quarterback and place-kicker positions in the National and American Football Leagues with the Chicago Bears, Baltimore Colts, Houston Oilers and Oakland Raiders. Born George Frederick Blanda, he attended Youngwood High School (Pennsylvania), and played collegiate football at the University of Kentucky. Selected by the Bears during the 12th round of the 1949 NFL Draft, he appeared in 340 career regular season NFL and AFL games, recording 26,920 passing yards, with 236 touchdowns, retiring with a then-record of 2,002 points. Blanda led the NFL in pass completions in 1953 with 169, led the AFL twice in passing yardage (1961 with 3,330 and 1963 with 3,003), in touchdowns (1961 with 36), and three-times in passing completions (1963 with 224, 1964 with 262 and 1965 with 186). He was a member of two consecutive AFL championship teams (1960 and 1961 Oilers), and earned AFL Player of the Year honors in 1961. He was a part of the Raiders' squad which captured the 1967 AFL Championship title, and appeared in Super Bowl II (defeated by Green Bay 33 to 14) in January 1968. In addition, he achieved AFL Pro Bowl status four-times (1961 to 1963, 1967). Blanda may be best remembered by many for his heroics during a five game stretch of the 1970 season with the Raiders, recording last minute touchdowns or field goals, as Oakland posted a 4 win 1 tie record during that run; he received AFC Player of the Year honors that season. He retired just shy of his 49th birthday in 1976. He was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1981, and was named to the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame in 1989. Following his playing career, he served as a motivational speaker.