Robert DeLafayette Jeter, Jr. (May 9, 1937 – November 20, 2008) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

and the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

Early years

Jeter was raised in

Weirton, West Virginia Weirton () is a city in Brooke and Hancock counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Located primarily in Hancock County, the city lies in the northern portions of the state's Northern Panhandle region. As of the 2020 census, the city's pop ...

, where he attended the segregated local school, Dunbar High School, until after his junior year in 1954. He then attended Weir High School and was a football standout his senior year in the fall of 1955. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

. As a halfback with the Hawkeyes, Jeter rushed for a Rose Bowl record 194 yards on just nine carries against

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

as a junior in the

1959 Rose Bowl The 1959 Rose Bowl was the 45th edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, on Thursday, January 1. The heavily-favored and second-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes of the Big Ten Conference defeated the #16 Cal ...

. This total included an 81-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, another record. As a result of this performance, he was the named the game's MVP, and Iowa finished as runner-up in the AP poll. He was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame in 1994.

Professional career

Selected by the Packers in the second round of the

1960 NFL draft The 1960 National Football League Draft in which NFL teams take turns selecting amateur college American football players and other first-time eligible players, was held at the Warwick Hotel in Philadelphia on November 30, 1959. Many players, in ...

, Jeter began his pro career in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

with the

British Columbia Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions played their first season ...

. He was used in Canada as a running back in

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...

and

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba ( Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 ...

, backing up CFL legend and former Iowa teammate

Willie Fleming Willie Fleming (born February 2, 1939) is a former professional Canadian football player with the Canadian Football League's BC Lions. Fleming played collegiately as a halfback at the University of Iowa, where he was a member of the Hawkeyes' ...

. Still under contract in Canada, Jeter spent the

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wors ...

season on the Packers'

taxi squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

, saw limited action as a wide receiver in 1963 and 1964, and was moved to defensive back in 1965. Jeter was part of the Packer teams that won an unprecedented three consecutive NFL championship games and the first two

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...

Herb Adderley Herbert Anthony Adderley (June 8, 1939 – October 30, 2020) was an American professional football player who was a cornerback for the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). In 1980, he was enshrined in th ...

and Jeter formed one of the greatest cornerback duos in football history. During this time, Packers defense led the league in fewest points allowed in

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

and , fewest total yards allowed in

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

and

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

, and fewest passing yards allowed from 1964 to 1968. Prior to the

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

training camp under new head coach

Dan Devine Daniel John Devine (December 23, 1924 – May 9, 2002) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Arizona State University from 1955 to 1957, the University of Missouri from 1958 to 1970, and the Univers ...

, Jeter was traded to the

, where he finished his career in

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...

. In eleven NFL seasons, Jeter had 26 interceptions for 333 yards and two touchdowns. He also had two receptions for 25 yards. He was inducted into the Packer Hall of Fame in 1985.

After football

Jeter had worked in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

for the Chicago Park District alongside former Big Ten (Illinois) grappler Patrick Heffernan, coordinating citywide sporting events for kids. He also was a warehouse planner for a food company. His son,

Rob Jeter Robert DeLafayette Jeter III (born May 15, 1969) is an American college basketball coach and current head coach at Western Illinois. Personal life Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Jeter grew up in Chicago. His father, Bob (1937–2008), was a R ...

, was the head coach of the men's basketball team at the

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UW–Milwaukee, UWM, or Milwaukee) is a public urban research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is the largest university in the Milwaukee metropolitan area and a member of the University of Wiscons ...

. His brother,

Tony Jeter Tony Jeter (born September 8, 1944) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL). Biography Jeter was born Anthony John Jeter on September 8, 1944, in Steubenville, Ohio. He is the ...

, played at

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

and two seasons at tight end with the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

. Jeter died at age 71 in 2008 in Chicago of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jeter, Bob 1937 births 2008 deaths People from Union, South Carolina People from Weirton, West Virginia Players of American football from West Virginia American football cornerbacks Iowa Hawkeyes football players Green Bay Packers players Chicago Bears players Western Conference Pro Bowl players American players of Canadian football Canadian football running backs BC Lions players