Richard Thomas Swatland (October 8, 1945 – April 9, 2022) was an American football

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

who played one season in the

American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...

(AFL) for the Houston Oilers. 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 Notre Dame and was selected in the 8th round (195th overall) of the

1968 NFL/AFL Draft The 1968 National Football League draft was part of the common draft, in the second year in which the NFL and AFL held a joint draft of college players. It took place at the Belmont Plaza Hotel in New York City on January 30–31, 1968. The Minn ...

by the New Orleans Saints. Swatland also spent time with the

Bridgeport Jets The Bridgeport Jets were a minor league American football team based in Bridgeport, Connecticut. They began play in the Atlantic Coast Football League in 1966 as the Waterbury Orbits. The Orbits, already officially affiliated with the New York J ...

of the Atlantic Coast Football League (ACFL), the Washington Redskins and

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

of the National Football League (NFL), and the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Tim Hortons Fiel ...

of the Canadian Football League (CFL).

Early life and education

Swatland was born on October 8, 1945, in

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 2020 ...

. He attended Stamford Catholic High School, where he was named all-state and All-American as a

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

in 1963. Swatland played

at Notre Dame. As a

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ara ...

, he missed the entire football season. In his second year, Swatland became the team's starting right guard, though he could also play at left guard. In 1966, he was a starter on Notre Dame's undefeated national championship team. As a senior in

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 ...

, Swatland was named second-team All-American by the

Central Press Association The Central Press Association was American newspaper syndication company based in Cleveland, Ohio. It was in business from 1910 to 1971. Originally independent, it was a subsidiary of King Features Syndicate from 1930 onwards. At its peak, the ...

Professional career

Swatland was selected in the 8th round (195th overall) of the

by the New Orleans Saints. He signed a contract with the Saints in early June. He was released by the Saints in mid-August, but was recommended to play with their farm team, the

Richmond Roadrunners The Richmond Roadrunners/Richmond Saints were an Atlantic Coast Football League team that played four seasons from 1967 to 1970. They were affiliated with the New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football tea ...

. Rather than play for the Roadrunners, Swatland signed a practice squad contract with the Houston Oilers along with

Jim LeMoine James Douglas LeMoine (born April 29, 1945) is a former American football offensive guard who played three seasons in the American Football League (AFL) for the Buffalo Bills and Houston Oilers. He played tight end in college at Utah State U ...

. He was later promoted to the active roster to be the backup to

Tom Regner Thomas Eugene Regner (April 19, 1944 – November 13, 2014) was a professional American football player who played guard for six seasons for the Houston Oilers and was an All-American offensive lineman for the University of Notre Dame. He was tra ...

, one of his teammates at Notre Dame. Overall, Swatland appeared in four games in the 1968 season, starting none. He wore number 64 with the Oilers. Despite being "almost assured of a job" after

Sonny Bishop Ervin Wilfred "Sonny" Bishop (born October 1, 1939 in Winner, South Dakota) is a former college and Professional Football player. An offensive lineman, he played college football at Fresno State University, and played professionally in the Ameri ...

retired, Swatland was released as part of the final roster cuts in

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

. On October 6, it was announced that he had joined the

of the Atlantic Coast Football League (ACFL). In , Swatland was signed by the Washington Redskins, but did not make their final roster. In , Swatland signed with the

, but was placed on the injury waiver list and was released in August. After being released by the Patriots, Swatland signed with the

of the Canadian Football League (CFL), but quit midseason. "On my way home I stopped at Niagara Falls and threw my spikes over the falls. I had enough," he later said.

Later life and death

Swatland later became a real estate lawyer. He died on April 9, 2022, at the age of 76.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Swatland, Dick 1945 births 2022 deaths American football offensive guards Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players New Orleans Saints players Houston Oilers players Atlantic Coast Football League players Washington Redskins players New England Patriots players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Sportspeople from Stamford, Connecticut Players of American football from Fairfield County, Connecticut Connecticut lawyers