Gregory Steven Wojcik (January 7, 1946 – December 17, 2005) was a former

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 wi ...

player who played with the Los Angeles Rams and the San Diego Chargers of 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 ...

. He also played for the

Orange County Ramblers The Orange County Ramblers were a professional football team that competed in the Continental Football League from 1967 to 1968. The Ramblers played their home games in Santa Ana, California and Anaheim, California. The team was coached both seaso ...

of the Continental Football League, for the Richmond Saints of the

Atlantic Coast Football League The Atlantic Coast Football League (ACFL) was a professional american football minor league that operated from 1962 to 1973. Until 1969, many of its franchises had working agreements with NFL and AFL teams to serve as farm clubs. The league paid ...

, and for the

Hawaiians Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, First Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians) ( haw, kānaka, , , and ), are the indigenous ethnic group of Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaii ...

of the World Football League. He played college football at USC.

College football career

Wojcik first enrolled at Orange Coast College, a community college in Costa Mesa, California. He spent two years at Orange Coast before enrolling at the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

, where he played for the

Trojans Trojan or Trojans may refer to: * Of or from the ancient city of Troy * Trojan language, the language of the historical Trojans Arts and entertainment Music * '' Les Troyens'' ('The Trojans'), an opera by Berlioz, premiered part 1863, part 189 ...

for one year in 1965. His college football career was cut short due to injury, as he missed the entire 1966 season.

Professional football career

Orange County Ramblers

Wojcik, who went undrafted in the 1967 NFL Draft, joined the local

for their inaugural season in the Continental Football League, playing

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

. He remained with the team for their second and final season in 1968, playing

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is ...

that year.

New Orleans Saints

On May 13, 1970, Wojcik signed with the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

. He was waived three months later on August 13, and joined the Saints' minor league affiliate, the Richmond Saints of the

. He played defensive tackle while with the Richmond Saints.

Los Angeles Rams

On September 22, 1971, Wojcik signed with the Los Angeles Rams of the

. He played in ten games with the Rams in 1971 and recorded half a sack.

San Diego Chargers (first stint)

On January 29, 1972, the Rams traded Wojcik along with

Deacon Jones David D. "Deacon" Jones (December 9, 1938 – June 3, 2013) was an American professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams, San Diego Chargers, and the Washington Redskins. H ...

and Lee White to the Chargers for

Jeff Staggs Jeffrey Hugh Staggs (May 14, 1944 - September 17, 2014) was an American college and professional football player who played for the San Diego State Aztecs and San Diego Chargers. Early life Staggs was born in Elgin, Illinois and raised in San ...

, a

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

second-round pick (30th overall–

Jim Bertelsen James Allen Bertelsen (February 26, 1950 – May 7, 2021) was an American professional football player who was a running back for five seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Los Angeles Rams. He played college football for the ...

) and

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: ...

second- and third-round picks (31st and 60th overall–

Cullen Bryant William Cullen Bryant (May 20, 1951 – October 13, 2009) was a professional American football player who spent thirteen seasons in the National Football League (NFL) as a running back and return specialist for the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Sea ...

and Tim Stokes respectively). During the

season, Wojcik played in seven games with two starts at left defensive tackle. He recorded two sacks. In

, Wojcik was moved to right defensive tackle and played ten games at the position, recording another two sacks.

The Hawaiians

On May 2, 1974, Wojcik signed with The Hawaiians of the World Football League. He played

and defensive tackle with the team, which made it to the

World Bowl The World Bowl was the annual American football championship game of the World League of American Football/NFL Europe. The World Bowl was played each year from 1991 to 2007 (except 1993 and 1994). The game was conceived as the final of the NFL-r ...

semifinals.

Chicago Bears

On July 10, 1975, Wojcik signed with the Chicago Bears.

St. Louis Cardinals

On July 30, 1975, the Bears traded Wojcik to the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

in exchange for center Wes Miller. He was released on September 15.

San Diego Chargers (second stint)

On October 29, 1975, Wojcik signed with the San Diego Chargers for a second time. He played six games with the team at defensive tackle in

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

before his release on December 1, 1976.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wojcik, Greg 1946 births 2005 deaths American football centers American football defensive ends American football defensive tackles Atlantic Coast Football League players Chicago Bears players Continental Football League players Los Angeles Rams players New Orleans Saints players Players of American football from North Dakota San Diego Chargers players St. Louis Cardinals (football) players The Hawaiians players USC Trojans football players Huntington Beach High School alumni Players of American football from Huntington Beach, California