John David Roberts (October 24, 1932 – May 25, 2021) was an American

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...

and professional football coach. He was the head coach of 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 ...

of the

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(NFL) from the middle of the 1970 season until his dismissal after four preseason games in

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: ...

. He played college ball for the

Oklahoma Sooners The Oklahoma Sooners are the athletic teams that represent the University of Oklahoma, located in Norman. The 19 men's and women's varsity teams are called the "Sooners", a reference to a nickname given to the early participants in the Land Ru ...

Early life and high school

Roberts was born in Oklahoma City, but moved to Dallas at the age of 6. Even as a youth, he had interest in football: he and one of his friends sold programs before football games at the Cotton Bowl stadium in Dallas. He played three years of football on both offense and defense at Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas, from which he graduated in 1950. He was named to the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame in 1994. Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas added him to their Hall of Fame in 1999.

College

Roberts played as a guard on offense and defense for the

University of Oklahoma , mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State" , type = Public research university , established = , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.7billion (2021) , pr ...

. He won the

Outland Trophy The Outland Trophy is awarded to the best college football interior lineman in the United States as adjudged by the Football Writers Association of America. It is named after John H. Outland. One of only a few players ever to be named an All-Am ...

as the nation's top college lineman in 1953. That same year, he was a consensus All-America selection. He went on to be named to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1993. He finished 8th in the Heisman Trophy vote in 1953.

Coaching

Roberts was chosen in the 17th round (195th overall) of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. However, he never played in a regular season NFL game. He served as a lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps and played for the Quantico Marines football team in 1955. A leg injury in 1956 ended his playing career and he instead served as an assistant to Quantico head coach Hal Harwood. After leaving the Marines, Roberts served as an assistant football coach at the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado. Founded in 1864, it is the oldest independent private university in the Rocky Mountain Region of the United States. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univ ...

, the U.S. Naval Academy, Auburn University, and the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the university in Texas with over 47,000 students. Its campus, which is primarily in s ...

. In 1967 he became a scout and linebackers coach for the New Orleans Saints. He then served as head coach of the Saints'

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 ...

affiliate, 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 ...

until he was hired to coach the Saints. Roberts was hired by Saints owner John Mecom on November 3, 1970, replacing

Tom Fears Thomas Jesse Fears (December 3, 1922 – January 4, 2000) was a Mexican-American professional football player who was a split end for the Los Angeles Rams in the National Football League (NFL), playing nine seasons from 1948 to 1956. He was lat ...

after New Orleans began

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with a 1–5–1 record. His first game came five days later at

Tulane Stadium Tulane Stadium was an outdoor football stadium that stood in New Orleans from 1926 to 1980. It was officially the Third Tulane Stadium and replaced the "Second Tulane Stadium", which was located where the Telephone Exchange Building is now. Th ...

against the Detroit Lions. The Saints won 19–17 when

Tom Dempsey Thomas John Dempsey (January 12, 1947April 4, 2020) was an American professional football player who was a placekicker in the National Football League (NFL) for the New Orleans Saints, Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Rams, Houston Oilers and ...

kicked a field goal, a record which broke the previous NFL mark by seven yards. Dempsey's record was tied by

Jason Elam Jason Elam (born March 8, 1970) is a former American football placekicker. He was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the third round of the 1993 NFL Draft and played 15 seasons with the Broncos and two with the Atlanta Falcons. A three-time Pro Bo ...

of the

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in 1998,

Sebastian Janikowski Sebastian Paweł Janikowski (; born March 2, 1978) is a Polish former American football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Oakland Raiders. He played college football at Florida State ...

of the Oakland Raiders in 2011, and

David Akers David Roy Akers (; born December 9, 1974) is an American former football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles. He began his career in 1998 with the Washington Redski ...

of the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

in 2012, but nobody had bettered the mark until December 8, 2013 when

Matt Prater Matthew Phillip Prater (born August 10, 1984) is an American football placekicker for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). Regarded as one of the best long distance kickers in NFL history, he held the NFL record for lon ...

of the Denver Broncos successfully made a field goal. The Saints' success did not carry over following Dempsey's miracle kick. A 21–10 loss the next week to the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...

started a six-game losing streak which left the Saints with a 2–11–1 mark for the season. With the second pick in the

1971 NFL Draft The 1971 National Football League draft was held January 28–29, 1971, at the Belmont Plaza Hotel in New York City, New York. The Boston Patriots, who did not officially change their name to New England Patriots until after the draft, used th ...

, Roberts and Mecom selected Ole Miss quarterback

Archie Manning Elisha Archibald Manning III (born May 19, 1949) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the New Orleans Saints. He played for the Saints from 1971 to 1982 and al ...

, who became the cornerstone for the woebegone franchise for the next decade. In Manning's first NFL game, his two-yard touchdown run on the game's final play gave the Saints a 24–20 victory over the Los Angeles Rams, the same team which defeated the Saints in the franchise's first game in 1967. Four weeks later, the Saints stunned the eventual Super Bowl champion

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...

24–14, but New Orleans finished the season 4–8–2. New Orleans regressed sharply in 1972, falling back to 2–11–1, and Roberts was fired shortly after a 31–6 preseason loss to the New England Patriots on August 25, 1973.

Post-coaching

Roberts went on to run an oil and gas business in Oklahoma City.

Head coaching record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, J. D. 1932 births 2021 deaths All-American college football players Auburn Tigers football coaches Denver Pioneers football coaches Houston Cougars football coaches Navy Midshipmen football coaches New Orleans Saints coaches Oklahoma Sooners football coaches Quantico Marines Devil Dogs football coaches American football offensive guards Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas alumni Military personnel from Oklahoma Oklahoma Sooners football players Quantico Marines Devil Dogs football players Players of American football from Oklahoma Sportspeople from Oklahoma City College Football Hall of Fame inductees Coaches of American football from Oklahoma New Orleans Saints head coaches