Jim Ambrose (c. 1930 – September 10, 1953) was a professional

Canadian football Canadian football () is a team sport, sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's sco ...

tackle. He played in 30 games for the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the Canadian F ...

of the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union (IRFU) from 1950 to 1952.

Early career

Ambrose played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

West Hill High School West Hill High School was the name of two former schools in the neighbourhood of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce (NDG) in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The first West Hill High School was opened in 1919 by the Coteau St. Pierre School Commission on West Hill ...

before playing for the Notre-Dame-de-Grace Maple Leafs (NDG Maple Leafs) of the Quebec Senior Football League. He played as the modern equivalent of both an

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

and

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

under the

one-platoon system The one-platoon system, also known as iron man football, is a platoon system in American football where players play on both offense and defense. It was the result of smaller roster sizes in the early days of the game and rules that limited player ...

. His performance with the Maple Leafs was described as "outstanding" in the ''

Ottawa Journal The ''Ottawa Journal'' was a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, from 1885 to 1980. It was founded in 1885 by A. Woodburn as the ''Ottawa Evening Journal''. Its first editor was John Wesley Dafoe who came from the ...

'', resulting in Ambrose's promotion into the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union.

Professional career

Ambrose was signed by the Montreal Alouettes in 1950 after his performance as a junior football player attracted attention. In addition to his role as a tackle, Ambrose occasionally acted as a

placekicker Placekicker, or simply kicker (PK or K), is the player in gridiron football who is responsible for the kicking duties of field goals and extra points. In many cases, the placekicker also serves as the team's kickoff specialist or punter. Spe ...

for the Alouettes. A forum of quarterbacks named Ambrose the most likely to win the rookie of the year award in November due to his status as "about the only one of the slim rookie crop to see much action". The Alouettes re-signed Ambrose in July 1952.

Later career and death

After the 1952 season, Ambrose joined the Lakeshore Flyers of the Intermediate Quebec Rugby Football Union as a player-coach, coaching the linemen in addition to playing for the team. He collapsed during a game in September and later died. His death initially generated some controversy as a football injury was considered a potential cause of death, but this was ruled out quickly by medical examiners. His death was later attributed to

encephalitis Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain. The severity can be variable with symptoms including reduction or alteration in consciousness, headache, fever, confusion, a stiff neck, and vomiting. Complications may include seizures, hallucinations, ...

(inflammation of the brain) caused by a viral infection.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ambrose, Jim 1930s births 1953 deaths Canadian football tackles Montreal Alouettes players Infectious disease deaths in Ontario Sport deaths in Canada Players of Canadian football from Ontario Canadian football people from Ottawa