Jim Callahan (born July 29, 1946, in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

) is 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 with ...

player and author who currently resides in

Anna Maria, Florida Anna Maria is a city in Manatee County, Florida, United States. The population was 968 at the 2020 census, down from 1,503 in 2010. The city occupies the northern part of Anna Maria Island and is one of three municipalities on the island. The ...

. Callahan was selected in the eighth round of the

1969 NFL Draft The 1969 National Football League draft was part of the common draft, the third and final year in which the NFL and American Football League (AFL) held a joint draft of college players. The draft took place January 28–29, 1969. The draft beg ...

by the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

. Callahan was recruited out of college by future NFL general manager

Bobby Beathard Robert King Beathard Jr. ( ; born January 24, 1937) is an American former football executive who was a general manager in the National Football League (NFL). Over the course of his 38 years in the NFL, his teams competed in seven Super Bowls (win ...

and signed a contract with the Falcons one month later. Callahan played wide receiver at

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

for the

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

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 1968 football teamsg under head coach

George Makris George Makris (August 29, 1920 – October 16, 2005) was an American football coach. He served as the 18th head coach at Temple University in Philadelphia. He held that position for ten seasons, from 1960 until 1969, compiling a record of was 45 ...

. Prior to enrollment at Temple University, Callahan earned first team All-Catholic League honors at

Cardinal Dougherty High School upright=1.35, CDHS marching band at the World Music Championship 1966 Cardinal Dougherty High School (CDHS) was a private, Roman Catholic high school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphi ...

. Callahan scored a

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

the first 10 times he touched the football in intercollegiate play, leading the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' to report facetiously that "Jim Callahan of Temple is in a slump" after the 11th reception of his career did not go for a touchdown. When his college career ended, Callahan held

Temple Owls football The Temple Owls football team represents Temple University in the sport of college football. The Temple Owls compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the American Athletic Conference (The American). They play thei ...

records for most career points (218), most points in a season (86 in 1968), most points in a game (30 verses

Bucknell University Bucknell University is a private liberal arts college in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1846 as the University at Lewisburg, it now consists of the College of Arts and Sciences, Freeman College of Management, and the College of Engineering. ...

in 1966), most career touchdowns (36), most touchdowns in a season (14 in 1968), most career receptions (105), most receptions in a season (57 in 1968), most career receiving yards (1,848), most receiving yards in a season (786 in 1968), and most career receiving touchdowns (36). Callahan also was on the receiving end of the longest pass play in Temple history; a 90-yard pass thrown by

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

John Waller against

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston. Established in 1898, the university offers undergraduate and graduate programs on its main campus as well as satellite campuses in ...

in 1968. His five touchdown receptions against Bucknell in 1966, the most touchdown receptions for one game in Temple history, helped the Owls defeat Bucknell for the first time in 12 years. After college, Callahan spent the 1969 pre-season with the

, but he was placed on waivers on September 1, 1969. He spent the remainder of the 1969 season with the

Alabama Hawks The Alabama Hawks were a professional American football team based in Huntsville, Alabama. They were members of various minor league football circuits in the 1960s: the Southern Football League (1963–64); the North American Football League ...

of the

Continental Football League The Continental Football League (COFL) was a professional American football minor league that operated in North America from 1965 through 1969. It was established following the collapse of the original United Football League, and hoped to beco ...

; a

farm team In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

located in

Huntsville, Alabama Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in t ...

. He was inducted into the Temple University

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

in 1981. Callahan authored the book ''WALLS'' in 1993 (with a revised edition in 1996). According to Callahan, ''WALLS'' is "based on the belief that life is not a series of unrelated random events. There is a process to how people gather and evaluate information and make the choices that direct their life. WALLS offers an opportunity for you to step out of your daily routine and explore some issues that have a tremendous impact on how you direct your life toward the outcome you desire."

References

External links

*http://www.amazon.com/Walls-James-J-Jr-Callahan/dp/0963627015 *http://owlsports.com/hof.aspx?hof=234&path=&kiosk= {{DEFAULTSORT:Callahan, Jim Living people 1946 births Temple Owls football players American football wide receivers People from Cheltenham, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Philadelphia People from Anna Maria, Florida Players of American football from Manatee County, Florida