James Michael Weatherwax (born January 9, 1943) 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. He played professionally as a

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 ...

in 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 ...

(NFL) for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

. 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 ...

San Bernardino Valley College San Bernardino Valley College is a public community college in San Bernardino, California. It is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. The college has an enrollment of 17,044 students and covers . Valley College is also a ...

California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public university in Los Angeles, California. It is part of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degrees, 122 master's degrees, ...

and

West Texas A&M University West Texas A&M University (WTAMU or WT) is a public university in Canyon, Texas. It is the northernmost campus of the Texas A&M University System and accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). It was established on Se ...

. Weatherwax was drafted by the Packers in the 11th round with the 150th overall pick of the

1965 NFL draft The 1965 National Football League draft was held at the Summit Hotel in New York City on Saturday, November 28, 1964. The first player selected was Tucker Frederickson, back from Auburn, by the New York Giants. The draft was marked by the failur ...

. He played 34 games during three seasons, 1966, 1967, and 1969, with Green Bay. Weatherwax was a member of Green Bay's

Super Bowl I The first AFL–NFL World Championship Game (known retroactively as Super BowlI and referred to in contemporaneous reports, including the game's radio broadcast, as the Super Bowl) was an American football game played on January 15, 1967, at the ...

and

Super Bowl II The second AFL-NFL World Championship Game (known retroactively as Super Bowl II) was an American football game played on January 14, 1968, at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida. The National Football League (NFL)'s defending champion Green Bay P ...

championship teams.

Football career

Weatherwax played basketball under

Jerry Tarkanian Jerry Tarkanian (August 8, 1930 – February 11, 2015) was an American basketball coach. He coached college basketball for 31 seasons over five decades at three schools. He spent the majority of his career coaching with the UNLV Runnin' Rebe ...

Redlands High School Redlands High School is a high school located in Redlands, California, alongside Redlands East Valley High School and Citrus Valley High School. It is the oldest Californian public high school still functioning on its original site. History T ...

and also played football. A two-way player, Weatherwax was named to the

San Bernardino County San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 2,181, ...

all-star team in 1960. He grew ten inches between his sophomore and senior years. In college, Weatherwax started at the two-year

and later stopped at

and Cal State-Los Angeles. Weatherwax was drafted in the 11th round (150th overall) of the

1966 NFL Draft The 1966 National Football League draft was held at the Summit Hotel in New York City on Saturday, November 27, 1965. The expansion Atlanta Falcons were awarded the first pick in each round as well as the final pick in each of the first five rou ...

by the

. He was also drafted by the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

in that year's

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. ...

draft. Weatherwax chose Green Bay for its recent success, claiming that it wasn't much of a choice to make. During his sophomore season in 1967, Weatherwax broke the starting lineup for three games after injuries to the two players above him on the depth chart,

Lionel Aldridge Lionel Aldridge (February 14, 1941 – February 12, 1998) was an American professional football player,''Total Football II: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League.'' New York: HarperCollins, 1999. 553. a defensive end in the Nat ...

and

Bob Brown Robert James Brown (born 27 December 1944) is a former Australian politician, medical doctor and environmentalist. He was a senator and the parliamentary leader of the Australian Greens. Brown was elected to the Australian Senate on the Tasman ...

. Weatherwax played through broken ribs in the 1967 season at the behest of coach

Vince Lombardi Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized a ...

. He played in both

and

as a reserve. Weatherwax saw playing time on the defensive line and on special teams. He was credited with making the first tackle in Super Bowl history with a tackle on the opening kickoff return in Super Bowl I. He did not play in 1968 after having knee surgery in September; he returned to practice the following July. After the 1969 season, Weatherwax was out of the NFL due to knee injuries. Green Bay waived him on September 3, 1970 and 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 hav ...

conditionally picked Weatherwax up, although he failed a physical and the team declined to sign him.

After football

Weatherwax postponed his wedding, initially scheduled for December 1966, due to the Packers deep playoff run that season. After his football career was over, Weatherwax worked as a manager and was part owner of a Marie Callendar's restaurant in

El Toro, California Lake Forest is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 85,858 at the 2020 census. Lake Forest incorporated as a city on December 20, 1991. Prior to incorporation, the community had been known as El Toro. Following a vote in 20 ...

. Weatherwax moved to

Loveland, Colorado The City of Loveland is the home rule municipality that is the second most populous municipality in Larimer County, Colorado, United States. Loveland is situated north of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver and is the 14th most populous city ...

, and became an avid bass fisherman.

References

External links

Cal State-Los Angeles HOF profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weatherwax, Jim 1943 births Living people American football defensive tackles Cal State Los Angeles Diablos football players Green Bay Packers players West Texas A&M Buffaloes football players People from Porterville, California Sportspeople from Redlands, California Players of American football from San Bernardino County, California People from Loveland, Colorado Players of American football from Tulare County, California