Joseph John Zaleski (March 19, 1927 – September 10, 2016) was a Canadian football player and coach.

Early life, education and Marine Corps service

Zaleski was born in New Kensington, Pennsylvania in 1927 and attended Warren Consolidated High School in Tiltonsville, Ohio.Joseph Zaleski
''Legacy.com website'' (obituary). After graduating from high school, he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and was stationed at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. While in the Marine Corps, he deployed to Okinawa in the aftermath of World War II. After leaving the Marine Corps, he attended the University of Dayton from 1947 to 1951, where he played on the football team as the starting quarterback for two years. As a senior, he was voted

most valuable player In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

in 1950. He graduated in 1951 with a Bachelor of Science in education.

Career

After signing with the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

one season, without appearing in a game, Zaleski signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Western Interprovincial Football Union in 1952. He played there for two years as the backup quarterback and a defensive back, where he was regarded for his ball handling abilities. In 1955, he then signed with the Montreal Alouettes, where he played for one season as reserve quarterback. The following year, in May 1956, Zaleski moved to the Ontario Rugby Football Union where he was a player-coach for the Sarnia Golden Bears, remaining there for two years, leaving in 1957. In 1958, Zaleski was hired as an assistant coach for his former team, the Blue Bombers, winning the Grey Cup in

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba ( Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 ...

and

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wors ...

. He remained in this position with Winnipeg until 1967 when he was named the team's head coach, replacing Bud Grant. As head coach, he compiled a record of 10–37–1 over three seasons and was eventually fired on November 20, 1969. In 1970, he was hired as an assistant coach for the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Commo ...

, a position he retained for two seasons, with him being fired along with another assistant,

Al Benecick Al Benecick (March 20, 1937 – September 29, 2015) was a Canadian Football League offensive lineman who played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders from 1959 through 1968. He was part of the Grey Cup championship-winning Saskatchewan Roughrider ...

, on January 3, 1972. He married Louise Ann Savanyo of Tiltonsville, Ohio, around 1952 with whom he had five children, including a son, Slater, who played in the CFL. She died in Edmonton on November 8, 2013. Zaleski died on September 10, 2016, aged 89.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zaleski, Joe 1927 births 2016 deaths American football quarterbacks Players of Canadian football from Pennsylvania Canadian football quarterbacks Canadian people of American descent Dayton Flyers football players Edmonton Elks coaches Montreal Alouettes players Winnipeg Blue Bombers coaches Winnipeg Blue Bombers players Ontario Rugby Football Union players People from New Kensington, Pennsylvania Sportspeople from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Pennsylvania United States Marines