John Eldon Zook (September 24, 1947 – June 6, 2020) was an American professional football player who was a

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is ...

for 12 seasons 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). He played for 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 ha ...

and the Atlanta Falcons. Zook played college football for the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

. Zook was born in Garden City, Kansas, and grew up in Zook and Larned. He was a three-year letterman, was picked twice for all-conference honors, anchoring one of the top defensive units ever taking the field at KU. He was an honorable mention All-American in 1967 and was a consensus

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

honors as the Jayhawks' defensive standout on the 1968 Orange Bowl-bound team, the year KU was named No. 6 by the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. ne ...

. Zook had 202 total tackles during his career, putting him at No. 4 on KU's all-time defensive line list. KU Coach

Pepper Rodgers Franklin Cullen "Pepper" Rodgers (October 8, 1931 – May 14, 2020) was an American football player and coach. As a college football player, he led the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets to an undefeated season in 1952 and later became their head ...

said Zook "never played but full speed from snap one to snap hundred. He was the most full-speed player on every snap that you could imagine." He was also chosen in the KU All-Time team by the ''

Lawrence Journal-World The ''Lawrence Journal-World'' is a daily newspaper published in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, by Ogden Newspapers. History Though the ''Journal-World'' title came into existence in 1911, the paper dates itself to 1858, according to the v ...

''. Zook was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the 4th round (99th overall) 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 be ...

. He was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles and then by the Eagles to the Atlanta Falcons, where began his NFL career in 1969. Zook played 144 games in the NFL and was a Second-team

All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list t ...

selection in 1973. He had been a Second-team All-NFC selection in 1972 and 1973 and was voted to the 1973 Pro Bowl. Zook was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1976 and finished his career there. Zook recorded the first ever safety for the Falcons franchise. Zook died on June 6, 2020 in Kansas.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zook, John 1947 births 2020 deaths People from Garden City, Kansas All-American college football players American football defensive ends Kansas Jayhawks football players University of Kansas alumni Los Angeles Rams players Atlanta Falcons players St. Louis Cardinals (football) players National Conference Pro Bowl players Players of American football from Kansas