Richard Dominic Mauti (born May 25, 1954) 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 ...

wide receiver and

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

player who played professionally 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

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

and the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

. 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 ...

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campu ...

. In six seasons with the New Orleans Saints, Mauti, a reserve wide receiver, excelled as a special teams player. In 1978, he was named the Saints' special teams MVP after setting an NFL record for special team tackles with 27 solo tackles and 4 assisted tackles for the year. In 1980, he finished second in the NFL and first in the NFC in average return yards on kickoffs and was named to the Pro Bowl as the NFC's punt returner. In 1979, the magazine ''

Football Digest ''Football Digest'' was a sports magazine for fans interested in professional American football, with in-depth coverage of the National Football League (NFL). The magazine modeled the ''Reader's Digest'' idea, to bring the best in football journali ...

'' named Mauti its NFL Specialist of the Year.Wilner, Barry. ''Football Digest'', April 2005 issue. Rich Mauti is also the founder of the Rich Mauti Cancer Fund, a voluntary, a 501c3 non-profit organization designed to raise money for cancer research, education and screenings, with all funds to be utilized in the State of Louisiana. While Mauti was playing for the Saints he started Mauti Challenge where businesses and individuals could pledge contributions to cancer research. Donations were $10 for every return and $1 for every yard from returns. Two of his sons also played football for

. Patrick Mauti was a wide receiver at Penn State from 2005 to 2009.

Michael Mauti Michael D. Mauti (born January 19, 1990) is a former American football linebacker. He played college football at Penn State Nittany Lions football, Penn State and was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 2013 NFL Draft. H ...

, who played at Penn State from 2008 to 2012, was Big Ten Linebacker of the Year as a senior. He also played five seasons in the NFL as a linebacker and special teams player for the

and

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

References

1954 births Living people American football wide receivers New Orleans Saints players Penn State Nittany Lions football players Players of American football from Queens, New York Washington Redskins players East Meadow High School alumni {{widereceiver-1950s-stub