Samuel Davis Ball (June 1, 1944 – October 30, 2023) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was an

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

for the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983, when owner Robert Irsay moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breeding and racing. It w ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) from 1966 through 1970. During that span, he appeared in

Super Bowl III Super Bowl III was an American football championship game played on January 12, 1969, at the Miami Orange Bowl, Orange Bowl in Miami, Miami, Florida. It was the third AFL–NFL Championship Game in professional American football, and the fi ...

and

Super Bowl V Super Bowl V was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion 1970 Baltimore Colts season, Baltimore Colts and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion 1970 Dallas Cowboys season, Dallas Cowboys ...

for the Colts. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

Early life

Sam Ball was born on June 1, 1944, in

Henderson, Kentucky Henderson is a home rule-class city along the Ohio River and the county seat of Henderson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 29,781 at the 2020 U.S. census. It is part of the Evansville–Henderson, IN–KY Combined Statis ...

. He was a four-year starter at Henderson County High School where the Colonels posted a 32–2–2 record during his tenure.

College career

Ball enrolled at

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...

in 1962, played on the freshman team his first year because then NCAA rules that didn't allow freshmen to play on the varsity teams. He was a three-year

letterman Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

under Coach Charlie Bradshaw. As a senior, he earned All-SEC First-Team and All-America First-Team honors.

Professional career

In the 1966 NFL draft, Ball was selected by the

in the first round with the 15th overall pick. Ball was also drafted in the 1966 AFL draft by the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

in the 2nd round, 14th overall. Ball chose to play with the Colts. Ball saw limited playing time as a rookie in 1966, making appearances in seven games. He earned a starting role the next year, which he maintained for most of his career. In the 1968 season, the Colts won the

NFL Championship Throughout its history, the National Football league (NFL) and other rival American football leagues have used several different formats to determine their league champions, including a period of inter-league matchups to determine a true national ...

before losing to the Jets in

. In 1970, Ball was a member of the Colts'

winning team, which was his last professional football game.

Post-football life

Ball returned to Henderson, Kentucky after retiring from professional football. He was a seed salesman, ran a cattle ranch, and was served as a motivational speaker.

Death and legacy

Ball died in

, on October 30, 2023, at the age of 79.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ball, Sam 1944 births 2023 deaths American football offensive tackles Baltimore Colts players Kentucky Wildcats football players New York Jets players All-American college football players People from Henderson, Kentucky Players of American football from Kentucky 20th-century American sportsmen