Sam Palumbo (born June 7, 1932) is a former

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

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 was drafted by the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

in the fourth round of the

1955 NFL Draft The 1955 NFL season, 1955 National Football League NFL draft, draft was held January 27–28, 1955 at the Warwick New York Hotel, Warwick Hotel in New York City. This was the ninth year that the List of first overall National Football League Dra ...

and played two seasons with the team. During the

1957 NFL season The 1957 NFL season was the 38th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with the Detroit Lions defeating the Cleveland Browns in the NFL championship game, 59–14. Draft The 1957 NFL Draft was held on November 26, 19 ...

he played with 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 ...

and later was a member of the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

of the

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. ...

(AFL). Although he suffered a shoulder dislocation diving for a fumble in a game against the Green Bay Packers in October 1955, Palumbo played in the

NFL Championship Game 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 c ...

on December 26, intercepting a pass in the second half of the Browns' 38–14 victory over the Los Angeles Rams. As a student-athlete at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

, he was a college roommate of

Regis Philbin Regis Francis Xavier Philbin (; August 25, 1931 – July 25, 2020)Archived aGhostarchiveand thWayback Machine was an American television presenter, talk show host, game show host, comedian, actor, and singer. Once called "the hardest working ma ...

.''The Goalpost'', Vol. 23, No. 1, July 201

(accessed 27 December 2016) After retiring from pro football, Palumbo joined the Cleveland Football Officials Association and remained active as an official for more than 40 years at the high school and collegiate level, mentoring countless newer officials during that time. On September 15, 2016, Palumbo was inducted into the

Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame The Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame is a nonprofit organization in Cleveland, Ohio. It was established in 1976 to honor Greater Clevelanders who were outstanding in sport. Greater Cleveland is defined as Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lor ...

.Sam Palumbo page on the

websit

(accessed 26 December 2016)

References

1932 births Players of American football from Cleveland Cleveland Browns players Green Bay Packers players Buffalo Bills players American football linebackers Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Living people American Football League players {{Linebacker-1930s-stub