Urban Leroy Odson (November 17, 1918 – June 22, 1986) was an
American football tackle
Tackle may refer to:
* In football:
** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football
** Tackle (gridiron football position), a position in American football and Canadian football
** Dump tackle, a forceful move in rugby of picking ...
in the
National Football League who played 44 games for 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 ...
(1946–1949). In 1942, the Green Bay Packers used the 9th pick in the 1st round of the
1942 NFL Draft
The 1942 National Football League Draft was held on December 22, 1941, at the Palmer House Hotel in Chicago. Two members of the draft class have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Bill Dudley, the first overall selection by the Pit ...
to sign Odson out of the
University of Minnesota. Odson, a consensus All-American, starred on two undefeated NCAA National Championship teams for the
Golden Gophers (1940 and 1941). Odson was selected to play in the 1942 College All-Star game on August 28, 1942 in front of 101,103 spectators against the
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
at
Soldier Field in
Chicago. Odson also was selected to play in the
East-West Shrine All Star game. Odson entered the
Navy and played for the legendary World War II Great Lakes football teams that played exhibition games against pro teams. Ensign Odson is listed on the Football and America:
World War II Honor Roll at the
Pro Football Hall of Fame in
Canton, Ohio
Canton () is a city in and the county seat of Stark County, Ohio. It is located approximately south of Cleveland and south of Akron in Northeast Ohio. The city lies on the edge of Ohio's extensive Amish country, particularly in Holmes and ...
. After serving a tour in the
Pacific theater
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
aboard , Odson went on to play under
Curly Lambeau for four seasons with the Packers and left the Packers after the
1949 season. After brief stops with Chicago and Baltimore in 1950 he joined the
Montreal Alouettes of the
Canadian Football League for one season.
References
Packers.com*http://www.infoplease.com/ispa/A0746396.html
*http://www.profootballhof.com/history/general/war/worldwar2/honor_roll.aspx
External links
*
1918 births
1986 deaths
All-American college football players
American football tackles
People from Clark, South Dakota
Minnesota Golden Gophers football players
Green Bay Packers players
United States Navy personnel of World War II
United States Navy officers
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