Ward Walsh (born November 21, 1948) 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 wi ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. Ther ...

who played two seasons in the

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(NFL) for the

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 a ...

and Green Bay Packers. He made the Oilers as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 1971 and was released by the team in 1972. He then joined the Packers and played with them until being released in 1973.

Early life

Walsh was born on November 21, 1948, in Los Angeles County, California. He attended

Trinity High School Trinity High School is the name of high schools: United Kingdom * Trinity High School, Renfrew, Renfrewshire, Scotland * Trinity High School, Rutherglen, Lanarkshire, Scotland * Trinity High School and Sixth Form Centre, in Redditch, England *Trini ...

Weaverville, California Weaverville is a census-designated place and the county seat of Trinity County, California in the United States. Its population is 3,667 as of the 2020 census, up from 3,600 from the 2010 census. History Founded in 1850, Weaverville is a histori ...

; as a

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in 1965, he was named All-Superior California and All- Shasta Cascade League (SCL) after leading Trinity to the league title with 14

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Amer ...

s at fullback, additionally being selected the league's player of the year. He helped Trinity to another conference title as he ran for 1,404 yards and averaged 8.0 yards-per-carry as a senior, being named All-Superior California, the SCL player of the year and first-team All-Northern California while placing second in the conference with 150 points scored. He was also invited to the Shrine Football Classic, a goal he had set in fourth grade, and scored the game-winning

in an upset by the North team over the South.

College career

Walsh began attending the

University of Colorado Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University of Colorado sy ...

in 1967 and made his debut for their Buffalo football team the following year, recording 63 rushing yards in his first game. He finished his sophomore season—1968—with 103 carries for 384 yards (a 3.7 average) and five touchdowns along with 13 receptions for 136 yards and another touchdown. He was ninth in the Big Eight Conference in total touchdowns while helping the Buffaloes finish with a record of 4–6. In 1969, he helped Colorado reach the

Liberty Bowl The Liberty Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in late December or early January since 1959. For its first five years, it was played at Philadelphia Municipal Stadium in Philadelphia before being held at Atlantic City ...

with an 8–3 record, running 114 times for 502 yards (a 4.7 average) and catching seven passes for 67 yards but scoring no touchdowns. He improved in 1970 and was their leading rusher, carrying the ball 117 times for 679 yards (a 5.8 average) and three touchdowns while catching five passes for 25 yards and another touchdown, helping them return to the Liberty Bowl. He placed second in the conference in rushing average and sixth for rushing yards, ending his collegiate career with 1,565 rushing yards and 225 receiving yards along with 10 touchdowns.

Professional career

Walsh went unselected in the

1971 NFL Draft The 1971 National Football League draft was held January 28–29, 1971, at the Belmont Plaza Hotel in New York City, New York. The Boston Patriots, who did not officially change their name to New England Patriots until after the draft, used th ...

but signed with the

as an

and made the final roster that year. He made his NFL debut in Week 2 of the season, against the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The ...

, and went on to appear in 13 games that year, totaling 38 rushes for 129 yards and six receptions for 36 yards and a touchdown. He had his top game of the year against the Buffalo Bills in Week 13, running 11 times for 56 yards. He returned for the 1972 season and appeared in the opening six games, running for 36 yards on eight carries while totaling four catches for 22 yards, before being

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. He also scored a touchdown by blocking a punt and recovering it in the

end zone The end zone is the scoring area on the field, according to gridiron-based codes of football. It is the area between the end line and goal line bounded by the sidelines. There are two end zones, each being on an opposite side of the field. ...

. Walsh joined the Green Bay Packers following his stint with the Oilers, appearing in two games but recording no statistics. He was released by the Packers in August 1973.

Personal life

Walsh had a son, David, who played

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

and

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

Palos Verdes High School Palos Verdes High School (PVHS) is one of three public high schools on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in Los Angeles County, Southern California, USA (the others being Palos Verdes Peninsula High School (formerly Rolling Hills High School) and Rancho ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walsh, Ward People from Paradise, California Players of American football from Butte County, California Houston Oilers players Green Bay Packers players American football running backs Colorado Buffaloes football players 1948 births Living people