Wallace F. Gabler III (born June 9, 1944) is a retired professional

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 ...

player. He was the starting

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 ...

for the

1965 Michigan Wolverines football team The 1965 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan in the 1965 Big Ten Conference football season. In its seventh year under head coach Bump Elliott, Michigan compiled a 4–6 r ...

and played seven seasons in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

(CFL) as the starting

for the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...

(1966–1969),

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West division. They play their home games at IG Fiel ...

(1969–1970), and

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Tim Hortons Fiel ...

(1970–1972). In seven years in the CFL, Gabler passed for 13,080 yards and 61 touchdowns.

Early years

Gabler was born in

Portsmouth, Ohio Portsmouth is a city in and the county seat of Scioto County, Ohio, United States. Located in southern Ohio south of Chillicothe, it lies on the north bank of the Ohio River, across from Kentucky, just east of the mouth of the Scioto River. ...

, and attended Kimball High School in

Royal Oak, Michigan Royal Oak is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. An inner-ring suburb of Detroit, Royal Oak is about north of Detroit's city limits. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 57,236. Royal Oak is located along th ...

. He attended the

New Mexico Military Institute New Mexico Military Institute (NMMI) is a public military junior college and high school in Roswell, New Mexico. Founded in 1891, NMMI operates under the auspices of the State of New Mexico, under a dedicated Board of Regents that reports to the G ...

(NMMI) after graduating from high school, with the hopes of qualifying for the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

the following year. At NMMI, Gabler broke

Roger Staubach Roger Thomas Staubach (, -; , -; born February 5, 1942), nicknamed "Roger the Dodger", "Captain America", and "Captain Comeback", is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for ...

's school records for most passing touchdowns in a game and completion percentage and was selected as a junior college All-American.

University of Michigan

Gabler transferred to the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

in 1963 without a scholarship and played for the freshman football team. As a junior, Gabler received a tuition-only scholarship, and appeared as a backup to Bob Timberlake on the 1964 Michigan team that won the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

championship. As a senior in 1965, Gabler began the season as a backup to

Dick Vidmer Richard F. Vidmer (born December 24, 1944) died April 3, 2022, was a former American football player. He attended University of Michigan, where he played college football as a quarterback for the Wolverines football teams from 1965 to 1967. Earl ...

. Gabler got his first start in the second game of the season against Cal. Gabler started five games for the 1965 Wolverines and completed 58 of 126 passes for 825 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions. He also gained 149 rushing yards. Following his senior year, Gabler played in the 1965

Blue–Gray Football Classic The Blue–Gray Football Classic was an annual American college football all-star game held in Alabama, usually in late December and often on Christmas Day. The brainchild of Alabama college football legend Champ Pickens, the contest began in ...

. Gabler's younger brother, John H. Gabler, also played football at Michigan, as a halfback from 1966 to 1969.

Canadian Football League

Gabler played seven years in the

after graduating from Michigan in 1966. He began his professional football career as the starting quarterback for the

. As a rookie, he passed for 1,659 yards and rushed for another 373 yards. In his history of the Argonauts, Craig Wallace wrote: "In 1966, the offence was based on Wally Gabler running around the backfield looking for open receivers -- and when he couldn't find one, running for his life." Gabler remained with the Argonauts for three years. He had his best year in 1968 when he completed 205 of 365 passes for 3,242 yards and 18 touchdowns. He also rushed for 458 yards and four touchdowns for the 1968 Argonauts. Interviewed in 1968, Gabler described his adjustment to the Canadian rules: "Of course, changing to three downs makes some difference. You have to be accustomed to putting the ball in the air more in Canada but the rules compensate." In August 1969, Gabler was traded to the

in exchange for

Dave Raimey David E. Raimey (born November 18, 1940) is a former American football player. A native of Dayton, Ohio, Raimey twice won state championships in the low hurdles and long jump. He played college football as a halfback and defensive back for t ...

. Gabler gained 2,288 passing yards for the Blue Bombers in 1969. During the 1970 season, Gabler was traded to the

. He passed for 1,908 yards for the Tiger-Cats in 1970. He led the team to the Eastern regular season championship in 1970. In November 1970, the

Canadian Press The Canadian Press (CP; french: La Presse canadienne, ) is a Canadian national news agency headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Established in 1917 as a vehicle for the time's Canadian newspapers to exchange news and information, The Canadian Pre ...

published a feature story about Gabler's role in leading the Tiger-Cats. The article described Gabler as "scholarly" and "soft-spoken" and noted:

Wally Gabler's shoulders will be carrying the lion's share of the load Sunday when he directs the Tiger-Cats in the first game of the Eastern Football Conference final against the Montreal Alouettes. And it's ironic in view of the nomadic life the 26-year-old Royal Oak, Mich. native has experienced in his short career in the Canadian Football League. ... Arriving in late September to fill in at quarterback for injured
Joe Zuger Joe Zuger (born February 25, 1940) is a former American and Canadian football player. He played his entire professional career with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was selected in the 18th round (248th overall) by ...
, Gabler quickly picked up the intricate Hamilton offence and was one of the instruments in the Tiger-Cats' first place finish.

During the off-seasons from 1967 to 1971, Gabler sold securities for Richardson Securities of Canada. In August 1972, Gabler returned to the Toronto Argonauts, who lost their quarterback

Joe Theismann Joseph Robert Theismann (born September 9, 1949) is an American former professional football player, sports commentator, corporate speaker and restaurateur. He rose to fame playing quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) and Canadian ...

in the season opener. Gabler concluded his playing career in Toronto during the 1972 season, passing for 1,689 yards in 10 games. In seven years in the CFL, Gabler completed 848 of 1,690 passes for 13,080 yards, 61 touchdowns and 118 interceptions.

Later years

Gabler was a colour commentator on CTV in 1974.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gabler, Wally 1943 births Players of Canadian football from Michigan Canadian football quarterbacks Toronto Argonauts players Winnipeg Blue Bombers players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players American football quarterbacks Michigan Wolverines football players Living people People from Portsmouth, Ohio Sportspeople from Royal Oak, Michigan Players of American football from Michigan Players of American football from Ohio Canadian Football League announcers Players of Canadian football from Ohio