Robert John "Bobby" Kuntz Sr. (January 10, 1932 – February 7, 2011) was a professional

Canadian football Canadian football () is a team sport, sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's sco ...

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 ...

who played eleven 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 ...

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 ...

and the

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 ...

. He was a part of the Tiger-Cats 1963 and 1965

Grey Cup The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...

winning teams.

College

Kuntz's football career began when he moved from Cleveland to Kitchener, Ontario. He was discouraged by football coaches in Cleveland, but at St. Jerome's High School he found Clem Faust, a coach willing to support his desire to play. After playing for

McMaster University McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood and Westdale, adjacent to the Royal Botanical Ga ...

in Hamilton, and a senior football team in Ontario, he was signed by the Argonauts in 1955 to play his first full season in the CFL. Ten years later, his older brother David died and he was forced with a difficult decision: to return home to join the family electroplating business, or to continue playing football. His decision to return home was short-lived, after only a few months he was coaxed out of retirement by Jim Trimble, coach of the Argo's main rival, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

Canadian Football league

Bobby Kuntz joined the Toronto Argonauts in 1956 and stayed with them for 6 years before being traded to the Hamilton Tiger-cats in 1962. He was a 2-way player at linebacker and fullback. In his rookie year, he carried the ball 108 times for 578 yards for a 5.4 yard/rush average. His best rushing year was 1962, when he carried 151 times for 813 yards, a 5.4 average, and 6 touchdowns. in his career, he caught 107 balls for 1318 yards, a 12.3 average. As a linebacker, he intercepted 10 balls, 4 in 1957. He also served as an occasional kick returner. he was voted as an eastern conference all-star at three different positions: defensive back in 1957, fullback in 1962, and linebacker in 1964.

Post CFL

On returning home after retirement, and rejoining the family business, he became heavily involved in the community. Bobby was a founding member of St. Francis Assisi Parish, and involved with St. Mary's General Hospital Foundation, Mosaic Counselling and Family Services, the United Way, the Congregation of the Resurrection and

St. Jerome's University St. Jerome's University, commonly shortened to St. Jerome's or SJU, is a public Roman Catholic university in Waterloo, Ontario. It is federated with the University of Waterloo. St. Jerome's, within the University of Waterloo, combines academics ...

. Kuntz was the co-owner of the family's surface finishing company Kuntz Electroplating. He was involved with the business from his retirement in 1966 from football until shortly before his death along with his brother Paul who predeceased him in early 2011. Bobby was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2000, and lived in nursing homes in the last years of his life. On February 7, 2011, Kuntz died due to complications from

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

at the age of 79 in

Waterloo, Ontario Waterloo is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is one of three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo (formerly Waterloo County, Ontario, Waterloo County). Waterloo is situated about west-southwest of Toronto. Due to the c ...

, surrounded by his wife and children.

References

External links

Kuntz.com
Kuntz Electroplating - History of Bobby Kuntz and the CFL

Waterloo Region Museum Hall of Fame Inductees List {{DEFAULTSORT:Kuntz, Bobby 1932 births 2011 deaths Canadian football linebackers Neurological disease deaths in Ontario Deaths from Parkinson's disease Hamilton Tiger-Cats players McMaster University alumni Sportspeople from Detroit Toronto Argonauts players Ontario Rugby Football Union players