Background and career
Francis Newton Gifford (August 16, 1929 – August 9, 2015) was an American professional football player, actor, and television sports commentator. After a 12-year playing career as a halfback, flanker and safety for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL), he was a play-by-play announcer and commentator for 27 years on ABC's Monday Night Football. Gifford won the NFL Most Valuable Player Award from United Press International (UPI) in 1956, the same season his team won the NFL Championship. During his career, he participated in five league championship games and was named to eight Pro Bowls. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977. After retiring as a player Gifford was an Emmy Award-winning sportscaster, known for his work on ABC's Monday Night Football, Wide World of Sports, and the Olympics. He was married to television host Kathie Lee Gifford from 1986 until his death.
Gifford was born in Santa Monica, California, the son of Lola Mae (née Hawkins) and Weldon Gifford, an oil driller. He graduated from Kern County Union High School, later renamed Bakersfield High School. After Gifford died, his wife Kathie Lee Gifford said her late husband grew up in a poverty-stricken home and that he and his family sometimes ate dog food. She said they lived in 29 places before Gifford attended high school because his father could not find work during the Depression. She also said that as a young child, the family attended church every week and Gifford "asked Jesus into his heart and that remained with him for the rest of his life".
Gifford was unable to gain an athletic scholarship to the University of Southern California (USC) because of his low grade point average in high school. As a result, he played a season of football for Bakersfield Junior College. While at Bakersfield, he made the Junior College All-America team and earned the grades needed to enroll at USC. At USC, Gifford was named an All-American after rushing for 841 yards on 195 carries during his final season. While at USC he was a member of Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity. He graduated from USC in 1952.
Gifford spent his entire National Football League (NFL) career with the New York Giants, beginning in 1952, playing both offense and defense. He made eight Pro Bowl appearances and had five trips to the NFL Championship Game. Gifford's best season may have been 1956, when he won the league's Most Valuable Player Award and led the Giants to the NFL title over the Chicago Bears.
He lost 18 months in the prime of his career when he was tackled by Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Chuck Bednarik, in what is widely considered the hardest defensive hit, or one of the hardest, in the history of the NFL and is often referred to simply as The Hit. During a 1960 season game against the Eagles, he was knocked out by Bednarik on a passing play, suffering a severe concussion that led him to retire from football in 1961. However, Gifford returned to the Giants in 1962, changing positions from halfback to flanker. His Pro Bowl selections came at three positions, safety, halfback, and flanker. He permanently retired following the 1964 season.
During his 12 seasons with the Giants (136 regular-season games) Gifford had 3,609 rushing yards and 34 touchdowns in 840 carries; he also had 367 receptions for 5,434 yards and 43 touchdowns. Gifford completed 29 of the 63 passes he threw for 823 yards and 14 touchdowns with 6 interceptions. The 14 touchdowns is the most among any non-quarterback in NFL history; the 6 interceptions is tied with Walter Payton for most thrown by a non-quarterback. Gifford was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on July 30, 1977. After his death, an autopsy on his brain revealed that he lived with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a disease closely related to repeated head trauma. As of September 18, 2015, 87 out of 91 former NFL players tested had been diagnosed with the disease.
