Carl Ekern
{{Short description|American football player (1954–1990)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
|name=Carl Ekern
|number=55
|position=Linebacker
|birth_date={{Birth date and age|1954|5|27|mf=y}}
|birth_place=Richland, Washington, U.S.
|death_date={{death date and age|1990|8|1|1954|5|27}}
|death_place=Kern County, California, U.S.
|height_ft=6
|weight_lb=223
|height_in=3
|high_school=Fremont (CA)
|college=San Jose St.
|draftyear=1976
|draftround=5
|draftpick=128
|pastteams=* Los Angeles Rams ({{NFL Year|1976|1988}})
|statlabel1=Sacks
|statvalue1=2.0
|statlabel2=Interceptions
|statvalue2=5
|statlabel3=Fumble recoveries
|statvalue3=5
|pfr=EkerCa00
}}
Carl Frederick Ekern (May 27, 1954 – August 1, 1990) was a National Football League (NFL) linebacker.[http://personal.atl.bellsouth.net/f/h/fhat/ekern.htm Ekern is a Norwegian name (Origin of The Name Ekern)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609121329/http://personal.atl.bellsouth.net/f/h/fhat/ekern.htm |date=2011-06-09 }}
Biography
Ekern was born in Richland, Washington. He attended Fremont High School in Sunnyvale, California. Ekern was a graduate of San Jose State University and played pro football from 1976 to 1988 for the Los Angeles Rams. He appeared in the 1986 Rams promotional video, Let's Ram It,{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19357745/rams/ |title=Rams |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |page=129 |date=November 13, 1986 |accessdate=April 18, 2018 |via=newspapers.com}} under the name of "Carl E, General of the D."{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxkKlzInR4Y |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140905133055/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxkKlzInR4Y |archive-date=2014-09-05 |url-status=dead|title=Ram IT (NFL Rams Football Team) Song |via=YouTube |accessdate=April 17, 2018}}
Ekern died of head injuries on August 1, 1990, when the Jeep he was driving ran off a highway near the Kern County town of Ridgecrest, California. At the time of the accident, Ekern was en route to Minden, Nevada, where he was a volunteer counselor and coach at the Rite of Passage, a camp for juvenile delinquents. The camp is located about 15 miles east of Lake Tahoe.[http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=SJ&s_site=mercurynews&p_multi=SJ&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB732D1D24FC9F1&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM Ex-Spartan, Rams Star Ekern Killed In Accident] (San Jose Mercury News, August 2, 1990, page 1E)[https://www.nytimes.com/1990/08/04/obituaries/carl-ekern-football-player-36.html?pagewanted=1 Carl Ekern, Football Player, 36 (New York Times. August 4, 1990)]
Carl Ekern Spirit of The Game Award
The Carl Ekern award, honoring the former Rams linebacker, is the Los Angeles Rams award
given to the player who best exemplifies sportsmanship, work ethic, and commitment to his teammates.[http://www.stlouisrams.com/article/23117/ Rams Team Awards (The official site of the St. Louis Rams)]{{dead link|date=November 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.nfl.com/players/carlekern/profile?id=EKE553722 NFL profile]
- {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20100212061228/http://databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=EkernCar01 Carl Ekern football statistics]}}
- [http://www.riteofpassage.com/ Rite of Passage] the at-risk youth camp at which Ekern volunteered
{{Los Angeles Rams 1976 draft navbox}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ekern, Carl}}
Category:American football linebackers
Category:San Jose State Spartans football players
Category:Los Angeles Rams players
Category:National Conference Pro Bowl players
Category:Sportspeople from Sunnyvale, California
Category:Players of American football from Santa Clara County, California
Category:Sportspeople from Richland, Washington
Category:20th-century American sportsmen
{{linebacker-1950s-stub}}