Dan Rambo
{{Short description|Football scout}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox gridiron football person
| name = Dan Rambo
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| birth_place = Libby, Montana, U.S.
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| college = Carroll College
| administrating_years1 = {{CFL Year|1983}}–{{CFL Year|1990}}
| administrating_team1 = Saskatchewan Roughriders (Dir. of Player Personnel)
| administrating_years2 = 1990–1991
| administrating_team2 = WLAF (Scout)
| administrating_years3 = {{CFL Year|1992}}
| administrating_team3 = Ottawa Rough Riders (GM)
| administrating_years4 = 1993
| administrating_team4 = Denver Broncos (Scout)
| administrating_years5 = {{CFL Year|1994}}–{{CFL Year|1997}}
| administrating_team5 = Saskatchewan Roughriders (Dir. of Player Personnel)
| administrating_years6 = 1998–2006
| administrating_team6 = Denver Broncos (Scout)
| administrating_years7 = {{CFL Year|2007}}–{{CFL Year|2009}}
| administrating_team7 = Hamilton Tiger-Cats (Dir. of Football Ops.)
}}
Dan Rambo is a Canadian and American football scout, and executive who served as general manager of the Ottawa Rough Riders.
Playing career
Rambo was born in Libby, Montana.{{cite news|title=Dan Rambo, who had a spotty professional football career after leading the nation in rushing for Carroll College, said Monday he will become director of player personnel for the Saskatchewan Roughriders|work=UPI|date=February 28, 1983|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1983/02/28/Dan-Rambo-who-had-a-spotty-professional-football-career/5738415256400/|accessdate=February 3, 2019}} He attended Carroll College where he led the NAIA in rushing with an average of 152 yards per game during his senior season. He went undrafted and signed with the New York Giants as a free agent. In 1976 he tried out for the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He was a member of the Oakland Raiders practice squad and played semi-pro football. He stopped playing in 1979 and took a job as the manager of a health club in Helena, Montana.
Scouting
=Saskatchewan Roughriders=
In 1982, Oakland Raiders executive John Herrera was named general manager of the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Herrera wanted to hire a friend to serve as the team's chief scout and he hired Rambo, who he knew from when Rambo was on the Raiders practice squad, as director of player personnel.{{cite news|author=Scanlan, Wayne|title=Programmed to Win: Rough Riders' Dan Rambo takes big byte out of football|work=The Ottawa Citizen|date=December 7, 1991}} In Saskatchewan, Rambo developed a computerized scouting system. Herrera was fired after the 1984 season, but was kept on by his successors, Bill Quinter, Bill Baker, and Alan Ford. In 1989 the Roughriders won their first Grey Cup in 23 years. In August 1990, Rambo joined the World League of American Football as a scout.{{cite news|title=Rambo on the Job|work=The Globe and Mail|date=August 17, 1990}}
=Ottawa Rough Riders=
In 1991, Rambo was named general manager and director of football operations of the Ottawa Rough Riders.{{cite news|author=Campbell, Don|title=Rambo, Ursaki Raiders' choices|work=The Ottawa Citizen|date=November 21, 1991}} Following Rambo's hiring, interim head coach Joe Faragalli resigned due to a dispute with management.{{cite news|title=Faragalli dumps Rambo's Riders|work=The Province|date=November 28, 1991}} After Mike Riley, Tom Higgins, Dennis Meyer, and Joe Paopao all declined the position, Rambo hired Edmonton Eskimos offensive line coach Ron Smeltzer to serve as head coach.{{cite news|title=Riders beat bushes for new coach|work=The Vancouver Sun|date=February 11, 1992}} Under Rambo and Smeltzer, the Rough Riders finished with a 9-9 record. It was the first time the Rough Riders didn't have a losing record in ten years.{{cite news|author=Campbell, Don|title=Smeltzer aims higher than .500|work=The Ottawa Citizen|date=June 10, 1993}} In May 1993, Rambo was fired by the Rough Riders due to a dispute with the team's vice-chairman, John Ritchie.{{cite news|author=Campbell, Don|title=Club says it's 'parting company' with GM: Riders' Rambo gets the gate|work=The Ottawa Citizen|date=June 1, 1993}}
=Later career=
Following his dismissal from the Rough Riders, Rambo was hired by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers to scout NFL training camps.{{cite news|title=Blue Bombers add ex-Ottawa GM Rambo|work=The Hamilton Spectator|date=July 3, 1993}} He later joined the Denver Broncos as a scout. In February 1994 he returned to the Saskatchewan Roughriders as director of player personnel.{{cite news|author=Campbell, Don|title=Rambo hooks on with Roughriders|work=The Ottawa Citizen|date=February 26, 1994}} He resigned in May 1998 to become a northeast region college scout for the Denver Broncos.{{cite news|title=Rambo bolts to Broncos|work=The Calgary Herald|date=May 16, 1998}} He remained with the Broncos until 2006, when he resigned to spend more time with his family. He then worked as a consultant for a group that unsuccessfully sought to bring an expansion franchise to Ottawa.{{cite news|author=Naylor, David|title=Rambo returns to Hamilton|work=The Globe and Mail|date=August 8, 2007}} From 2007 to 2009 he was the director of football operations for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. In the role, Rambo oversaw the team's player recruitment and scouting. After leaving the Tiger-Cats, Rambo co-founded FBXchange - a football scouting software company.{{cite news|author=Baines, Tim|title=Former Ottawa Rough Riders GM Dan Rambo opts out of aiming for top football role with city's new club|work=The Ottawa Sun|date=November 26, 2012|url=https://ottawasun.com/2012/11/26/former-ottawa-rough-riders-gm-dan-rambo-opts-out-of-aiming-for-top-football-role-with-citys-new-club/wcm/41f8fe8d-b6f7-4d0a-89c1-9b60d0952eb9|accessdate=February 3, 2019}}
References
{{reflist}}
{{Ottawa Rough Riders general manager navbox}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rambo, Dan}}
Category:Carroll Fighting Saints football players
Category:Carroll College (Montana) alumni
Category:Ottawa Rough Riders general managers
Category:Saskatchewan Roughriders personnel
Category:People from Helena, Montana
Category:People from Libby, Montana