Ordell Braase
{{Short description|American football player (1932–2019)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| image = Ordell Braase (Topps card 1968).jpg
| caption = Braase in 1968
| position = Defensive end
| number = 81
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1932|3|13|mf=y}}
| birth_place = Mitchell, South Dakota, U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2019|3|25|1932|3|1|mf=y}}
| death_place = Bradenton, Florida, U.S.
| draftyear = 1954
| draftround = 14
| draftpick = 160
| afldraftyear =
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| high_school = Mitchell (SD)
| college = South Dakota
| pastteams = * Baltimore Colts (1957–1968)
| statlabel1 = Games played – started
| statvalue1 = 157–14
| statlabel2 = Fumble recoveries
| statvalue2 = 7
| statlabel3 = Touchdowns
| statvalue3 = 2
| pfr = B/BraaOr00
| pfrcoach =
| cfl =
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| highlights = * 3× NFL champion (1958, 1959, 1968)
- 2× Pro Bowl (1966, 1967)
- South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame{{cite web |title=Ordell Braase |url=http://www.sdshof.com/inventory/detail.cfm?id=8 |publisher=South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame |access-date=6 August 2009 }}{{Dead link|date=April 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
| HOF =
| CollegeHOF =
}}
Ordell Wayne Braase ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|r|eɪ|s|iː}} {{respell|BRAY|see}};[https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/upload/colts/zthgaae3n9dq1wgpt5bx.pdf Baltimore Colts 1965 Press-Radio-Television Guide (pronunciations on page 53).] Retrieved May 25, 2020 March 13, 1932 – March 25, 2019) was an American professional football defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He played with the Baltimore Colts throughout his career. While Braase was with the Colts they won the NFL Championship three times, in 1958, 1959 and 1968. He was a Pro Bowl pick in both 1966 and 1967. In his final season (1968), the Colts went to Super Bowl III, on January 12, 1969, only to lose to the New York Jets.
Early life
Braase was born on March 13, 1932, in Mitchell South Dakota.{{Cite web |title=Ordell Braase Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/B/BraaOr00.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}} He attended Mitchell High School, where he was an all-state basketball player, and his basketball team won the state title in 1950.{{Cite web |last=McDaniel |first=Randy |date=2022-08-16 |title=This Home Grown Mitchell Boy Was A Three Time NFL Champion |url=https://kxrb.com/mitchell-native-ordell-braase-is-three-time-nfl-champion/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=KXRB 1140 AM/100.1 FM |language=en}}
College
Braase attended the University of South Dakota on a basketball scholarship. In the 1953-54 basketball season, he led the team averaging 12.4 points and 11.1 rebound per game, and was all-North Central Conference (NCC). He also excelled on the football team, receiving all-NCC honors in both 1953 and 1954.{{Cite web |title=Ordell Braase (1977) - Coyote Sports Hall of Fame |url=https://goyotes.com/honors/coyote-sports-hall-of-fame/ordell-braase/238 |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=University of South Dakota Athletics |language=en}}
In 1977, he was inducted into the University of South Dakota Coyote Sports Hall of Fame. Braase was named to both the South Dakota all-time high school and all-time collegiate football teams. He is also a member of the South Dakota Hall of Fame.{{Cite web |title=Legacy Ordell Braase - SD Hall of Fame Programs |url=https://sdexcellence.org/Ordell_Braase_2005 |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=sdexcellence.org}}
Professional career
After playing at South Dakota, the Colts selected Braase in the 14th round of the 1954 NFL draft (160th overall).{{Cite web |title=1954 NFL Draft Listing |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1954/draft.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}} However, he did not join the team until 1957, delayed by three years of service in the U. S. Army which included a tour of duty in Korea. He joined the Colts in 1957 and played on the Colts for 12 years. From 1957-59, Braase played in every game, splitting time with Don Joyce (who started all but three games at right defensive end during those years).{{Cite web |title=Don Joyce Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/J/JoycDo00.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Turney |first=John |date=2023-10-24 |title=State Your Case: Hall Voters Should Give 'Big Daddy' Another Chance |url=https://talkoffametwo.com/state-your-case/gene-big-daddy-lipscomb-hall-of-fame |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Talk of Fame |language=en}} From 1960-68, Braase was the Colts starter at right defensive end.
In Braase's second season, he won an NFL title with the Colts in the 1958 NFL Championship Game, a sudden death overtime victory over the New York Giants. It is a game widely considered one of the best in NFL history, often referred to as "The Greatest Game Ever Played".{{Cite web |title=NFL 100 |url=https://www.nfl.com/100/originals/100-greatest/games-1 |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=NFL.com |language=en-US}} The Colts won again over the Giants in the 1959 NFL Championship Game, 31–16.{{Cite web |title=Championship - New York Giants at Baltimore Colts - December 27th, 1959 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/195912270clt.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}
In his first two full seasons starting (1960-61), he had 10.5 and 12 quarterback sacks, respectively. He had 80 total sacks between 1960-68, and double-digit sacks five times in those nine years, with a career high 13.5 in 1964 (the Colts losing to the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 NFL Championship game).{{Cite web |title=Championship - Baltimore Colts at Cleveland Browns - December 27th, 1964 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196412270cle.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}
Braase was considered a fine defensive end, but he played opposite the Colts Hall of fame defensive end Gino Marchetti (one of the top players in NFL history),{{Cite web |title=Gino Marchetti {{!}} Pro Football Hall of Fame |url=https://www.profootballhof.com/players/gino-marchetti/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=pfhof |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=NFL 100 |url=https://www.nfl.com/100/all-time-team/roster |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=NFL.com |language=en-US}} and was typically overshadowed by his hero.{{Cite web |last=Klingaman |first=Mike |date=2012-11-01 |title=Catching up with former Baltimore Colts defensive end Ordell Braase |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/2012/11/01/catching-up-with-former-baltimore-colts-defensive-end-ordell-braase/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Baltimore Sun |language=en-US}} After Marchetti retired, Braase stepped up and was named to the Pro Bowl in 1966 and 1967.{{Cite web |title=1966 NFL Pro Bowlers |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1966/probowl.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=1967 NFL Pro Bowlers |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1967/probowl.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}} He was named second-team All Pro both years by the Associated Press (AP), Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), and United Press International (UPI).{{Cite web |title=1966 NFL All-Pros |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1966/allpro.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=1967 NFL All-Pros |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1967/allpro.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}
In his final year, 1968, the Colts won the 1968 NFL Championship game over the Cleveland Browns.{{Cite web |title=Championship - Baltimore Colts at Cleveland Browns - December 29th, 1968 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196812290cle.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}} Braase played one of his best career games, with three quarterback sacks. The Colts defense held the Browns to 56 yards rushing and 151 passing yards in a 34–0 shutout. The defense set a record that year, allowing only 144 points in 14 games. However, the Colts went on to lose Super Bowl III to the New York Jets, in Braase's last game.{{Cite web |title=Super Bowl III - New York Jets vs. Baltimore Colts - January 12th, 1969 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196901120clt.htm |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}} The Jets successful offensive strategy was to avoid upcoming young stars at left defensive end, Bubba Smith, and left side linebacker, Mike Curtis; and instead rush 220-pound Matt Snell to the right side of the Colts defense at the nearly 37-year old Braase, and 33-year old linebacker Don Shinnick.{{Cite book |last=Gilden |first=Jack |title=Collision of Wills |publisher=University of Nebraska Press |year=2018 |isbn=9781496206916 |pages=265-69 |language=en}}
= NFL Players Association =
From 1964 to 1967, Braase served as president of the NFL Players Association for two terms. He was elected as NFLPA president following Pete Retzlaff, who had been a star college football player in South Dakota (South Dakota State University) contemporaneously with Braase.{{Cite news |date=1964-01-05 |title=Pro Football Players Elect Braase of Colts' President |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1964/01/05/archives/pro-football-players-elect-braase-of-colts-president.html |access-date=2025-04-07 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite web |title=Pete Retzlaff - South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame |url=https://www.sdshof.com/inductees/pete-retzlaff/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=www.sdshof.com}}
Post-player life
During his football career in Baltimore, Braase performed in commercials for Dixie Cola, even singing their jingle. After retiring he was an executive with Frostie-Dixie Cola Sales.
Following his retirement as an active player, Braase was a restaurant owner in Timonium, Maryland, and in the 1970s was an executive with a Baltimore truck body manufacturer. He also teamed with Hall of fame play-by-play announcer Chuck Thompson{{Cite web |title=1993 Ford C. Frick Award Winner Chuck Thompson {{!}} Baseball Hall of Fame |url=https://baseballhall.org/discover-more/awards/frick/chuck-thompson |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=baseballhall.org}} to provide color commentary for WCBM radio broadcasts of Colts games (1973-74), and with Ted Moore (1970-72).{{Cite web |title=NFL Local Radio Announcer History - 506 Archive |url=https://archive.506sports.com/wiki/NFL_Local_Radio_Announcer_History#Baltimore |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=archive.506sports.com}} In the 1990s, he co-hosted a popular program, Braase, Donovan, Davis and Fans on WJZ-TV in Baltimore with fellow Colt teammate Art Donovan.{{Cite web |last=Frager |first=Ray |date=1990-11-09 |title=Artie will be Donovan, no matter what Braase, Davis, format say |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/1990/11/09/artie-will-be-donovan-no-matter-what-braase-davis-format-say/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Baltimore Sun |language=en-US}} The trio talked more about Art Donovan's fabled stories than contemporary NFL football,{{Cite web |last=Olesker |first=Michael |date=2019-03-26 |title=Ordell Braase's Passing Serves as Reminder of Vanishing Era |url=https://jmoreliving.com/2019/03/26/ordell-braases-passing-serves-as-reminder-of-vanishing-era/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=JMORE |language=en-US}} but the show held high ratings in its time period. He had earlier hosted a radio show with Donovan, Braase, Donovan and Fans, where he played the straight man for Donovan's story telling.
Death
Braase later lived in Bradenton, Florida, where he died in 2019 at the age of 87.{{Cite web |title=Ordell Braase Obituary (1932 - 2019) - Bradenton, FL - Baltimore Sun |url=https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/baltimoresun/name/ordell-braase-obituary?id=10762315&fhid=5832 |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Legacy.com}} He had been suffering from Alzheimer's disease since 2012.{{Cite web |last=Klingaman |first=Mike |date=2019-03-25 |title=Baltimore Colts defensive end Ordell Braase, who played on three NFL championship teams, dies at 87 |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/2019/03/25/baltimore-colts-defensive-end-ordell-braase-who-played-on-three-nfl-championship-teams-dies-at-87/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Baltimore Sun |language=en-US}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Baltimore Colts 1954 draft navbox}}
{{1958 Baltimore Colts}}
{{1959 Baltimore Colts}}
{{1968 Baltimore Colts}}
{{NFLPA presidents}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Braase, Ordell}}
Category:People from Timonium, Maryland
Category:People from Mitchell, South Dakota
Category:Players of American football from Baltimore County, Maryland
Category:Players of American football from South Dakota
Category:American football defensive ends
Category:South Dakota Coyotes football players
Category:Baltimore Colts players
Category:Western Conference Pro Bowl players
Category:National Football League Players Association presidents
Category:Trade unionists from South Dakota
Category:Baltimore Colts announcers