Moegle on a 1955 Bowman football card
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No. 47 | |||||
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Position: |
Defensive back Halfback |
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Personal information | |||||
Date of birth: | September 14, 1934 | ||||
Place of birth: | Taylor, Texas | ||||
Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||
Weight: | 195 lb (88 kg) | ||||
Career information | |||||
High school: | Taylor (TX) | ||||
College: | Rice | ||||
NFL Draft: | 1955 / Round: 1 / Pick: 10 | ||||
Career history | |||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||
Career NFL statistics | |||||
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Player stats at PFR | |||||
Games played: | 73 |
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Player stats at NFL.com |
Richard Lee "Dickey" Maegle (born Moegle) (born September 14, 1934) is a former American football Halfback and defensive back. He played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Rice University, where he was a consensus All-American in 1954.
Moegle attended Taylor High School, where he played football and basketball. He accepted a scholarship from Rice University and attended as a 16 year old freshman. His play was limited in his sophomore season (1952), after he was lost with a hand cut he suffered trying to open a classroom window that was stuck.
In 1953, he teamed up with fullback Dave "Kosse" Johnson (the nation's second leading rusher), to win a share of the Southwest Conference title with the University of Texas, while registering 833 rushing yards with a 7.3-yard average (led the nation). In the 1954 Cotton Bowl Classic against Alabama, Moegle was involved in one of college football's most famous plays. With Rice leading 7–6, Maegle broke through on a sweep from Rice's five-yard line, and was running down the sideline in front of Alabama's bench on his way to a touchdown. Alabama's Tommy Lewis, without putting on his helmet, jumped off the bench and tackled Maegle. Seeing what happened, referee Cliff Shaw awarded a 95-yard touchdown on the play, and Rice went on to win the game 28–6. Maegle finished with 265 rushing yards, which was a Cotton Bowl Classic record until the 2008 game when Missouri's Tony Temple rushed for 281 yards. He finished with game records of 265 yards on 11 carries for an average of 24.1 yards per attempt and 3 touchdowns. Moegele and Lewis were later invited to the Ed Sullivan Show to talk about the play.