Kyle Rote
| No. 44 | |||
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| Position: |
Halfback Wide receiver |
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| Personal information | |||
| Date of birth: | October 27, 1928 | ||
| Place of birth: | San Antonio, Texas | ||
| Date of death: | August 15, 2002 (aged 73) | ||
| Place of death: | Baltimore, Maryland | ||
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||
| Weight: | 199 lb (90 kg) | ||
| Career information | |||
| High school: | San Antonio (TX) Thomaos Jefferson | ||
| College: | SMU | ||
| NFL Draft: | 1951 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1 | ||
| Career history | |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||
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| Player stats at NFL.com |
William Kyle Rote, Sr. (October 27, 1928 – August 15, 2002) was an All-American running back at Southern Methodist University, Class of 1951, played for 11 years for the New York Giants, 1951-1961. Following his playing career, Rote served as the Giants backfield coach and was sports broadcaster for WNEW radio, NBC, and WNBC New York.
Rote was the son of Jack and Emma Belle (Owens) Rote. His family suffered tragedies during World War II; when he was 16, his mother was killed in a car accident and his older brother Jack was killed on Iwo Jima.
Rote attended Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio, Texas, where he earned All-State honors in both football and basketball, while also being considered one of the region's brightest pro-baseball prospects. He was a running back in football, a guard in basketball, an outfielder in baseball, and a member of the track team.
After graduating from high school in 1947, Rote accepted an athletic scholarship to Southern Methodist University where he became one of the most celebrated collegiate football players in the country. In a historic game in 1949, in a near upset by SMU over Notre Dame, Rote ran for 115 yards, threw for 146 yards and scored all three SMU touchdowns in a 27-20 loss. Rote's performance was voted by the Texas Sportswriters Association as "The Outstanding Individual Performance by a Texas Athlete in the First Half of the 20th Century." Twenty-five years later, Notre Dame made Rote an "Honorary Member" of their Championship Team. Rote still holds the National Collegiate record for the longest punt. In the SMU vs. Oregon 1949 Cotton Bowl, Rote, kicking out of his own end zone, had a punt land 84 yards from the line of scrimmage. During his years at SMU, Rote also played varsity baseball and track. In his senior year at SMU, Rote was runner-up for the Heisman Trophy. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1964.
Immediately after graduation at SMU, Rote signed a contract with the Corpus Christi Aces of the Class B Gulf Coast Baseball League. In 23 games his batting average was .348.
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