51: Ron McDole-NFL

Sports' Forgotten Heroes

Ron McDole had the great fortune of playing for two of football’s greatest defensive minds: Lou Saban and George Allen. McDole, who graduated from Nebraska before the Cornhuskers became such an elite program, played 18 years of professional football. He started off with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1961 and then moved on to the Houston Oilers in 1962. However, he suffered from migraine seizures while playing with Houston. The Oilers, fearing the worst, put McDole on the shelf and later cut him. After a failed tryout with the Minnesota Vikings, McDole wound up with Lou Saban and the Buffalo Bills in 1963 and became All-AFL. After eight seasons with the Bills, however, and after a falling out with their coach at the time, John Rauch, McDole was traded to the Washington Redskins and wound up playing for George Allen and the Skins for another eight seasons. McDole still holds the record for most interceptions by a defensive end, with 12, recovered 14 fumbles, scored two touchdowns and recorded three safeties. McDole is very proud of his career and is considered, by many, to have been a Hall of Fame-caliber player. On this episode of Sports’ Forgotten Heroes, the man known as the “Dancing Bear” and who just recently released his book, “The Dancing Bear, My 18 Years in the Trenches of the AFL and NFL,” Ron McDole is here to talk about his terrific career.

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