Hall of Fame
Position: Running Back
Years: 1970-1972
Place of Birth: Peoria, Ill.
Date of Birth: Oct 07, 1950
Jersey Number: 40
Height: 6-0"
Weight: 190
High School: Swampscott High School (MA)
One of the greatest running backs in Ivy League history, Dick Jauron received the Asa S. Bushnell Cup as the league’s Player of the Year in 1972. He becomes the 24th Bulldog to enter the College Football Hall of Fame.
A First Team All-American following his senior year, Jauron was a First Team All-Ivy League selection all three years of his career. Yale’s team MVP in 1972, he led the Bulldogs in rushing all three seasons and his 2,947 career rushing yards remained a school record until 2000. Playing under College Football Hall of Fame coach Carm Cozza, Jauron also set school records for consecutive 100-yard rushing games with five and career 100-yard rushing games with 16. Named the Outstanding Player in New England in 1972, he also received the Nils V. “Swede” Nelson Award for sportsmanship as a junior, and he played in the 1973 East-West Shrine Game. Jauron also excelled in the classroom and was named an NFF National Scholar-Athlete in 1972.
Taken in the fourth round of the 1973 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, Jauron spent five seasons with the Lions and three with the Cincinnati Bengals. He was named to the 1974 Pro Bowl in his second season after leading the NFC in punt return average.
After his playing career, the Swampscott, Mass., native turned to coaching, spending 28 seasons in the NFL as a defensive backs coach, defensive coordinator or head coach. Jauron served as head coach of the Chicago Bears, where he was named AP Coach of the Year in 2001, and the Buffalo Bills. Having retired from coaching, Jauron currently lives with his wife in Swampscott.
