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| Born: | June 2, 1932 Berkeley, California, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Died: | May 22, 2012 (aged 79) Toronto, Canada |
| Career information | |
| Status | Retired |
| CFL status | National |
| Position(s) | P/RB |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) |
| Weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| College | Oregon State |
| High school | Oakland (CA) Castlemont |
| NFL draft | 1954 / Round: 7 / Pick: 74 |
| Career history | |
| As coach | |
| Offence Coach – St. Michael's College intramural football (University of Toronto) | |
| As player | |
| 1955–1957 | Chicago Cardinals |
| 1958, 1960–1970 | Toronto Argonauts |
| CFL East All-Star | 1960, 1961 |
| Honors | All-Time Argo (2005) |
| Career stats | |
| |
David Carl Mann (June 2, 1932 – May 22, 2012) was an American professional gridiron football punter in the NFL and CFL. Mann was also the first black player to play college football for Oregon State University.[1]
Born in Berkeley, California, Mann played at Oregon State from 1951 to 1954 and was drafted in the 7th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Chicago Cardinals in the National Football League. He played for the Cardinals for three seasons as a punter, running back, and a special teams member. Then he went to the Canadian Football League where he played for the Toronto Argonauts. On the eve of the 1959 season, Mann was arrested after a raid on his apartment discovered about $100 worth of marijuana. Although he was acquitted at trial in February 1960, the Argonauts elected not to play him pending the outcome of the trial, forcing Mann to sit out the whole 1959 season. When released in the start of the 1969 season, he played for the Bramalea Satellites, being called back to the Argos as if the Bramalea team was a taxi squad.[2]
Dave Mann volunteered as Offence Coach with St. Michael's College at the University of Toronto, under head coach Lex Byrd. During Mann's tenure, the team won four[3] Mulock Cups as intra-collegiate football champions; including the final playing of intra-faculty tackle football at U of T in the fall of 1993.[4]
Mann became a Canadian citizen and moved to Mississauga, Ontario, where he instructed techniques in golf, played drums in a jazz trio and became friends with comedian Bill Cosby.[5] He also became a partner with Archie Alleyne, John Henry Jackson and Howard Matthews in The Underground Railroad, a soul food restaurant in Toronto.[6]
Mann died on May 22, 2012, in a Toronto nursing home due to complications from dementia.[5]