James Frederick Boeke (September 11, 1938 – September 26, 2014) was an American football offensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams, Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints. He played college football at Heidelberg College.

Early years

Boeke was born in Akron, Ohio. He attended Cuyahoga Falls High School where he practiced football and track. He accepted a football scholarship from Heidelberg College, establishing himself as a two-way tackle in football and also lettering in track.

In 1985, he was inducted as a charter member of the Heidelberg University Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2008, he was inducted into the Summit County Sports Hall of Fame.

Professional career

Los Angeles Rams

Boeke was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the nineteenth round (217th overall) of the 1960 NFL Draft. He was a backup offensive tackle. In 1963, he also played defensive tackle.

On August 19, 1964, he was traded to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for rookie running back Les Josephson.^[1]

Dallas Cowboys

In 1964, he was acquired because the team needed offensive line depth after a rash of injuries. He started 7 games, including 4 at left tackle, replacing Tony Liscio who was placed on the injured reserve list.

The next year, he became the regular starter at left tackle after Liscio couldn't return from his right knee injury. In 1966, he started 10 games before missing time with a knee injury and being eventually replaced by Liscio.^[2]

His most famous play occurred near the end of the 1966 NFL Championship Game, with the team trailing the Green Bay Packers by a touchdown, the Cowboys had a first down on the Packers' 2-yard line, when Boeke was flagged for a false start, Dallas failed to score after Don Meredith threw an interception on fourth down. The Packers went on to beat the Kansas City Chiefs in the inaugural AFL-NFL championship game, now called the first Super Bowl.

From 1960 until 1966, he registered a streak of 92 consecutive games played. In 1967, he could not regain his starting position and was the backup to Liscio. His last game with the Cowboys was the 1967 NFL Championship Game known as the "Ice Bowl". On August 28, 1968, he was traded to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for linebacker Jackie Burkett.^[3]

New Orleans Saints

Boeke played in 13 games with the New Orleans Saints during the 1968 season. On July 28, 1969, he was traded to the Detroit Lions in exchange for a draft choice.^[4]

Detroit Lions

The Detroit Lions acquired Boeke to compete for the right tackle position that was vacated by the retirement of Charlie Bradshaw. On July 28, 1969, he was traded to the Washington Redskins in exchange for a draft pick.^[5]

Washington Redskins

On September 5, 1969, he was signed by the Washington Redskins.^[6] He was released on September 16.

Personal life

In the off-season, he worked as a physical education teacher, and an English teacher at Audubon Middle School in the Crenshaw district of Los Angeles. During his playing days in Los Angeles, Boeke worked as a bodyguard for the Nelson family (of Ozzie and Harriet fame), and went on to work for Ricky Nelson.

Following his playing days, Boeke utilized his Hollywood connections and appeared in bit parts in TV (Newhart, MASH, Coach and many others) and movies (North Dallas Forty, Forrest Gump et al.) for many years. Boeke continued to live in the Southern California area as a teacher and high school football coach at Westminster High School. On September 26, 2014, he died from acute leukemia.^[7]

Filmography