Kyle Rote 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 . Early life . 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 . Collegiate career . 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 . National Football League career . The New York Giants selected Rote with the first pick in the 1951 NFL Draft . He started out as a running back , but after the first two years switched to wide receiver due to a knee injury . When Rote retired after the 1961 season , he had become the Giants ' career leader in pass receptions ( 300 ) , receiving yardage ( 4 , 805 ) , and touchdown receptions ( 48 ) . He was second highest in total touchdowns ( 56 ) and fifth - leading scorer ( 312 points ) . His average gain per catch was 15 . 9 yards . In all , Rote played in four world championship games , including the 1956 NFL Championship against the Chicago Bears , and the 1958 game won by the Baltimore Colts in sudden - death overtime 23 - 17 , known as The Greatest Game , the first ever nationally televised NFL championship game . Rote was the captain of the New York Giants for eight years . Rote spearheaded the movement that became the NFL Players Association , fighting for equal opportunities for all players , so that all players of all races would receive equal treatment when the teams played on the road . Rote became the NFLPA ' s first elected president serving for several years , and also acted as the Giants team representative . Rote was inducted into the Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame , Texas Sports Hall of Fame , College Football Hall of Fame , Texas Pro Football Hall of Fame , San Antonio Hall of Fame , Texas High School Football Hall of Fame , Texas High School Basketball Hall of Fame , Southwest Conference All - Time Team , and received the SMU Distinguished Alumni Award . In 1995 , Rote was named as wide receiver on the All - Time Giants Team in conjunction with the 75th celebration of the founding of the NFL . Following his playing career in 1961 , Rote served as the Giants backfield coach and in both those years New York captured the NFL ' s Eastern Division championship . Sportscasting career . While in the NFL , Rote spent the offseasons as the sports director for radio station WNEW . In the ' 60s and early ' 70s and , like his former New York Giant teammates Frank Gifford , Pat Summerall , and Thomas Conlin , he enjoyed a second career as a sportscaster , working at NBC and WNBS New York on radio and television . Personal . Rote and his first wife , Betty Jamison , had four children - Kyle , Gary , Chris , and Elizabeth . His oldest son , Kyle Rote , Jr . , was one of the first notable soccer stars from the United States . He said of his father , " To me the most remarkable thing about him from a football standpoint was that he had fourteen teammates who named their sons after him . " Rote married Betty - Nina Langmack in 1976 . Rote is the cousin of Tobin Rote a multi - championship winning and record holding AFL and NFL quarterback . Rote authored the books , " Pro Football for the Fans " and " The Language of Pro Football " , and wrote the " Giants Fight Song " . He also published two volumes of poetry , was an ASCAP songwriter , accomplished pianist , and oil painter having a number of his works shown at museums throughout the United States .