Jim Kiick

At 73 years old, Jim Kiick has this physical status:

James Forrest Kiick (born August 9, 1946) is a retired professional football player for the Miami Dolphins, from 1968 to 1977, except for 1975, when he played in the World Football League (NFL). He was a member of the undefeated 1972 team and played a key role in the Dolphins' ball-control running game that characterized them under new head coach Don Shula in the early 1970s.

Kiick was a starter in three Super Bowls and is the Dolphins' fourth all-time leading rusher.

In 1973, he and fullback Larry Csonka co-wrote a book, Always on the Run.

When they signed with the newly formed World Football League in 1974, they stunned the sports world.

Early life

Kiick, a boy who was born and raised in Lincoln Park, New Jersey, played football, baseball, and basketball at Boonton High School. He was a member of the All-Morris County squad but not as a running back, and he graduated in 1964 as a defensive back, not as a running back. George, a native of Hanover, Pennsylvania, played for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1940 and 1945.

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College career

After high school in New Jersey, Kiick went west and played college football at Wyoming from 1965 to 1967, and was the Cowboys' top rusher each of those years. On 431 yards and five touchdowns on 52 pass attempts, he totaled 1,714 yards and ten touchdowns on 431 attempts, with 561 yards and five touchdowns on 52 pass receptions. He was the first player to win first-team All-WAC accolades three times. In the 1966 Sun Bowl victory over Florida State, he was voted Most Valuable Player, passing 25 times for 135 yards and two touchdowns and two touchdowns, while hauling four passes for 42 yards. Kiick, a captain, led Wyoming to the 1968 Sugar Bowl over LSU, where he rushed 19 times for 75 yards and a touchdown as a senior and caught five passes for 48 yards. At halftime, Wyoming led 13–0 at halftime, but in the second half, it was outplayed and lost 20–13.

Kiick was drafted to play in the 1968 College All-Star Game against the Green Bay Packers in Chicago, where he first met Csonka. (They went out every night, indicating a foreshadowing of events to come) Csonka was voted the All-Stars Most Valuable Player, but Kiick never got into the game. Kiick had a bad attitude and was banned from the All-Stars' training camp, and his All-Stars' coach, former NFL quarterback Norm Van Brocklin, realized he had a bad attitude and dismissed him.

Professional career

In the fifth round (118th overall) of the 1968 Draft, Kiick was selected by the Miami Dolphins, the second year of pro football's common draft. Kiick was selected for his "quick feet," according to Director of Player Personnel Joe Thomas. For $15,000 in the first year and $17,000 in the second year, he signed a two-year, no-cut deal, as well as a $7,000 bonus. He was the primary halfback for the next four years, but he played just one game in that time. He had to divide halfback duties with other players, mostnotably Mercury Morris, as Shula decided that a quicker back would be a better complement to Csonka beginning with the 1972 season. In 1972, Kiick played in only three of 14 regular season games as primarily a short-yardage and goal-line specialist, although he did launch Super Bowl VII at the end of the season.

Though not born with breakaway speed, Kiick's 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) was a versatile player; besides being a good inside power runner and a superb clutch pass receiver. In each of his first four years, he had over 1,000 yards combined rushing and receiving. He was often compared to well-known all-purpose backs like Paul Hornung, Tom Matte, and his boyhood hero, Frank Gifford. Jim Langer, a teammate, referred to him as a "very heady runner and receiver." He was physically ill and rarely faltered. Kiick had a cracked toe, a fractured finger, a hip stick, and a very bruised elbow. In 1968 (621 yards) and 1969 (575 yards), he was the Dolphins' rushing champion, and he was selected for the AFL All-Star game both years. His nine rushing touchdowns in 1969 led the AFL, while his 1,155 total yards from scrimmage in 1970 led the AFC and ranked fifth in the league. He had his best year as a runner in 1971, rushing for 738 yards and three touchdowns. In both 1970 and 1971, he was the only player to rank in the top 10 in both receptions and rushing yardage. He led the Dolphins in receiving in 1970 and 1971 and finished second, 1968, and 1971.

Wrote teammate Nick Buoniconti,

After being offered $20,000.50, Kiick negotiated a one-year $32,000 deal during the 1970 training camp. During labor talks, Kiick and Csonka didn't send their children to the training camp in 1971. Each player was worth less than $40,000 per year when they were traded. They ended up signing three-year contracts for about $60,000 per year, which was commensurate with what the other players on the team, such as Paul Warfield, Bob Griese, and Nick Buoniconti, were earning, after two weeks of talks. (They were also fined $2,800 apiece).

In the longest game in football history, Kiick defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 27-24 in the 1971 AFC playoffs, scoring a touchdown. In the 1972 AFC playoff game against the Cleveland Browns, he rushed 14 times for 50 yards and scored the game's winning touchdown. He only passed for 15 yards against the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1972, but those 15 yards gave him two touchdowns, including the game's decisive one.

Kiick appeared in three straight Super Bowls with the Dolphins. In Super Bowl VI, he rushed ten times for 40 yards and three passes for 21 yards, but the Dolphins were beaten 24–3. Miami beat the Washington Redskins 14–7, bringing home their perfect 17-0 season to a conclusion. He caught two passes for six yards and rushed 12 times for 38 yards, scoring the game's deciding touchdown, a one-yard blast. He rushed seven times for ten yards and scored the second of Miami's three touchdowns in Super Bowl VIII, diving in headfirst from the one yard line (his first touchdown of the 1973 season). "My speciality--the one-yard gallop," Kiick said. The Minnesota Vikings were defeated 24-7 in Miami by Miami.

At both training camp and on the road, Kiick and Csonka were roommates. They were often seen in large quantities of alcohol. The Miami Herald's Bill Braucher narrated their exploits on and off the track, dubbed them "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (Csonka was Kiick, butch was Butch). On Miami Beach, a TV film of their exploits portrayed them riding horseback into the sunset, and they even posed for a poster in western attire.

A biography of Kiick and Csonka was included in the Sports Illustrated issue of August 7, 1972. This issue has devolved into a collector's item, thanks to famed SI photographer Walter Iooss' cover photograph of Kiick and Csonka, with Csonka making an offensive gesture with his left hand across his left shin. By the summer of 1972, Kiick, a petty criminal (Ron Davis), who bore a passing resemblance to Kiick, was able to rent a luxurious home on Key Biscayne, make public appearances, and become involved, passing himself off as Kiick.

Always on the Run, a book by Kiick and Csonka in 1973, published by sportswriter Dave Anderson in collaboration with sportswriter Dave Anderson. (A second edition of the World Football League with an additional chapter about the 1973 season, Super Bowl VIII, and the World Football League's signing in 1974.) Kiick and Csonka address their childhoods, their college football careers, their often tumultuous friendship with Don Shula, their time as pro football players, and occasionally offensive teammates. There's a lot of detail about how Kiick lost his starting position to Mercury Morris at the 1972 training camp. The book provides insight into the evolution of the Dolphins and the state of professional football in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The book was excerpted from Esquire magazine's September 1973 issue, with Kiick and Csonka on the front of the publication, dressed as Old-West dandies.

Kiick was chosen by the Memphis Southmen in the third round (27th overall) of the WFL Pro Draft in March 1974. Kiick and his teammates Csonka and Warfield played for the Southmen of the World Football League in 1975. Since being kicked out of Miami for the first time, Kiick had a hankering. The trio's press conference in March 1974 announcing what was then the richest three-player contract in sports was national news and stunned the sports world. They started three-year guaranteed contracts in 1975, with a total value that included perks of $3.5 million. Csonka's salary was $1.4 million, warfield's $900,000, Kiick's $700,000. Every year, each player will be given a luxurious vehicle and a three-bedroom luxurious apartment.

The second-year league folded in October 1975, twelve games into its 18-game schedule. The Southmen finished 7–4, in second place in the Eastern Division, behind the 9–3 Birmingham Vulcans. Kiick led the team in touchdowns (ten), action points (five), and points scored (75). He finished second on the team in rushing, with 121 passes for 462 yards and nine touchdowns and tied for second in receiving with Warfield in second, with 25 catches for 259 yards and one touchdown.

Kiick expressed that he wanted to join Csonka with the New York Giants, but Giants coach Bill Arnsparger, who had been Miami's defensive coordinator, was opposed because Kiick would be a negative influence on Csonka. So in 1976, he returned to the NFL in a back-up role for the Denver Broncos. He ran 32 times for 115 yards and one touchdown and 12 passes for 92 yards and a touchdown. Kiick was cut during the 1977 regular season but did not make it to Super Bowl XII. (his house burned down and he was divorced on the same day he was released by the Broncos.) Kiick was called up by the Washington Redskins on December 1, but he played in just one game for them before being suspended in June 1978 and then retired.

Kiick ended his AFL/NFL career with 1,029 attempts for 3,759 yards and 29 touchdowns, along with 233 pass receptions for 2,302 yards and four touchdowns. He fumbled only 15 times, completed two passes for 38 yards, and put a kickoff back a kickoff for 28 yards.

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