George Izo

George William Izo (September 20, 1937 – June 10, 2022) was an American professional football player who was a quarterback for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Washington Redskins, Detroit Lions, and the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1960 to 1966, having earlier played college football at the University of Notre Dame.

Early life Izo was born in Barberton, Ohio, on September 20, 1937. He attended Barberton High School, During his college career, he threw for 2,095 yards and 18 touchdowns, and led the Irish to a 20–19 upset of the University of Iowa in his next to last game.

Izo earned his varsity letter during his sophomore year, but during the off-season he sprained his ankle during initiation into the Monogram Club. He missed spring practice and did not return to the field until mid-season of his junior year.

Izo graduated with a degree in Business Administration. He was also chosen in the 1960 American Football League draft as a "territorial selection" by the Titans of New York (now New York Jets). To begin the draft, each of the eight AFL teams received one territorial/bonus selection to help ensure every team had a regional draw to help the financial success of each franchise. These regional picks did not occur in any order. Instead, they were unanimously agreed upon by the other teams.

St. Louis Cardinals Izo chose the Cardinals over the AFL, and signed his $15,000 contract at Soldier Field in Chicago during a game against the Chicago Bears. The franchise moved to St. Louis, Missouri one month after Izo signed his contract. In 1960, he won the starting job for the Cardinals by the third game of the season. But, he re-injured the same knee that he hurt in college and underwent surgery. On September 15, 1963, stepping in for Snead, he threw a 99-yard touchdown pass to Bobby Mitchell, which tied a franchise and league record. Coincidentally, the first two occurrences of a 99-yard pass play featured Redskins' quarterbacks. In 1964, the Redskins traded Snead to the Philadelphia Eagles for quarterback Sonny Jurgensen and after backing him up for one year, Izo asked to be traded. During his only year in Detroit, Izo backed up Milt Plum and the Lions won six games. He was released by the Lions on September 5, 1966.

Pittsburgh Steelers After his release from the Lions, Izo worked out for and was signed to the Pittsburgh Steelers' roster on September 24, 1966. He played in four games during his time in Pittsburgh and was released on November 2, 1966.

Personal life After retiring from football in 1967, Izo moved to the Bahamas and participated in a business venture that built condominiums.

Military tours Starting in the late 1990s after moving to California, Izo took former NFL stars to military bases in South Korea, Japan and Guam in his role as business development manager for California Sunshine milk, which had a contract with the U.S. government. He has made tours with Billy Kilmer, Ken Stabler, Paul Hornung and Earl Morrall, among others.