Joe Spencer

Joseph Emerson Spencer (August 15, 1923 – October 24, 1996) was an American football tackle and coach who played in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and the National Football League (NFL). He was a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1948 and the Cleveland Browns in 1949 before playing two seasons with the Green Bay Packers.

Spencer grew up in Oklahoma and played college football at Oklahoma State before serving in the U.S. Army during World War II. He returned to finish his college career in 1946, and the following year was selected to play in the annual East-West college all-star game. After graduating, Spencer played for the Dodgers and Browns in the AAFC, and the Packers in the NFL. After retiring as a player, Spencer started a coaching career in 1953 as an assistant at Austin College. He was the school's head coach between 1955 and 1960. He then became the offensive line coach for the Houston Oilers, who won the American Football League (AFL) championship in 1961. He later served as an assistant coach with a variety of other AFL and NFL teams, including the 1968 New York Jets team that won Super Bowl III. Spencer died of cancer in 1996. He is a member of Austin College's athletics hall of fame; the school also named its coaching lifetime achievement award after him.

Early life and college

Spencer was born on August 15, 1923, in Cleveland County, Oklahoma, and attended Capitol Hill High School in Oklahoma City, where he played high school football for three years. After graduating, he enrolled at Oklahoma State University and played on the school's football team starting in 1942. After his first season, however, Spencer left Oklahoma to serve in the U.S. Army during World War II. Spencer had been selected by the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League in the 1945 draft, but he signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers of the All-America Football Conference after graduating in 1948. As the Dodgers struggled on the field as well as financially, the team was forced to merge with the New York Yankees after the season. That left a number of former Brooklyn players available for other AAFC teams and the Cleveland Browns signed Spencer.

Spencer played for the Browns during the 1949 season, and played in 11 games for the team, which finished with a 9–1–2 record and won the AAFC championship. He was then traded to the Green Bay Packers of the NFL for Gordy Soltau and became defensive captain for the team during his two seasons. He started in all 12 games for the Packers in 1950. In 1951, Spencer was used primarily as a tackle on offense and again played in all 12 games for the Packers that season. Entering the 1952 season, Spencer was the first veteran to sign a new contract for the upcoming year. However, he suffered an injury during preseason and retired from playing the game to move into coaching. He was promoted to head football coach in 1955 and held that position through the 1960 season. The team finished with an 11–3 record the following season but lost the championship game to the Dallas Texans. Spencer stayed with the Oilers until 1965.

Spencer moved to a coaching job with the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League in 1966 and 1967. Spencer stayed with the Jets through the 1970 season. Spencer's next stop was as an assistant for the World Football League's Chicago Fire in 1974. The Fire disbanded after the season, and Spencer got a job as an assistant with the Kansas City Chiefs, where he coached for six years. The Saints hired Carl Mauck in 1982 to work with Spencer coaching the linemen and the following year Spencer was moved to quality control coach. He stayed in that role through the 1985 season.

Later life and death

Spencer and his wife, Betty Jo, had two children. He died of cancer on October 24, 1996, at the age of 73.