Charlie Krueger obit

49ers' Hall of Famer Charlie Krueger, rugged defensive tackle, dies at 84

 

He was not on the list.

Defensive tackle Charlie Krueger, a member of the 49ers’ Hall of Fame who is one of 12 players in franchise history to have their jersey retired, died Friday at 84.

Krueger died in Clayton of heart and kidney failure, according to family friend Dave Newhouse.

Krueger, who spent his entire 15-year career (1959-73) with the 49ers, was a two-time Pro Bowl selection and twice earned second-team All-Pro honors. He was the No. 8 pick in the 1958 draft after he was a two-time All-American at Texas A&M, where he played for head coach Paul “Bear” Bryant, who left for Alabama after Krueger’s senior season.

Krueger, among the last linemen to wear a single-bar face mask, was known as a rugged, blue-collar run-stuffer. In 1973, he was the feature of a Sports Illustrated profile that included this headline: “The Last of the Old Leather.”

“In 1958 I came into the NFL and it was purely a game,” Krueger said in the story. “Fifteen years later, it is strictly a marketing enterprise. I’m a dinosaur who’s survived the Ice Age only to discover I’m caught between hard rock and hot clothes.”

Krueger didn’t earn Pro Bowl or All-Pro recognition after 1965, but he remained a force in the latter stages of his career. Cowboys coach Tom Landry said he made a point of not testing Krueger in Dallas’ 14-3 win in the 1971 season’s NFC Championship Game.

“No one is able to gain running at Charlie Krueger,” Landry said. “And we were not about to experiment.”

Of the 12 Niners to have their jersey retired, Krueger, wide receiver Dwight Clark, and quarterback John Brodie are the only players not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

In 1987, the 49ers were found guilty of fraud by a state court for failing to reveal to Krueger the severity of a knee injury that left him permanently crippled. A judge said Krueger was suffering from traumatic arthritis and an irreversible degenerative process stemming from an operation he had in 1963 in which the ACL was removed from his left knee. The 49ers were ordered to pay Krueger, who was not aware his ligament was removed, $66,000 in special damages and $2.3 million in general damages.

Krueger leaves behind his wife of 48 years, Kristin Adler Krueger. The couple had no children. There will be no funeral service at Krueger’s request. Donations can be made in his name to the Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) in Walnut Creek and the Salvation Army.

Some of his coaches, teammates, club owners and managers include: Red Hickey, Victor Morabito, Tommy Davis, Y.A. Tittle, J. D. Smith, John Brodie, Joe Perry, Hugh McElhenny, Billy Wilson, Abe Woodson, Dave Baker, Leo Nomellini, Jack Christiansen, R. C. Owens, Jerry Mertens, Billy Kilmer, Eddie Dove, Jimmy Johnson, Bob St. Clair, Bernie Casey, Matt Hazeltine, Jim David, Kermit Alexander, Dave Parks, Dave Wilcox, Dick Voris, Ken Willard, John David Crow, Bruce Bosley, Josephine Morabito, Jane Morabito, Roland Lakes, Howard Mudd, John Thomas, Len Rohde, Steve Spurrier, Dick Nolan, Jim Shofner, Paul Wiggin, Clifton McNeil, Forrest Blue, Mel Phillips, Ed Beard, Sonny Randle, Clem Daniels, Gene Washington, Elmer Collett, Ted Kwalick, Rosey Taylor, Vic Washington, Bruce Taylor, Bruce Gossett, Dick Stanfel, Ed Beard, Danny Abramowicz, Tom Wittum, Woody Peoples, Tommy Hart and Frank Nunley.