Bobby Boyd obit

Former Sooner and Colts star Bobby Boyd dies at 79

He was not on the list.

Bobby Boyd, who quarterbacked OU to 1958 and 1959 Big Seven championships then became an all-pro defensive back for the Baltimore Colts, died Monday. He was 79.

Boyd played nine seasons for the Colts and produced 57 interceptions, which was third in NFL history when Boyd retired. Boyd’s total remains tied for 13th to this day.

Boyd came out of Garland, Texas, and played defensive back and quarterback for those late-‘50s Sooners of Bud Wilkinson. Boyd rushed for 960 yards and passed for 653 yards as a Sooner.

But it was as a safety that Boyd became known in the NFL. He was first-team all-pro in 1964, 1965 and 1968. The Colts made the NFL championship game in ’64 and won it in ’68.

Boyd often has been on the list of players most deserving to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He retired from playing after the ’68 season to join Don Shula’s Baltimore staff. Boyd coached five seasons with the Colts and teamed with legendary quarterback Johnny Unitas in the Baltimore restaurant business.

Boyd retired to his hometown of Garland in 1986.

If Boyd had played a couple of more seasons, his interception total likely would have been in the 60s, and he would have joined Unitas in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

“It's always easy to second guess,” Boyd told The Oklahoman in 2005. “I kick myself in the rear end sometimes.” But “jobs just don't open up every year. I was torn. I wanted to coach.”