| Texas Longhorns–No. 12 | |
|---|---|
| Position | QB, P |
| Class | 1979 |
| Personal information | |
| Height | 73 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| Career history | |
| College | Texas (1975–1979) |
| Bowl games |
|
| High school | Churchill |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Ted Louis Constanzo (born c. 1956) is an American former football player who started as quarterback and later at punter for the Texas Longhorns in the late 1970s.
Ted Constanzo was a star quarterback at Churchill High School in San Antonio. He quarterbacked his team for two years, earning player-of-the-week, all-district and, in 1974, all state honors. He was also the team's punter. He played in the 1974 Texas High School Coaches Association All-Star game and won the Thom McAn award as the city's outstanding high school football player. He had a strong arm and was a blue-chip college recruit for his passing. [1] [2]
Constanzo was an all-around athlete, who was also a star of the track and field team where he competed in, among other things, the pole vault, and he lettered in both baseball and basketball. [3]
Ted Constanzo arrived at Texas at 1975 and immediately moved into the role of backup to Marty Akins because Mike Presley, who backed up Akins in 1974, had decided to leave football to focus on his education. [4] He gained experience in blow-out wins over Colorado State, Utah State and Rice, replacing Akins late in all three games. Late in the season, he was pressed into duty against TCU when Akins hurt his knee. He led the number 7 Longhorns to a win, but he had difficulty handling the Wishbone offense. [5] Two weeks later, he again replaced Akins when Akins re-injured his knee early in the second quarter against number 2, undefeated Texas A&M. The Longhorns kept it close, but Constanzo threw 3 interceptions in a 20–10 loss. [6]
Akins graduated and in spring 1976 Constanzo was named the starter for the next season. Royal also considered him the starter during summer practice. [7] [8] However, just before the season started he was beat out for the starting position by Mike Cordaro, primarily because of Cordaro's speed. [1] He backed Cordaro up for most of the season, playing late in a blowout win over Rice. His first chance to regain the starting position came against Texas Tech, when he took over for Cardoro in the first quarter. Despite losing Earl Campbell before halftime he was twice able to help Texas retake the lead, but Texas couldn't hold on and lost, 31–28. Constanzo played well enough to earn his only career start at quarterback the next week in a 30–0 loss to Houston in which he shared quarterback duties with Cordaro. [9] The following week, they were both benched in favor of freshman Mark McBath. [10]
During spring practices in 1977 Constanzo was the back-up to McBath but in the following summer he injured his knee playing racquetball and had to have surgery to have it repaired. [5] [11] After missing most of the season, Akers planned to redshirt him. When McBath and back-up quarterbacks Jon Aune and Randy McEachern went down with injuries, Akers decided to start true freshman Sam Ansley against Baylor instead of the recovering Constanzo to preserve his medical redshirt. [12] Constanzo had to burn his redshirt anyway, and use a whole season of eligibility, during that game to fill in not as quarterback, but as punter for an injured Russell Erxleben. During the fourth quarter of that game he also took a few snaps at quarterback and threw no passes. [13] It would be the last time he'd take a snap as quarterback in his career, finishing with a record of 0–1 as a starter. He did continue to replace Erxleben the following week against Texas A&M.
During spring practice in 1978, Constanzo and McBath were the back-ups to Sam Ansley, with Aune expected to start the season when he recovered from his knee injury. [14] He sat the season out, eventually redshirting, but was still considered, along with John Goodson, the back-up punter to Erxleben. [15]
In 1979, he started out as a backup quarterback and punter. [16] John Goodson started the season as the starting place-kicker and punter, but after he averaged 32.5 yards per punt through the first two games, Akers began to let Constanzo punt. [17] They shared punting duties in 5 of the next 6 games, with Constanzo sitting out the SMU game, but during the last four games, including the Sun Bowl, Constanzo was the team's only punter. It was during the Sun Bowl that he kicked his career best, a 60-yard punt.
After college, Constanzo enlisted in the Army where he spent three years of active duty and 17 in the reserves. He was a combat engineer officer before earning the rank of major. He left the Army and became a coach and teacher for more than 20 years. He was the athletic coordinator and head football coach at Spring Branch Middle School, where he led his team to two undefeated seasons, and then became an assistant football and baseball coach at Smithson Valley High School. In 2011, he became the head football coach at TMI — The Episcopal School of Texas in San Antonio, where he also teaches middle and high school classes about the power of the G Drive. " [18]
Russell Erxleben is a former American football player and currency investor. He shares the record for the longest successful field goal in NCAA history at 67 yards, which he set in 1977 while playing for the University of Texas. Erxleben was a three-time All-American punter. He was drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft, an extremely rare occurrence for a kicker. After an NFL career lasting six years, he became a currency investor. Convicted of securities fraud in 1999, he was released from federal prison in 2005. He was again convicted of investment fraud in 2014 and sentenced to 90 months in federal prison.
William Calvin Bradley is an American former football player and coach. He played professionally as a defensive back in the National Football League (NFL), earning All-Pro honors twice. He played with the Philadelphia Eagles for most of his career. As an assistant coach he won two Grey Cups in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was also the defensive backs coach of the San Antonio Commanders of the Alliance of American Football.
Carlyle Javar Holiday is a former American football wide receiver.
James Brown is a former American football quarterback. He was the starting quarterback of the Texas Longhorns from 1994 to 1997. At the time, he was only the second black quarterback to guide Texas through an entire season, and is credited for "opening doors" for future black quarterbacks at Texas, such as Casey Thompson and Vince Young.
Alan D. Lowry is a former National Football League (NFL) and college football coach, best known as the architect of the Music City Miracle. He coached for several teams over more than 25 years, winning one Super Bowl and going to another. Prior to coaching he played football at the University of Texas, where he won a national championship and three conference championships, was named to the All-Conference team twice at two different positions and was named the 1973 Cotton Bowl Offensive MVP.
Bret Alan Stafford is a former American football player. He started as quarterback for the Texas Longhorns for almost 2½ seasons, 1985-87 during which time he established 14 UT records, among them most passing yards in a season (2,233) in 1986, and most passing yards over a career (4,735). However, most of his records have since been surpassed by Peter Gardere, James Brown, Major Applewhite, and Vince Young.
Walter William Fondren III was an all-conference football player and conservation activist. He played halfback, quarterback and punter for the Texas Longhorns from 1955 to 1957 and was the first starting quarterback for Darrell Royal. He was later a founding member of the Coastal Conservation Association.
Bobby Lackey was an American football player who was the starting quarterback for the Texas Longhorns in the late 1950s. An all around athlete, he also played punter, kicker and defensive back and returned both punts and kick-offs. He was the team's top scorer in 1958 and 1959 and helped Texas to win a share of the 1959 Southwest Conference championship, the first of the Darrell Royal era. He was also the first Longhorn to ever appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
Peter Alexander Gardere is a former American football quarterback, famous for his four-year tenure as the Texas Longhorns quarterback in the late 1980s/early 1990s. He is the only starting quarterback on either side of the Texas-Oklahoma football rivalry to win four straight games in the Red River Rivalry. He set 10 school records and still shares the record for most interceptions thrown over a career.
Donnie Little is a former American football quarterback. He was the quarterback of the Texas Longhorns from 1978 to 1980, and in 1978 was the first black quarterback to play for The University of Texas. He is credited with "opening doors" for future black quarterbacks at Texas, such as James Brown and Vince Young.
Robert Marvin Moerschell is a former American football player. He started as quarterback for the Texas Longhorns for most of the 1983 season, the last undefeated regular season for Texas in the 20th century. In 1984, he moved to tailback and punt returner when Todd Dodge took over as quarterback. He also returned punts and kickoffs in 1981 and 1982. Moerschell is the last Texas quarterback to go undefeated as a starter over his entire career and one of the school's top ten punt returners of all time.
Randy McEachern is a former American football player. He started as quarterback for the Texas Longhorns. He started the 1977 season as the 4th string quarterback on an unranked team and finished as the starter of the #1 team in the country, playing for the national championship.
Sam Ansley is a former American football player. He started two games as quarterback for the Texas Longhorns in 1977. When the 1977 season started he was the 4th string quarterback, but injuries to all three of the quarterbacks ahead of him led to him starting the two games at the end of the regular season. At the time Texas was undefeated, ranked #1 and playing for the national championship. They won both games.
James Mark McBath is a former American football player who started as quarterback for the Texas Longhorns in the late 1970s. He was the starting quarterback in Darrell Royal's last game.
Mike Cordaro is a former American football player. He started as quarterback for the Texas Longhorns in 1976.
Martin Ray Akins is a former college All-American football player and politician. He started as quarterback for the Texas Longhorns in the early 1970s and was the only Longhorn quarterback to start three seasons directing the wishbone offense, and the only wishbone quarterback to ever be an All-American. Akins helped quarterback Texas to 3 Southwest Conference Championships.
Michael Austin Presley is a former football player who started as quarterback for the Texas Longhorns in two games in 1974.
Eddie Phillips is a former American football player who started as quarterback for the Texas Longhorns in the early 1970s. In 1970, he led the Longhorns to a share of the National Championship while leading the Southwest Conference in total touchdowns. Despite an award-winning, record-breaking performance in the 1971 Cotton Bowl, Texas lost, breaking its 30-game winning streak and handing the AP crown to Nebraska.
Marvin Christopher Kristynik is a former football player and coach who started as quarterback for the Texas Longhorns in the mid 1960s. He was the third-string quarterback on Texas' first national championship team in 1963, before becoming the starter the following two years. After graduating, he spent a decade as an assistant coach before leaving the profession as the offensive coordinator for the University of Texas at El Paso.
Hudson Card is an American football quarterback for the Purdue Boilermakers. He was a highly touted four-star prospect from Lake Travis High School in Austin, Texas. He played in the 2020 Under Armour All-America Game.
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