Former New York Giants first-round pick Lee Grosscup has passed away at the age of 83, Sports Illustrated reports.
Grosscup, who was born and raised in Santa Monica, California, had a stellar college career that first began at the University of Washington in 1955. He later transferred to Santa Monica College before finding his way to the University of Utah in 1957.
During the 1957 season, Grosscup 68 percent of his passes for 1,398 yards and 10 touchdowns. He was named a first-team All-American by multiple outlets. He was also credited with developing the shovel pass, which was known as the “Utah pass” at the time.
The New York Giants selected Grosscup in the first-round (No. 10 overall) of the 1959 NFL Draft, but he went on to appear in only eight games for the team, completing just 16 of his 47 pass attempts (34 percent) for 231 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions.
In 1962, the Minnesota Vikings purchased Grosscup’s contract, but he was released prior to the start of the season. He ended up signing with the New York Titans (now the New York Jets) and started four games for them that year.
After his first stint in the NFL, Grosscup traveled north to the CFL, spending the 1963 season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He briefly returned to the NFL in 1964 as a member of the Oakland Raiders before ending his professional career with the Hartford Charter Oaks of the Atlantic Coast Football League.
Grosscup became a broadcaster in 1966, calling AFL games on NBC before joining ABC as a college football analyst, where he’d remain for the next 21 years. At the tail end of his career, Grosscup also served as an analyst in the USFL and a television analyst for ABC.
Grosscup officially retired in 2018.
Once a Giant, always a Giant.
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