Roland Woolsey

Roland Bert Woolsey (born August 11, 1953 in Provo, Utah) is a former professional American football player who played in four NFL seasons for the Dallas Cowboys, Seattle Seahawks, Cleveland Browns and the St. Louis Cardinals. He played college football at Boise State University.

Early years

At Grandview High School, he practiced track, eight-man football and basketball.

Woolsey received a track scholarship to Boise State University, but eventually made his way to the football team, where he became a starter at safety and received All-Big Sky honors in 1974, after recording 72 tackles, six interceptions and leading his team in punt returns.^[1] In track he set school records in the 220-yard dash, the 440-yard dash and the spring and mile relay teams. Also ran a 9.6 100-yard dash and a 6.2 60-yard dash.

In 1988 he was inducted into the Boise State University Hall of Fame. Sports Illustrated named him one of the greatest Idaho athletes of the 20th century.^[2]

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Woolsey was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the sixth round of the 1975 NFL Draft, also known as the Dirty Dozen draft. As a rookie he was used mainly on special teams and became the first Boise State University graduate to play in a Super Bowl.

Seattle Seahawks

The Seattle Seahawks selected him from the Cowboys roster in the 1976 NFL Expansion Draft. He missed four pre-season games with a knee injury,^[3] but was able to play in 14 games (11 starts), registering 59 tackles and 4 interceptions (tied for the team lead).^[4] His play was affected after never fully recovering from his previous knee injury and was waived on August 29, 1977.^[5]

Cleveland Browns

On September 14, 1977, he was signed by the Cleveland Browns.^[6] He was one of the NFL's leading punt returners with 32 returns for 290 yards, but was released on August 22, 1978.^[7]

St. Louis Cardinals

In 1978, he played for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2 games.

References

External links

• Boise State Hall of Fame bio