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Hall of Fame quarterback Y.A. Tittle dies at age 90

Y.A. Tittle, the Hall of Fame quarterback and 1963 NFL MVP, has died. He was 90.

His family confirmed to LSU, where Tittle starred in college, that he died Sunday night at Stanford Hospital near his home in Atherton, California.

Known as "The Bald Eagle" as much for his sturdy leadership as his prematurely receding hairline, Tittle played 17 seasons of pro football. He began with the All-America Football Conference's Baltimore Colts in 1948 and finished with the NFL's New York Giants. He played 10 years in between with the San Francisco 49ers but had his greatest success in New York, leading the Giants to three division titles in four years in a remarkable late-career surge.

Tittle never won a championship but came to personify the competitive spirit of football, thanks to an iconic photo taken by Dozier Mobley during Tittle's final season in 1964.

RIP. I met him in the 70s, after he had retired and moved back to the Bay Area.

When I was growing up in Florida, the local TV station usually covered the Giants game every week (there were no NFL teams in the south then) and I became a fan, largely because of Tittle's play. I've remained loyal for 50+ years, although seasons like this one can be very trying.

A bad season just got a bit worse.

RIP.

silverscreenselect wrote:When I was growing up in Florida, the local TV station usually covered the Giants game every week (there were no NFL teams in the south then) and I became a fan, largely because of Tittle's play. I've remained loyal for 50+ years, although seasons like this one can be very trying.

A bad season just got a bit worse.

RIP.

I remembered after my initial response that when I was working in Alpharetta, one of the people I played NTN against was a former 49er who played with both Tittle and John Brodie. He had everything good to say about Tittle.

This won me a couple trivia contests -- what does the Y.A. stand for. Yelberton Abraham.

I think of him the same as George Blanda. They seemed immortal.

Y.A. Tittle is part of the story of why I became a Giants fan back in the early 60's. I was only 7-8 years old but they drafted a kid (Glynn Griffin) out of Ole Miss with the idea that he would eventually take over when Tittle retired. I was too young to know anything about the NFL draft and envisioned it being similar to my buddies and I picking teams for a front yard football game. My young self figured if a bunch of Yankees picked a guy from Mississippi for their team, then they must be pretty good folks. They became my team and are still the only team that I support besides the Saints who did not come along for five years after I became a Giants fan. I have never wavered in my support for Big Blue unless they are playing the Saints. It is real easy for us Rebels to be Giants fans today with three former Rebels starting for the Giants on offense (Eli, John Jerry, and Evan Engram) but I was there for over 40 years before that trio came together. Everyone that is part of the Lauderdale Rebel Club and tents with us in The Grove have the Giants as at least their second team and many have them as number one due to Evan Engram. Both his parents (divorced) were part of out group all four years that he was in Oxford and they never missed a game at our tent in four years. Evan usually caught up with them at our tent after the game so we all know him pretty well. He is a waaay better person than he is a football player and that is saying something because he is an excellent football player.