"Big Cat" Ernie Ladd passed away last night from to cancer according to the
Louisiana News Star, he was 68. He had been confined to a wheel chair in his last years due to cancer travelling from his colon to his stomach and bones in 2004.
He was drafted by the AFL and San Diego team where he won one of the league's title games. At Grambling University, he was 6'9 and 315 pounds (which would translate well into pro wrestling later on). He went to four AFL all-star games and also played for the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Oilers. Trivia note, he was on the Chiefs roster for both Super Bowl appearances.
He went into pro wrestling soon afterwards and became a nationally known bad guy. "Today, he's the only person in both the American Football League and World Wrestling Federation halls of fame. Ladd is also a 1994 inductee into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, and joined the San Diego Hall of Champions in 2004."
Some of the stories he told were great. He was a nice guy and was a real pioneer in both the pro football world and pro wrestling world. R.I.P. Ernie.
03-11-2007, 04:36 PM
Linear Mode
