Written By: Nathan Skinner
Canes Rising Contributor
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| Ted Hendricks pursuing Steve Spurrier (Photo Credit: University of Miami Archives) |
College football is a sport built on history and tradition. There
is always a player or coach that epitomizes every major program: Alabama
has Bear Bryant, Notre Dame has the Four Horsemen and Knute Rockne, and
Michigan has Tom Harmon. Most Miami fans would name Michael Irvin as THE Hurricane legend, and they'd be wrong. Michael is a
'Cane legend, but he isn't THE legend.
That
honor belongs to "The Mad Stork," Ted Hendricks, who is today's
"Forgotten 'Cane." Everything that makes Miami special, Ted embodies it.
He was born in Guatemala but raised right here in Miami, where he
starred for Hialeah High School before making the move to Coral Gables.
Once he arrived at The U, Hendricks put together a career that is quite
simply the best in program history.
Ted was a
two-time first team All-American who accumulated over 300 career tackles
and finished fifth in the 1968 Heisman Trophy voting. He did all of
this as a Defensive End. "The Mad Stork" was a terror, especially
against the University of Florida, ripping them apart for a four-sack
game in '68. He had a nose for the football, too. Hendricks forced nine
fumbles in 1967, and he recovered twelve fumbles over the course of his
career. Ted wasn't just a great football player, either: he was an
honors-level student who majored in math. Hendricks was elected to the
College Football Hall of Fame in 1987.
Following
his outstanding college career, Hendricks went on to have a sparkling
pro career. He played in four Super Bowls, winning a championship each
time. His first came with the Baltimore Colts in 1970, and the other
three came as a member of the Oakland/L.A. Raiders. The Stork is one of
the few players in NFL history to be named an All-Pro as a member of
multiple teams (Colts, Packers, Raiders). A wiry frame and uncommon
athleticism allowed "Kick 'Em in the Head Ted" to compile 25 blocked
kicks, an NFL record that still stands today. Hendricks completed the
Hall of Fame double by being enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990.
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