Remembering former Stanford football player and golfer John Brodie

Former Stanford football player and golfer John Brodie ‘56 passed away last Friday at the age of 90 in Solana Beach, Calif. After graduating from Stanford, he was a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers for 17 seasons. After retiring from the NFL, he became a sports broadcaster for NBC Sports for 12 years, and later decided to continue his professional athlete career as a Senior PGA Tour professional golfer for 13 years. 

As quarterback for the Cardinal, Brodie walked-on, rather than accepting an athletic scholarship, so he could compete with Stanford golf during the spring off-season. In his senior season, Brodie was named a consensus All-American for football and first team All-Conference in the Pacific Coast Conference. He also led the nation in passing and total offense that season and was voted seventh for the 1956 Heisman. 

Brodie set many school records during his Stanford football career, including his 3,594 career passing yards and leading the team in total offense for three consecutive seasons. In addition to playing quarterback, Brodie was the Cardinal’s kicker in 1955 and 1956. 

On the Stanford golf team, Brodie competed in two NCAA Championships and was considered an impressive dual-threat athlete, having enough talent to skip out on spring football training to excel on the green. 

In the 1957 NFL draft, Brodie was the third overall pick and was drafted by the 49ers. Brodie still competed on the PGA Tour during the NFL offseason. Brodie shared the title of starting quarterback with Y.A. Tittle for the 1957-1960 seasons and eventually became the 49ers’ starting quarterback in 1961 after Tittle was traded to the New York Giants. In his 1961 season, he passed for 2,588 yards with 14 touchdowns to 12 interceptions and a league-leading 9.1 yards per attempt. The 49ers went 7-6-1 that season.

Brodie was a 1970 NFL MVP and two-time pro-bowler (1966, 1971). He retired with 31,458 total yards and 214 touchdowns, ranking third in NFL all-time passing yards. In 1965, Brodie was named Second-Team All-Pro and First-Team All-Pro in 1970. The 49ers retired his number 12 jersey in 1973 upon his exit from the NFL. Brodie was inducted into the inaugural class of the 49ers Hall of Fame in 2009.

Immediately following the NFL, Brodie served as a football and golf analyst for NBC Sports. He was the network’s top analyst in the 1977 and 1978 seasons alongside Curt Gowdy. He then left broadcasting in 1985 to join the Senior PGA Tour. In his professional golf career, Brodie earned one win and 12 top-10 finishes. He appeared in the U.S. Open in 1959 and 1981, but missed the cut both times. 

Brodie continued to play professional golf well into his 60s, although he suffered a stroke in 2000, leaving his speech impaired. Despite the stroke, Brodie was back on the course playing leisurely golf within the next year.

Brodie is highly regarded for his legacy of leadership and competitiveness, remembered as one of the most durable and prolific passers of his era. He was a pioneer of the modern passing game and was rightfully inducted into the Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame in 1986. His impact endures not only in Stanford record books but in the tradition of excellence shared across Cardinal athletics.

The post Remembering former Stanford football player and golfer John Brodie appeared first on The Stanford Daily.