Texas

William Ray Svoboda (July 12, 1928 – June 20, 1980) was an American football linebacker who played nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Chicago Cardinals and New York Giants. He played college football at Tulane University and was drafted in the third round of the 1950 NFL Draft. Svoboda died after suffering a heart attack while jogging.
His wife Joyce, who appeared on the Nov 4,1957 evening episode of “The Price Is Right” hosted by Bill Cullen, responded to his question about her size saying she was 4’10” and weighed 89lbs. She described William as 6’1” and 220lbs. While she didn’t win any prizes, she received a Polaroid camera as a parting gift.

Leopold Victor "Leo" Rucka (August 18, 1931 – January 4, 2016) was an American professional football player who played Linebacker/Center for the San Francisco 49ers during the 1956 NFL season. He was drafted in the 2nd round of the 1954 NFL Draft.
He was picked 23rd overall out of 360 draft picks in the 1954 draft. Leo was born in Wooster, an area of Baytown, TX, on August 18, 1931, and graduated from Crosby High School (Texas) in 1950, where he excelled in football, basketball, and all other major sports. He was a resident of Crosby, TX. He was Married to his wife of over 60 years, Lillian Rucka. They had 5 children, 11 grandchildren, and several great grandchildren. He attended College at Rice University and was inducted into the Rice Football Hall of Fame in 1996.During his senior year at Rice, Leo helped the Rice Owls defeat the University of Texas in the final seconds for the Southwest Conference title. He described it as his "biggest college thrill". He also co-captained the team the season they won the Cotton Bowl Championship in 1954 against Alabama. He played in 5 NFL games, He had 1 documented fumble recovery, tackle data is not available from that year. Leo left the NFL to fulfill Army obligations as an aviation engineer. He served in Far East during the Korean War for 20 months. He was named to the All-Service Team. During his time in the NFL he was 6'3", 212 lbs. His teammates nicknamed him "The Quiet Man". Rucka died on January 4, 2016.

Ernest Woodrow Pannell (February 2, 1917 – September 24, 1998) was a player in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the sixteenth round of the 1941 NFL Draft and played three seasons with the team.

Ernest McNeil Moore (June 26, 1933 – March 9, 2023) was an American football player who played for Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Sam Houston State University and Rice University. Moore died in Longview, Texas on March 9, 2023, at the age of 89.

Vern McGrew (December 7, 1929 – January 9, 2012) was an American high jumper. He competed in the high jump event at the 1948 Summer Olympics at the age of eighteen. He used the western roll technique, which was common at the time, and in 1948 achieved a career best clearance of 2.04 meters (6 ft 8¼ in).Born in Big Spring, Texas, he went on to attend Lamar High School in Houston, graduating in 1946. That year he won the Texan state championship with a state record jump. He gained a place at Rice University and competed for the Rice Owls athletic team under their coach Emmett Brunson. McGrew became the second Rice alumnus to take part in an Olympic event, after Claude Bracey in 1928.The 1948 Olympics was his only major international appearance but he achieved some success at national level. While studying at Rice University he competed at the NCAA Championship, coming third in 1948 and finishing as runner-up in 1949. He completed this upward trend by winning the NCAA high jump title in 1950 with a jump of over two meters (6 ft 7 in). At the national-level AAU Championship meeting he was third in 1948 (where he gained Olympic selection), but managed only fifth place the year after.McGrew undertook post-graduate study at the University of Texas and later the University of Texas Law School. He signed up for military service from 1954 to 1956. He did not take part in athletics in his later life and instead used his studies to gain a placement at Humble Oil, at which he spent 30 years of his working life. He retired in the 1980s and lived until the age of 82. He died at Methodist Hospital in Houston.

Dee Elbert Mackey (October 16, 1934 – February 26, 2001) was an American football tight end who played professionally for six seasons in the National Football League and the American Football League. He played for the NFL's San Francisco 49ers (1960) and the Baltimore Colts (1961–1962). He played for the AFL's New York Jets (1963–1965).He played college football at East Texas State and was a 24th round selection (287th overall pick) in the 1958 NFL Draft.

Jimmie Coker Holland (April 9, 1928 – December 24, 2017) was a founder of the field of psycho-oncology. In 1977, she worked with two colleagues to establish a full-time psychiatric service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. The program was one of the first of its kind in cancer treatment, and trained its psychologists to specialize in issues specific to people with cancer.

Robert Lloyd Griffin (February 12, 1929 – February 25, 2012) was a professional American football player who played linebacker for six seasons for the Los Angeles Rams and St. Louis Cardinals. Griffin played college football at the University of Arkansas and was selected in the second round of the 1952 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams.

William Jarrel Cross (May 3, 1929 – July 5, 2013) was a professional American football player who played running back for three seasons for the Chicago Cardinals. He finished his career as an all-star in the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union with the Toronto Argonauts in 1954. He died in Canadian, Texas in 2013.

Stuart Lenox Clarkson (July 4, 1919 – October 25, 1957) was a linebacker for the Chicago Bears from 1942 to 1951. He was the last pick in the 1942 NFL Draft.
Clarkson was a two-time Little All-American at Texas A&I University (now Texas A&M-Kingsville), 1938 and 1939. He was posthumously named to the Texas A&M-Kingsville Football Hall of Fame, 1972, and was named to the Texas A&M-Kingsville Football Team of Century in 2000.
As a member of the 1946 World Champion Chicago Bears, he received an equal players share of $1,975.82. Following his tenure with the Chicago Bears, Clarkson was line coach and player for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL) from 1952 to 1953. From 1943 to 1945, Clarkson served with the United States Army in England, France and Germany. On June 6, 1944, Clarkson was part of the American forces landing at Utah Beach, Normandy, France.On October 25, 1957, while coaching during a game for the Sugar Land (Texas) High School football team, Clarkson suffered a heart attack and died on the side of the field. Sugar Land went on to beat Hitchcock High, 25–0. Clarkson had 2 sons.