Rick Upchurch
- Denver Broncos (1975-1983)
- 4 × Pro Bowl selection (1976, 1978, 1979, 1982)
- 5 × All-Pro selection ( 1976-1979, 1982)
- AFC Champion (1977 )
- NFL 1970s All- Decade Team
- NFL 1980s All- Decade Team
- University of Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame
Richard Upchurch ( born May 20, 1952 in Toledo, Ohio ) is a former American professional American football player. He has played as a wide receiver in the National Football League ( NFL ) for the Denver Broncos.
Playing career
College career
Rick Upchurch was born in Toledo, but grew up in Holland. There he attended the High School. After finishing school, he moved about the Centerville Community College in Centerville, Iowa, to the University of Minnesota, where he was Akiv as football player and athlete. For the Golden Gophers, he played as a wide receiver and as a punt and kickoff returner. In 1974 he was elected to the second selection team of the Big Ten Conference. Both in 1973 and in 1974, he was honored by his college because of his athletic achievements.
Professional career
Upchurch was drafted in 1975 by the Denver Broncos in the fourth round to 95th place. Upchurch from his head coach John Ralston on offense the Broncos was used as a wide receiver and return specialist. Already in his first game as a rookie Upchurch made national attention. On the opening day the team were from Denver against the Kansas City Chiefs 10-0 back. Upchurch scored in the first half with a run over a distance of 13 yards a touchdown and caught a pass in the second half of his quarterbacks and running this over a distance of 90 yards for his second touchdown in the opponent's end zone. With two more pass catches a total of 63 yards extra space he contributed greatly to 37:33 victory of his team. In the 1977 season, Richard Upchurch won with the team from Colorado the championship in the American Football Conference ( AFC). The Broncos had won in the regular season twelve of 14 games and were able to qualify with this performance for the play- offs. Opponent in the AFC playoff were the Oakland Raiders could be hit with 20:17. With the win, Upchurch and his team for the Super Bowl could qualify. Opponent in Super Bowl XII were the Dallas Cowboys. Upchurch was able to achieve a space gain of 94 yards with three kickoff returns. Another 22 yards, he scored with punt returns and nine yards with a pass from quarterback Craig Morton. The game against the Cowboys lost the Broncos but with 27:10. Rick Upchurch ended after the 1983 season his career in which he had established several Jahresbestleistungen. In 1976 he had been able to score four touchdowns through punt return. The following year he was able to achieve a space gain of 653 yards with 51 punt returns.
Away from the NFL
Rick Upchurch coached by his career, two high school football teams. He was the life companion of the later U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Upchurch is married and has four children. Today who suffered from leukemia Upchurch lives in Mesquite, Nevada.
Honors
Rick Upchurch played four times in the Pro Bowl, the final game of the best players of the season. He was five times voted All- Pro. Upchurch is a member of the NFL 1970s All- Decade Team, NFL 1980s All- Decade in the team and in the University of Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame.