Jim Boeke

Short Biography

James Frederick Boeke (September 11, 1938 – September 26, 2014) was an American football offensive lineman in the National Football League for the Los Angeles Rams, the Dallas Cowboys and the New Orleans Saints. He played college football at Heidelberg College and was drafted in the nineteenth round of the 1960 NFL Draft. In the off-season, he worked as a physical education teacher. During his playing days in L.A., Boeke worked as a bodyguard for the Nelson family (of Ozzie and Harriet fame), and went on to work for Ricky Nelson. Probably Boeke's most famous play as a pro occurred near the end of the 1966 NFL Championship game. With Dallas trailing Green Bay by a touchdown, the Cowboys had a first down on the Packers' 2-yard line. Boeke was flagged for a false start, Dallas failed to score, and Green Bay went on to beat the Kansas City Chiefs in the inaugural AFL-NFL championship game, now referred to as the first Super Bowl. Following his playing days, Boeke utilized his Hollywood connections and appeared in bit parts in TV (MASH, Coach and many others) and movies (North Dallas Forty, Forrest Gump et al.) for many years. Boeke continued to live in the Southern California area as a teacher and high school football coach at Westminster High School. On September 26, 2014, he died from acute leukemia.