Ernie Pitts

Ernie Pitts
Date of birth (1935-03-08)March 8, 1935
Place of birth Aliquippa, Pennsylvania
Date of death September 24, 1970(1970-09-24) (aged 35)
Place of death Denver, Colorado
Career information
CFL status National
Position(s) WR/DB
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 192 lb (87 kg)
College Denver
NFL draft 1957 / Round: 8 / Pick: 92
Drafted by San Francisco 49ers
Career history
As player
1957-1969 Winnipeg Blue Bombers
1970 BC Lions
CFL West All-Star 1957, 1959, 1960, 1966, 1968

Ernie Pitts (March 8, 1935 – September 24, 1970) was a Canadian Football League wide receiver and defensive back for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the BC Lions in a 14-year career in the CFL from 1957 to 1970. He won four Grey Cups with Winnipeg.

College

Ernie Pitts played college football at Denver University.[1]

Winnipeg

Ernie Pitts was a standout wide receiver who also played defensive back for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers from 1957 to 1969. For all those years except the last two, Ken Ploen was his quarterback . Together, they were major factors in Winnipeg's six Grey Cup appearances (1957, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1965), including four victories: 1958, 1959, 1961, 1962 and two losses: 1957, 1965. His highest totals in caught passes was 68 in 1959 and 62 in 1962. In 1959, he scored 16 touchdowns. He once caught 5 touchdown passes in one game and scored on a 107-yard touchdown pass play. Evidence of his prowess on defense included 7 interceptions in 1968 and 5 more in 1969.

BC

Pitts ended his career with the BC Lions in 1970.

Sudden death

Pitts died after he was shot by his estranged wife in a domestic dispute in Denver Colorado.[2]

External links

References

  1. http://www.justsportsstats.com/footballstatsindex.php?player_id=pittsern001
  2. "Death was waiting as Ernie Arrived", Winnipeg Free Press, Saturday, September 26, 1970, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada


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