North Carolina State University Athletics
Wolfpack Star Alex Webster Dies at 80
3/5/2012 12:00:00 AM | Football
March 5, 2012
RALEIGH, N.C. - "Big Red" was a superstar in the Big Apple, where he both played for and coached the New York Giants. The Kearny, N.J., native was a hometown boy who still ranks in the top five of most career rushing categories for the storied franchise.
But Alex Webster's humble roots began at NC State College, where the aptly nicknamed single-wing tailback and defensive safety toiled in the days before television, the Atlantic Coast Conference and facemasks. He's rarely mentioned in the same breath as all-time Wolfpack greats like Roman Gabriel, Ted Brown, Torry Holt or Philip Rivers, but Webster's professional football resume is stronger than any other former Wolfpack player.
Webster, a recent inductee into the Giants Ring of Honor, died Saturday in Port St. Lucie, Fla., of emphysema and lung cancer, according to his daughter Debbie Moberg. He was 80.
Webster's NC State stats are incomplete because only team stats were kept during his sophomore season of 1950. He rushed for 634 yards as a junior in 1951, earning second-team All-Southern Conference honors, and ran for 459 yards as a senior in 1952. Perhaps the biggest play of his career came in 1951 when he returned a punt 86 yards for a touchdown against Wake Forest, which still stands as fifth longest punt return in school history.
Webster, born April 19, 1931, was drafted in the 11th round of the 1953 NFL draft by the Washington Redskins. He was the last player cut in his first training camp and spent two years playing for former Wake Forest coach Peahead Walker in the Canadian Football League.
The young running back did not fare well with the Giants until he was inspired by an assistant coach named Vince Lombardi, who convinced Webster to practice as hard as he played in games.
Webster scored two touchdowns in the Giants' 47-7 victory over the Chicago Bears in the 1956 NFL championship game. He played in five more championship games during his 10 years with the Giants.
He was never the fastest player in the NFL, but at 6-foot-3, 230 pounds he became a bruising fullback who ran over more defenders than he out ran, earning two trips to the Pro Bowl. In 1961, he rushed for a career high 928 yards as a halfback. The next season, he rushed for 743 as a fullback.
He ended his career with 1,196 carries, 4,638 rushing yards and 39 touchdowns, all of which rank in the top five in Giant history. He added another 17 touchdown receptions.
After retiring in 1954, Webster became an assistant coach for Giants coach Allie Sherman. In 1969, he replaced Sherman as head coach after the Giants lost all five preseason games. He later admitted he wasn't prepared to be an NFL head coach, though he was named NFC coach of the year in 1970, after leading the Giants to a 9-5 record.
His final head coaching record was 29-40-1 and none of his teams reached the playoffs. After leaving football, he worked for a food company, traveling around the country to play in celebrity and charity golf tournaments. Most recently, he lived in Hobe Sound, Fla., where he suffered with breathing issues and medical expenses.
In 2009, he lost Louise, his wife of 58 years who he met while he was a student in Raleigh. He is survived by his daughter; son James; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
- By Tim Peeler, tim_peeler@ncsu.edu
