Ron Jaworski

Lore & Background

Jaworski was born and raised in Lackawanna, New York. A three-sport star in high school, he turned down a Major League Baseball offer from the St. Louis Cardinals to attend college at Youngstown State University, where he was nicknamed "Rifle Ron" and the "Polish Rifle", a reference to his Polish ethnicity. At Youngstown State, he set several school records including single-season passing completions (139), career passing completions (325), single-season passing yardage (2,123), career passing yardage (4,612), single-season passing touchdowns (18), and career passing touchdowns (32).

Reader's Guide

Jaworski was selected in the second round of the 1973 NFL draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles on March 9, 1977. He led the Eagles to four consecutive playoff appearances (1978–1981), including a division title and the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance in 1980. In Super Bowl XV, the Eagles lost to the Oakland Raiders 27–10.

Jaworski completed 18-of-38 passes for 291 yards while throwing a touchdown and three interceptions with a lost fumble. After 10 seasons with the Eagles, he signed with the Miami Dolphins, where he spent two seasons as a backup. After his playing career, he worked as an NFL analyst on ESPN from 1990 to 2017. From 2004 to 2019, he served as an executive of the Philadelphia Soul franchise of the Arena Football League, and briefly served as the league's Executive Committee Chair from 2018 to 2019. He is founder and CEO of Ron Jaworski Golf.

Did You Know?

• He set an NFL record for consecutive starts by a quarterback (116) that stood until Brett Favre broke it in 1999.
• The 1978 Eagles-Falcons playoff game is believed to be the first and only time in NFL history where both starting quarterbacks were of Polish heritage.