Marv Hubbard

Marvin "Marvelous Marv" Hubbard (May 7, 1946 – May 4, 2015) was a American college and professional American football player. He played for the American Football League's and later National Football League's Oakland Raiders from 1969 through 1975, then came back with the NFL's Detroit Lions in 1977.

Early life

Hubbard grew up in Red House, New York, the most sparsely populated town in the state; although his family no longer lives in the family property, it still owns and maintains the house to prevent the state from imposing eminent domain on it. He attended Randolph High School in rural Randolph, New York, near Jamestown.

College career

After high school, Hubbard attended New Hampton School and then Colgate University in Hamilton, New York. At Colgate, he lettered three years, leading the team in rushing in 1965 with 665 yards and 1966 with 893 yards, at the time the second-highest total in Colgate history. In 1966, he was 13th in the nation in rushing and scored 88 points, sixth-highest in the nation. He ended his career as the second-leading rusher in Colgate history with 1,887 yards and 22 touchdowns. He graduated from Colgate in 1968.

Professional career

A fullback wearing jersey #44, Hubbard was famous for his punishing mano-a-mano duels with Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Willie Lanier. He was not a shifty back, and did not evade contact. Powerfully built, he was famous for crashing headlong into defenders, with little regard for his own well-being.

Though never a star, Hubbard in his prime was an unusually productive player. Of note was his extremely high per-carry average. Over the course of their careers, most of the best running backs average a little over 4 yards per carry. Only a few (Hall of Famers Jim Brown, Gale Sayers, Barry Sanders, OJ Simpson among them) exceed 4.5. Hubbard averaged 4.82 yards per carry. The most obvious explanation is the great offensive lines he ran behind. Early in his career he had Bob Brown, Art Shell, Gene Upshaw and Jim Otto blocking for him, all Pro Football Hall of Famers. Later in Hubbard's career, Brown and Otto retired and they were replaced by John Vella and Dave Dalby. respectively. The sports writers perhaps didn't give him the respect he deserved as he was never nominated for an "All-Pro" team, but the players and coaches in the NFL respected him and he did earn three trips to Pro Bowl as the backup fullback for the AFC.

However, Hubbard's career did not start impressively. He played for the Hartford Knights of the Atlantic Coast Football League. After being drafted in the 11th round (277th overall) of the 1968 AFL Draft by Oakland, he was cut. He then went to the Canadian Football League, where he spent two seasons learning how to block. But after returning to the Raiders, he teamed in the backfield with halfback Charlie Smith and became a potent weapon, especially in short-yardage situations. He made the AFC all-star team with the Raiders in 1971, 1972, and 1973. His roughhouse style of play eventually caught up with Hubbard, resulting in a nagging shoulder injury that forced him to miss most of the 1975 season. He spent the entire 1976 season on the injured reserve list and was eclipsed during his injury by his groomed replacement, fellow Colgate alum Mark van Eeghen. He signed with the Detroit Lions, where he saw spot duty during the 1977 season, after which he retired from the NFL.

Personal life

On September 27, 2003, Hubbard was involved in a car accident in Castro Valley, California, in which the driver of the other car was killed. In 2004, Hubbard pleaded no contest to misdemeanor DUI. The driver who died had been making an illegal turn in a "blind spot" on an isolated section of road.

In 1995, Hubbard was inducted into the Colgate University Athletic Hall of Honor.

Hubbard died on May 4, 2015, at the age of 68.