TULSA, Okla. — Tom Catlin, a longtime NFL assistant coach and a two-way star in the 1950s at the University of Oklahoma, has died. He was 76.
Catlin died Saturday at a hospice in Seattle of complications stemming from recent surgery, said his brother, Charles Catlin, who added that his brother recently had Parkinson’s disease.
Catlin was assistant head coach and defensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks, where he coached from 1983-1995. He earlier worked as an assistant coach for the Dallas Texans and Kansas City Chiefs in the American Football League, then the Los Angeles Rams and Buffalo Bills in the NFL.
Catlin played center and linebacker at OU from 1950-1952, and was a member of the Sooners’ 1950 squad that won the national championship under coach Bud Wilkinson.
Catlin was selected in the fourth round of the 1953 draft by the Baltimore Colts, and was traded to Cleveland and played for the Browns in 1953-54. He was an Air Force pilot in 1955-57, and returned to the Browns in 1957-58 before finishing his playing career a year later with the Philadelphia Eagles.
He is survived by his wife, Betty, daughter Kimberly Ekdahal and son Thomas Jr., four grandchildren and his brother.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
