Ki Aldrich

Bio

His full name was Charles Collins Aldrich, but he was always known as Ki Aldrich . It was a nickname he carried from childhood. In his sophomore year, 1936, Texas Christian went 9-2-2 and beat Marquette 16-6 in the first Cotton Bowl. TCU was 4-4-2 in 1937 and soared to 11-0 in 1938. TCU was voted national champion and beat Carnegie Tech 15-7 in the Sugar Bowl. Aldrich, 5'-11" and 198 pounds, was a great blocker as a center on offense and a terrific linebacker on defense. His coach, Dutch Meyer, said, "That boy wanted to play football more than anyone I ever knew. He liked it rough ." His teammate, Sammy Baugh, called him " the toughest player I ever knew." Life Magazine in 1938 called him "probably the greatest linebacker in history." Aldrich blocked for Baugh in 1936 and for Davey O'Brien in 1937-38. He was named to the all-time Southwest Conference team. He played pro with the Chicago Cardinals and Washington Redskins 1939-42, 1945-47, with time out for U.S. Navy service. After football he served as superintendent of the Lena Pope Orphanage in Fort Worth, Texas.

Career Highlights

• 1938 All-Conference
• 1938 Conference MVP
• 1938 Consensus All-America
• 1938 Heisman - Eighth
• 1937 All-Conference
• 1937 Second Team All-America