Gene Washington

Born January 14 1947 in Tuscaloosa Alabama Gene Alden Washington was raised in California and attended Long Beach Polytechnic High School in Long Beach where he excelled as a multitalented quarterback He led the team to a league championship in 1964 earned Back of the Year honors and was selected to the AllCity team while also playing forward on the schools championship basketball team In 1965 Washington was elected the fiftyyearold schools first black student body president becoming an academic and athletic leader who was rated the numberone football recruit coming out of high school in Southern California Washington played three years of varsity football at Stanford University from 1966 to 1968 where he was one of only twentyfive black students in a population of 10000 He became Stanfords first black quarterback playing that position as a sophomore before moving to running back as a junior and wide receiver as a senior As a senior in 1968 Washington led the Pacific Eight Conference with seventyone receptions 1117 receiving yards and eight touchdowns while earning AllAmerican honors He set Stanford career records for receptions with 122 and receiving yards with 1785 The San Francisco 49ers selected Washington with the sixteenth overall pick in the 1969 NFL Draft Strengths included exceptional speed that made him a devastating deep threat remarkable bigplay ability evidenced by his career 178 yardspercatch average consistent touchdown production and intelligent routerunning that maximized his athletic gifts Washingtons spectacular 1970 season saw him catch fiftythree passes for a leagueleading 1100 yardsaveraging nearly twentyone yards per receptionwith twelve receiving touchdowns He earned firstteam AllPro honors and his second consecutive Pro Bowl selection helping the 49ers to a 1031 record and their first playoff appearance in over a decade In 1972 Washington again led the NFL with twelve touchdown receptions while averaging twenty yards per catch on fortysix receptions During 1974 despite the 49ers starting four different quarterbacks Washington led the league with a remarkable 212 yardsperreception average Washington finished his career with 385 receptions for 6856 yards and sixty touchdowns across ten NFL seasons When he left the 49ers in 1977 he was the franchises alltime leader in receiving yards receptions and touchdowns He earned four Pro Bowl selections from 1969 to 1972 and three firstteam AllPro honors Washington appeared in several films and television shows including Black Gunn 1972 The Black Six 1974 Airport 1975 1974 Lady Cocoa 1975 and episodes of Banacek 1972 and The Mod Squad 1972 He served as the NFLs director of football operations from 1994 to 2009