Robert Glenn Baumhower (born August 4, 1955) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle for the Miami Dolphins in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide under coach Bear Bryant from 1973 to 1976 and professionally for Miami under coach Don Shula. He later became a restaurateur.

Bob Baumhower
refer to caption
Baumhower playing for the Dolphins in 1979
No. 73
Position:Defensive tackle
Personal information
Born: (1955-08-04) August 4, 1955 (age 69)
Portsmouth, Virginia, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:261 lb (118 kg)
Career information
High school:Palm Beach Gardens (Palm Beach Gardens, Florida)
College:Alabama
NFL draft:1977 / round: 2 / pick: 40
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Sacks:14.5[a]
Total tackles:888 [2]
Interceptions:1
Fumble recoveries:16
Stats at Pro Football Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Early life and college

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Baumhower attended North Palm Beach Gardens High School in Florida for two seasons before playing at Tuscaloosa High School his senior year.[3]

Playing as a defensive tackle in college at the University of Alabama under coach Bear Bryant, Baumhower helped lead the Crimson Tide to two 11–1 records as well as a 31–4 overall record. He was part of the 1974 team which lost to Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl,[4] the 1975 team which defeated Penn State in the Sugar Bowl,[5] and the 1976 team which won the Liberty Bowl over UCLA.[6] Baumhower was a first-team All-Southeastern Conference selection in both 1975 and 1976.[7][8] After the 1976 season, he was invited to play in the Senior Bowl college all-star game.[9]

Professional career

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Baumhower was drafted by the Dolphins with the 40th overall pick (second round) in the 1977 NFL draft, behind the first round pick, another defensive lineman from the Southeastern Conference, A. J. Duhe of LSU; earning a spot on the 1977 All-Rookie team. Baumhower and Duhe would share the 1977 Defensive Rookie of the Year honors.[10] He was selected five times to the Pro Bowl in the NFL.

Baumhower and Duhe, who eventually was moved to inside linebacker, formed the heart of the Dolphins' "Killer B's"[11] defense of the late 1970s through mid-1980s, coached by defensive coordinator Bill Arnsparger. Baumhower was flanked on the line by ends Doug Betters and Kim Bokamper, while other stars of the unit included outside linebacker Bob Brudzinski and defensive backs Lyle Blackwood and Glenn Blackwood. The unit was ranked first in the NFL in total defense in 1982, when Miami reached Super Bowl XVII.

The 1983 season may have been Baumhower's best as he was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year (Pro Football Weekly), first-team All-Pro (Associated Press), first-team All-AFC (United Press International) and a starter in the Pro Bowl game. He was a first-team All-NFL selection in 1981 and 1983 and first-team All-AFC in 1979, 1981 and 1983.

Baumhower would retire after the 1986 season. He was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1995.[12]

On December 14, 2008, Baumhower was inducted into The Miami Dolphin Honor Roll during a ceremony at Dolphin Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium).

Year Age Team Position No. Games Started INTs FF Fmb FR Def. Yds Def. TD Sk AV
1977 22 MIA NT 73 14 14 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 7
1978 23 MIA NT 73 16 16 1 0 0 2 13 1 0 7
1979 24 MIA NT 73 16 16 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 11
1980 25 MIA NT 73 16 16 0 0 0 4 14 0 0 9
1981 26 MIA NT 73 16 16 0 0 0 3 10 0 0 13
1982 27 MIA NT 73 9 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.5 15
1983 28 MIA NT 73 16 16 0 0 0 1 0 0 8.0 18
1984 29 MIA NT 73 15 15 0 0 0 2 23 1 2.0 13
1986 31 MIA NT 73 12 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.0 3
Career 130 129 1 0 0 16 60 2 14.5 96

[13]

Restaurants

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Baumhower is also the owner and CEO of Aloha Hospitality, which owns and operates restaurants throughout Alabama including the fine dining establishment Dauphin's in Mobile[14] as well as his namesake Baumhower's Victory Grille.[15][16]

Notes

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  1. ^ Sacks were not officially recorded in the NFL until the 1982 season. Baumhower is unofficially credited with 39.5 career sacks.[1]

References

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  1. ^ "Dolphins Add Five More Players To 50th Anniversary Team". CBS Miami. November 3, 2015. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  2. ^ "Baumhower Inducted into Dolphin's Ring of Honor". rolltide.com. December 11, 2008. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  3. ^ Hicks, Tommy (2011). Game of My Life Alabama Crimson Tide: Memorable Stories of Crimson Tide Football. Skyhorse Publishing Inc. ISBN 9781613210079. Retrieved June 24, 2017 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ "1974 Alabama Crimson Tide Roster". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
  5. ^ "1975 Alabama Crimson Tide Roster". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
  6. ^ "1976 Alabama Crimson Tide Roster". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
  7. ^ Ed Shearer (December 1, 1975). "Cook, DuBose head All-SEC Selection". Gadsden Times. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  8. ^ "Cowans Sole Gator on All-SEC Team". Sarasota Journal. November 23, 1976.
  9. ^ "Top College Passer To Lead South". York Daily Record. United Press International. December 9, 1976. p. 24. Retrieved August 12, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "1977 NFL All-Rookie Team". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  11. ^ "Rummaging Through The Attic: A Bee-utiful Poster". miamidolphins.com. Archived from the original on July 1, 2017. Retrieved June 24, 2017.
  12. ^ "Alabama Sports Hall of Fame - Bob Baumhower". ashof.org. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  13. ^ "Bob Baumhower Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  14. ^ "Dauphin's". Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  15. ^ "Baumhower's". Retrieved June 24, 2017.
  16. ^ "Bob's Victory Grille". Retrieved October 21, 2017.
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