May They Rest in Peace (Sports) - March 2023 Quiz

Answer: Just Fontaine

Just Fontaine was born in Marrakech and he moved to Casablanca to attend college. Fontaine played professionally for USM Casablanca (1950-1953), Nice (1953-1956) and Reims (1956-1962) and he scored more than 200 goals over his senior career. However, Fontaine went down in the record books for his stellar play at the 1958 FIFA World Cup in Sweden. Fontaine scored 13 goals in France's six games including an incredible four goals in the third-place game against West Germany. Just Fontaine died in the early morning of March 1, 2023 at the age of 89.

Answer: New York Knicks

Willis Reed was born on June 25, 1942 in Lincoln Parish, LA. He played college basketball at Grambling State and was selected with the first pick in the second round (8th overall) by the New York Knicks in the 1964 NBA Draft. During his career with the Knicks, Reed played the position of center and averaged 18.7 points and 12.9 rebounds over a 10-season career.

A particularly memorable moment in Reed's career was in game seven of the 1970 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers in which he played through immense pain with a torn muscle in his thigh.

After his playing career was cut short by injuries, Reed coached the Knicks for two seasons. Willis Reed died on March 21, 2023 at the age of 80.

Answer: Otis Taylor

Otis Taylor was born in Houston, TX in 1942 and he was selected by the Chiefs in the 4th Round of the 1965 AFL Draft. In his second season, he led the league in yards per catch (22.4) and twice during his career he led the league in receiving yards. Although Taylor and the Chiefs had won AFL titles in 1966 and 1969, they were 13.5 point underdogs in Super Bowl IV against the Minnesota Vikings of the NFL.

After the Chiefs proved the experts wrong by beating the Vikings by 16 points, the AFL and NFL merged into one league. Otis Taylor retired from the NFL in 1975 and sadly in 1990 he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease dementia. Taylor died on March 9, 2023 at the age of 80.

Answer: Jesús Alou

Jesús Alou was born in Bajos de Haina, Dominican Republic in 1942. In his rookie season in 1963 with the San Francisco Giants, Jesús and his older brothers Felipe and Matty all batted in the same inning and comprised the entire outfield for the Giants. Alou had a memorable game in 1964 in which he had six hits (five singles and a home run) in six at-bats. Alou left the Giants after six seasons when he was selected in the 1968 MLB expansion draft.

He was a reserve player for the latter part of his career and Alou won two World Series (1973, 1974) with the Oakland Athletics. Jesús Alou died on March 10, 2023 at the age of 80.

Answer: Bud Grant

Harry Peter 'Bud' Grant Jr. was born in 1927 in Superior, WI and after attending the University of Minnesota he was drafted by both an NFL and NBA team. He opted to play basketball first but he was mainly a reserve on the champion Lakers. Grant then played for the Philadelphia Eagles of the NFL at defensive end his first year and then at wide receiver the next year.

After contract talks faltered with the Eagles after the 1952 season, Grant left for the Canadian Football League (CFL) where he played for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers for four seasons. He was an All-Star three times and after his playing career he coached Winnipeg for 10 seasons during which the team won four Grey Cup Championships. Grant's coaching success in the CFL prompted the Minnesota Vikings of the NFL to hire him as head coach and he coached the team for 18 productive seasons. Bud Grant died on March 11, 2023 at the age of 95.

Answer: Boxing

Bob Goodman was born in New York City in 1939. Goodman was the Director of Boxing under the legendary promoter Don King from 1971 to 1985. Some of the biggest boxing matches they promoted included George Foreman against Joe Frazier in the 'Sunshine Showdown' in 1973, Muhammad Ali against George Foreman in the 'Rumble in the Jungle' in 1974 and Muhammad Ali against Joe Frazier in 1975 in the 'Thrilla in Manila'. Bob Goodman died on March 5, 2023 at the age of 83.

Answer: Joe Pepitone

Joe Pepitone was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1940. He had a productive MLB career as he hit 219 home runs and had 721 RBIs. He was a pivotal member of the New York Yankees teams that lost in the 1963 and 1964 World Series. After playing for the Yankees he played for the Astros, Cubs and Braves before he retired from MLB in 1973. Joe Pepitone died on March 13, 2023 at the age of 82.

Answer: England

Vera Selby was born in 1930 in Richmond, North Yorkshire. She started playing billiards at age six but it wasn't until her mid-40s when she became internationally recognized. The World Women's Snooker Championship's first event in 1976 was won by Selby and she also won it in 1981. Selby was particularly dominant at the World Women's Billiards Championship which she won eight times during the 1970s. Vera Selby died on March 13, 2023 on her 93rd birthday.

Answer: Montreal

Glen Weir was born in London, ON in 1951 and he played his entire CFL career with Montreal. Over his 13 years with the Alouettes/Concordes, Weir set a team record for games played (203), was an All-Star five times and won two Grey Cup Championships. Glen Weir died on March 13, 2023 at the age of 71.

Answer: Dot Wilkinson

Dot Wilkinson was born in Phoenix, AZ in 1921 and she led the Ramblers softball team to championships in 1940, 1948 and 1949. For 19 of her 32 seasons she was an All-American selection and in 1954 she had a .455 batting average. She was also an accomplished bowler evidenced by her winning the Women's International Bowling Congress (WIBC) singles title in 1963.

She was inducted into the International Bowling Hall of Fame in 1990. Dot Wilkinson died on March 18, 2023 at the age of 101.