Daryle Lamonica, Hard-Throwing Quarterback, Is Dead at 80

After the A.F.L. and N.F.L. merged in 1970, the Raiders reached the N.F.L.’s American Football Conference championship game, facing the Colts, now in the A.F.C., in the last rung before the Super Bowl. But Lamonica was knocked out of the game in the second quarter when he was hit by the Baltimore defensive end Bubba Smith, and the Raiders lost, 27-12.

Lamonica’s last playoff appearance came against the Pittsburgh Steelers in December 1972, when, on the game’s final play, Franco Harris snared a pass from scrambling quarterback Terry Bradshaw that had ricocheted off his intended target, Frenchy Fuqua, and scored to give the Steelers a 13-7 victory in what would be remembered as the “immaculate reception.”

Lamonica lost his starting job to Kenny Stabler in 1973 and joined the California Sun of the newly formed World Football League in 1975. He saw limited action before retiring during that season.

Daryle Pasquale Lamonica was born on July 17, 1941, in Fresno, Calif., and grew up in the nearby city of Clovis. His father owned a fruit ranch, and his mother was a dietitian.

Lamonica was an all-state quarterback for Clovis High School. Playing under Coach Joe Kuharich at Notre Dame from 1960 to 1962, he threw for only eight touchdowns on teams that went 12-18 overall.

In his four seasons with the Bills and eight with the Raiders, Lamonica threw for 164 touchdowns and 19,154 yards. But he wasn’t elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, perhaps because he never played for a Super Bowl championship team and because he compiled his most impressive statistics in a relatively short span, from 1967 to 1972.

After leaving football, Lamonica owned a trucking business and pursued fishing and hunting. He was a host for the Fox Sports Net fishing program “Outdoors With the Pros.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/21/sports/football/daryle-lamonica-dead.html