Jim Whalen
James Francis Whalen, Jr. (May 20, 1943 – December 18, 2012) was a professional American football tight end. Whalen was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He played in the American Football League (AFL) for the Boston Patriots, and then in the National Football League (NFL) for the Denver Broncos and Philadelphia Eagles. Whalen played college football at Boston College where he was a two time First-team All-East selection and one time All-American and was selected in the third round of the 1965 AFL Draft. He was also drafted in the fourth round of the 1965 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings. Jim Whalen is the only football player to have 3 TD receptions in a college game played at Boston College Alumni Stadium and have 3 TD receptions in a professional football game played at Boston College Alumni Stadium. Jim caught a team record 3 TD passes for the Boston Patriots in their 41–10 rout of the Miami Dolphins at BC on October 15, 1967. The Boston Red Sox were playing in the 1967 World Series and the Patriots had to play at Boston College for this game. Earlier in 1962 as a sophomore at Boston College, Whalen hauled in a team record three touchdown receptions in a victory against Boston University. Whalen would become the first Patriots receiver to be accorded First-team All-Pro (1968). That same year he was voted as team MVP and would subsequently be selected as the tight end on the Patriots All-Decade Team (1960s). Early years James Francis "Jim" Whalen, Jr., grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts residing on Plymouth Street. He was the son of James Francis "Brud" Whalen and Helen Whalen, née Zukowski. He has one sister, Rosemary. (Whalen's father was one of the preeminent multi-sport collegiate stars of his era, captaining the Manhattan College baseball and football teams in its sports heyday at the national level. In one of his seasons on the gridiron he averaged 9.1 yards per carry rushing, 12.7 yards per pass reception, and 45 yards per punt return and was among the leaders nationally in touchdowns scored. He was elected into the Manhattan College Athletic Hall of Fame in 1989.) The younger Whalen was a three-sport star at Cambridge High and Latin, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a school that also produced a number of other top athletes including MLB Hall-of-Fame pitcher and 342 game winner Tim Keefe, MLB player Eddie Waitkus on whom the movie The Natural was loosely based and Olympic high jumper John Thomas. Whalen, who starred in football, baseball and ice hockey, was subsequently inducted into the Cambridge Rindge and Latin Athletic Hall of Fame. College years Overview Whalen is considered one of the finest pass catchers and all-around athletes to graduate from Boston College. At the time of his graduation after the 1964 season, Whalen was the top pass receiver in Boston College history with 73 career receptions, surpassing the total of 70 accumulated by Art Graham, who like Whalen a few years later, would go on