Veryl Switzer

Veryl Switzer is a former halfback in the National Football League who played 24 games for the Green Bay Packers. In 1954, the Green Bay Packers used the 4th pick in the 1st round of the 1954 NFL Draft to sign Switzer out of Kansas State University where he played from 1951 to 1953. He held the career punt return record at KSU until 1995 and scored the second longest punt return touchdown in school history (93 yards on Sept 19 1953, one of two he posted that year). His best year was 1953 when he led Kansas State in rushing with 558 yards, receiving with eight catches for 211 yards, scoring with eight touchdowns and 49 points, punt returns with a 31.0-yard average and kick returns with a 22.3-yard average. Switzer went on to play for two seasons with the Packers before serving two years as a first lieutenant in the Air Force. A return to the NFL Packers was ended by his September 1958 release. Instead, he returned to professional football with the Calgary Stampeders in November 1958. In March 1959 he was traded to the Alouettes for Pat Abbruzzi, a local fan favourite and holder of many Montreal rushing records at the time. Veryl played for the Alouettes in 1959 and 1960.  The Als used Switzer mainly on offence in 1959 and his 863 yards rushing was fourth best in the East and tops on Montreal.  In 1960, with a glut of talented running backs, Montreal went with George Dixon and Don Clark on offence and shifted Switzer to playing mainly defence.

Veryl later worked for the Chicago Board of Education for 10 years before returning to KSU in an administrative capacity in 1969. He is currently Co-Director, Earl Woods National Youth Golf Academy and Associate Athletic Director for Academics. Switzer was a charter member of the K-State Sports Hall of Fame and is enshrined in the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame and the Kansas High School Activities Association Hall of Fame.

[Biography written by Wes Cross]

Leaves Packers for Air Force training (March 1956)

Switzer traded to Alouettes (March 1959)

 

GP, Passing, Rushin and Receiving
Year Team GP PA PC % Yds TD Int Sacked Yds TC Yds Avg TD Rec Yds Avg TD Long PTS
1958 CAL
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 56 269 4.8 6 15 125 8.3 0 31 36
1959 MON 14
 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 164 863 5.3 6 16 114 7.1 0 16 36
1960 MON 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16 105 6.6 0 12 148 12.3 2 24 12

No Games Played stats were kept in the West until 1964.  The 1959 number is unofficial and taken from the 2006 Montreal Media Guide.

 

Fumbles
Year Team F FL
1958 CAL 4
1959 MON 0
1960 MON 0

 

KO and Punt Returns
Year Team KOR Yds Avg TD Long PR Yds Avg TD Long
1958 CAL 4 84 21 0 24 9 43 4.7 0 15
1959 MON 5 58 11.6 0 21 0 0 0 0 0
1960 MON 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

 

Interceptions
Year Team Int Yds Avg TDInt Long
1958 CAL 0 0 0 0 0
1959 MON 0 0 0 0 0
1960 MON 1 0 0 0 0

1960 Topps Veryl Switzer/