Jack Ham
Football · Hometown: Johnstown, PA
- High school
- Bishop McCort High School
- College
- Penn State University
- Pro team(s)
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Hall of Fame
- ⭐ Pro Football Hall of Fame
John Rastetter Ham Jr. was born on July 23, 1948, in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, and attended Bishop McCort Catholic High School before going on to Penn State, where he became an All-American linebacker. Drafted in the second round by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1971, Ham joined a dynasty in the making. He anchored the outside linebacker position for one of the greatest defenses in NFL history — the "Steel Curtain" that carried the Steelers to four Super Bowl championships in six years (IX, X, XIII, XIV). Ham was the cerebral counterpart to the ferocious Jack Lambert at middle linebacker: a thinking man's pass rusher who could read quarterbacks' eyes, strip ball carriers, and drop into coverage with cornerback instincts. A six-time Pro Bowl selection and five-time first-team All-Pro, Ham is widely considered the greatest outside linebacker in NFL history. He played his entire 12-year career in Pittsburgh. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1988. Attended Bishop McCort High School in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.