Kenny Stabler

High school

Foley High School

College

University of Alabama

Pro team(s)

Oakland Raiders, Houston Oilers, New Orleans Saints

Hall of Fame

⭐ Pro Football Hall of Fame

Kenneth Michael "Kenny" Stabler was born on December 25, 1945, in Foley, Alabama — a Christmas baby born in a small coastal town on the Gulf Coast — and attended Foley High School before going to the University of Alabama, where he was part of the storied Crimson Tide program under Bear Bryant. The Oakland Raiders drafted him in the second round in 1968, and after years as a backup and then a starter, Stabler emerged in the early 1970s as the most dangerous and charismatic quarterback in the American Football Conference. Left-handed, cool under pressure, beloved by his teammates, and utterly unintimidated by any defensive scheme, Stabler earned the nickname "The Snake" for his scrambling ability and his habit of squirming away from pressure. At his peak from 1973 to 1977, he was the best quarterback in professional football. He won the 1974 AP NFL MVP award, was a four-time Pro Bowl selection, and led the Oakland Raiders to a Super Bowl XI championship following the 1976 season, defeating the Minnesota Vikings 32-14. His most celebrated individual play came in a 1972 AFC Divisional Playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, when he scrambled left and found a seam, running it to the end zone for the winning touchdown that became known as "the run into the end zone" — a moment that crystallized everything about who Stabler was as a player. He was inducted posthumously into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016. Born and raised in Foley, Alabama.