Bobby Kemp
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| Position: | Safety | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | May 29, 1959 Oakland, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died: | February 7, 1998 (aged 38) Los Angeles, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 189 lb (86 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | North Miami Beach (North Miami Beach, Florida) | ||||||||
| College: | Cal State Fullerton | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1981 / round: 8 / pick: 202 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Bobby Kemp (May 29, 1959 – February 7, 1998) was an American professional football player who was a safety for seven seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Cal State Fullerton Titans.
College career
[edit]After attending Taft College, a junior college in Taft, California, he played college football at California State University, Fullerton for two seasons, with five interceptions his junior year (1979) and three his senior year (1980).[1] He was selected by the Bengals in the eighth round of the 1981 NFL draft.[2]
Professional career
[edit]During his rookie season (1981), Kemp was the starting strong safety as the Bengals defeated the San Diego Chargers in the coldest game in NFL history, the AFC Championship Game dubbed the "Freezer Bowl" on January 10, 1982. With the Bengals holding a 17–7 lead and the Chargers offense driving late in the first half, Kemp intercepted a Dan Fouts pass to Kellen Winslow to thwart the drive. The Bengals went on to win, 27–7.[3] The win propelled the Bengals to Super Bowl XVI, which they lost, 26–21, to the San Francisco 49ers. Kemp was the Bengals starter at strong safety in that game.[4]
During his seven seasons as a strong safety and free safety with the Bengals, he played in 83 games, starting 69 of those. In 1983, he had three interceptions, and a career-best four in 1984. His last year in the NFL was in 1987 for the Buccaneers, for whom he started and played in 12 games as a strong safety with one interception.[5]
Personal life and death
[edit]Kemp later became a paramedic in Glendale, California, after retiring from football due to knee problems. He met his first wife, Christy, when they were students at Taft College. They were married for 13 years. On February 7, 1998, Kemp committed suicide in his North Hollywood, California home.[6] He was 38. He was survived by his second wife, Inga, and their two-year-old daughter.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ "Bobby Kemp College Stats".
- ^ "Bobby Kemp Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ "Cincinnati News, Sports and Things to do | Cincinnati Enquirer".
- ^ "Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 49ers vs. Cincinnati Bengals - January 24th, 1982". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ "Bobby Kemp Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ "One Team, 25 Years on".
- ^ Gagne, Mark (December 12, 2011). "A different kind of pain". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 9, 2023.
- 1959 births
- 1998 deaths
- 1998 suicides
- American football safeties
- Cal State Fullerton Titans football players
- Cincinnati Bengals players
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers players
- California State University, Fullerton alumni
- Players of American football from Oakland, California
- People from Taft, California
- Players of American football from Kern County, California
- Players of American football from Glendale, California
- Suicides in California