ROZELLE, PETE

born March 1, 1926, South Gate, Calif., U.S. died Dec. 6, 1996, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. byname of Alvin Ray Rozelle American sports executive who as commissioner of the National Football League (NFL) from 1960 to 1989 oversaw a period of enormous growth for professional football. He negotiated lucrative television deals with the networks, doubled the size of the league, and helped to create the Super Bowl (q.v.). He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985. Following his graduation (1950) from the University of San Francisco, Rozelle became the publicity director and assistant athletic director at that school (195052). He was publicity director for the NFL Los Angeles Rams (195255), was a partner in a San Francisco public-relations firm (195557), and served as the general manager of the Rams (195760). In 1960 he was selected to succeed Bert Bell as NFL commissioner. As commissioner, Rozelle aggressively pursued a higher profile for the league. In 1962 he negotiated a national television contract with CBS that created greater revenue and greater exposure for each franchise. In 1966 Rozelle secured an agreement to merge the NFL with the rival American Football League (AFL); the merger became effective in 1970. He conceived of a game between the league champions that eventually became the Super Bowl. In 1970 he persuaded ABC to broadcast Monday Night Football, a national game of the week played during the prime evening hours that became one of the most popular sports programs on television. As a result of Rozelle's leadership, NFL attendance more than tripled and the league grew from 12 teams to 28. The NFL had become so strong that it easily withstood challenges from the World Football League and the United States Football League. Rozelle also built a reputation as a staunch defender of professional football's positive public image. He suspended star players Paul Hornung and Alex Karras for gambling in 1963. He also instituted random testing for drug and steroid use. However, he was criticized by some for his inaction during disputes between the owners and the players' union, which led to strikes in 1974, 1982, and 1987. Rozelle also lost one of the key battles of his tenure, when he and the NFL filed suit against Oakland Raiders' owner Al Davis in 1982 in order to stop Davis from moving his team to Los Angeles, where a generous stadium package and a larger market waited. Rozelle believed this move would ignite an undesirable era of franchise free agency. Davis won the suit and moved his team; however, Rozelle's warning proved prophetic as five teams moved in the next 15 years.