Charles “Ki” Aldrich was the first Temple Wildcat inducted into the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame in 1983. He played for the Wildcats in the 1930s when he was named All-State honors as a center. As a senior Waco sportswriter, and fellow Hall of Fame inductee, Jinx Tucker named Aldrich to his All-State team at all 7 line positions. Ki would go on to play at TCU and in the NFL.
During his time at Temple, the Wildcats went a combined 28-6-4 including a 10-1 record in 1933. He continued his football career at TCU where he would again gain many honors.
College Career – TCU
During his career at TCU, Aldrich played alongside 2 of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, Davey O’Brien and Sammy Baugh. As a side note, Sammy Baugh was actually born in Temple but moved to Sweetwater at the age of 16 where he would start his journey to become a legendary quarterback. Think of the high school team that could have been with Aldrich and Baugh.
Aldrich played center at TCU. In 1937 he played, and won, the inaugural Cotton Bowl helping TCU defeat Marquette Golden Avalanche 16-6. Can we all just pause for a moment and be thankful that Marquette has changed their mascot, eventually becoming the Golden Eagles after years of Warriors. Sadly, Marquette disbanded its football program in 1960. But back to Aldrich now. He was named co-MVP along with Sammy Baugh and L.D. Meyer. TCU would finish 8-2-2 record with losses to Texas A&M and Texas Tech.
A year prior, Aldrich helped lead the Horned Frogs to a 3-2 victory vs LSU in the Sugar Bowl. Talk about a defensive battle. All 5 points were scored in the 2nd period after Baugh was called for intentional grounding in the endzone resulting in a safety. This was the first season in which TCU was selected as national champs. In the 1930s there were multiple agencies awarding national championships. Under the old Williamson rankings, TCU was awarded its first championship. This system was a mathematical one that awarded a national championship from 1932 until 1963.
In his senior season of 1938, Aldrich would help the Horned Frogs to a 10-0 record and a National Championship once again. In the 1939 Sugar Bowl, TCU topped the Carnegie Tech Tartans (now Carnegie Mellon University) 15-7. TCU trailed 7-6 at halftime, which was the first time they had trailed all year long. Aldrich was named All-American that season.
Professional Career
The Chicago Cardinals (now the Arizona Cardinals) drafted Aldrich with the first pick in the 1939 draft. He was drafted before fellow Horned Frog Davey O’Brien (taken 4th by Philadelphia) and future Hall of Fame inductee Sidney “Sid” Luckman (taken #2 overall by the Chicago Bears).
Aldrich would play 2 seasons in Chicago before moving over to the Washington Redskins (now Commanders). In Washington he would play a total of 5 seasons missing both 1943 and 1944 after joining the Navy during World War II. He would return and play through the 1947 season.
Aldrich was so good that he averaged 50 mins of play during his professional career. He played both ways and even recorded 8 defensive interceptions during his career returning 1 for a touchdown. Life Magazine called him “probably the greatest linebacker in history.” And he was a center by trade. I don’t know what else says this guy could play football than that. Late TCU coach Dutch Meyer called him the best player he ever coached. Don’t forget that Meyer coached Heisman Trophy winner Davey O’Brien as well. Yeah, that Davey O’Brien for you football fans out there. The one whose name dons the trophy given to the best quarterback in college football each year. Sammy Baugh called him, “the toughest player I ever knew.”
Legendary sportswriter Grantland Rice put Aldrich on his All-America team for the first half of the century (1900-1950).
Accolades:
1969 named to All-Southwest Conference Team
1960 Inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame
1960 Inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
1942 NFL Champion with Washington Redskins
2x Pro Bowl – 1939 and 1942
Aldrich retired after the 1947 season. He returned to Texas and eventually became the superintendent of the Lena Pope Orphanage in Fort Worth. Ki left this world on March 12, 1983. He is buried in Bellwood Memorial Park in Temple.
Sources:
“Charles ‘Ki’ Aldrich.” Texas Sports Hall of Fame. https://www.tshof.org/store/p7/Charles_%22Ki%22_Aldrich.html.
“Charles Collins Aldrich Bio.” College Football Hall of Fame. https://www.cfbhall.com/about/inductees/inductee/ki-aldrich-1960/.
“Ki Aldrich.” National Football Foundation. https://footballfoundation.org/hof_search.aspx?hof=1536.
“Ki Aldrich.” Pro Football Reference. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/A/AldrKi20.htm?__hstc=213859787.667fbb9a87ef4adcd359a9aef1f92218.1697214477698.1697214477698.1697214477698.1&__hssc=213859787.3.1697214477698&__hsfp=1366844671.
“Texas High School Football Hall of Fame Inductees: Charles “Ki” Aldrich.” Dave Campbell’s Texas Football. https://www.texasfootball.com/hof-charles-ki-aldrich?ref=search.
See more short bios of Hall of Fame Wildcats here.