View source for Chuck Ortmann

{{Short description|American football player, coach and athletic director (1929–2018)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name        = Chuck Ortmann
| image       = Senior portrait of Chuck Ortmann from University of Michigan yearbook.png
| caption     = Ortmann, 1951
| number      = 49, 10
| position    = [[Back (American football)|Back]]
| birth_date  = {{Birth date|1929|6|1|mf=y}}
| birth_place = [[Milwaukee|Milwaukee, Wisconsin]], U.S.
| death_date  = {{death date and age|2018|3|7|1929|6|1}}
| death_place = [[Gig Harbor, Washington]], U.S.
| height_ft   = 6
| height_in   = 1
| weight_lb   = 190
| high_school = [[Riverside University High School|Riverside University]] <br> (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
| college     = [[Michigan Wolverines football|Michigan]]
| draftyear   = 1951
| draftround  = 2
| draftpick   = 20
| pastteams   =
* [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] ({{NFL Year|1951}})
* [[Dallas Texans (NFL)|Dallas Texans]] ({{NFL Year|1952}})
| highlights  =
* [[College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS|National champion]] ([[1948 Michigan Wolverines football team|1948]])
* 2× Second-team [[College Football All-America Team|All-American]] ([[1948 College Football All-America Team|1948]], [[1949 College Football All-America Team|1949]])
* 2× First-team [[List of All-Big Ten Conference football teams|All-Big Ten]] ([[1949 All-Big Nine Conference football team|1949]], [[1950 All-Big Ten Conference football team|1950]])
* Second-team All-Big Nine ([[1948 All-Big Nine Conference football team|1948]])
* [[Rose Bowl Game#Rose Bowl Hall of Fame|Rose Bowl Hall of Fame, 2007]]<ref>2009 Kickoff Luncheon and Rose Bowl Hall of Fame Induction program</ref>
| statlabel1  = Passing yards
| statvalue1  = 744
| statlabel2  = [[Touchdown|TD]]-[[Interception|INT]]
| statvalue2  = 3-14
| statlabel3  = [[Passer rating]]
| statvalue3  = 23.8
| pfr         = OrtmCh20
}}

'''Charles H. Ortmann''' (June 1, 1929 – March 7, 2018) was an [[American football]] player who played for the [[University of Michigan]] [[Michigan Wolverines football|Wolverines]] from 1948 to 1950 and in the [[National Football League]] (NFL) for the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] in 1951 and the [[Dallas Texans (NFL)|Dallas Texans]] in 1952.

==University of Michigan==
Ortmann was raised in [[Milwaukee, Wisconsin]]. He turned down offers from the [[University of Wisconsin]] and nearby [[Marquette University]], as well as coach [[Bear Bryant]] at the [[University of Kentucky]], to attend the [[University of Michigan]] and play football for [[Fritz Crisler]]. Ortmann recalled: "My high school coach would say, 'Chuck, if you pick Michigan, you're picking the best.  After you graduate, people will know you and remember you.'  I made the right decision."<ref name=Cnockaert/> He was a versatile player, starting at  [[Safety (American football position)|safety]] on defense and [[Halfback (American football)|halfback]] on offense, as well as [[Punt (gridiron football)|punting]], placekicking, and returning punts and kickoffs. He was a starter as a sophomore for the undefeated [[1948 Michigan Wolverines football team]] that won the National Championship.<ref>{{cite web|title=University of Michigan Athletics: 1948 Football Team|url=https://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/football/fbteam/1948fbt.htm}}</ref> As a senior in 1950, he was responsible for 90% of Michigan's [[total offense]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Madej, Bruce|title=Michigan: Champions of the West, p. 110 |publisher=Sports Publishing LLC|year=1997|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=fd87BHQ4VrkC&q=%22chuck+ortmann%22&pg=PT134 | isbn=978-1-57167-115-8}}</ref>
He was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame on December 31, 2009.

===The Snow Bowl===
Ortmann is most known for his role in the famed 1950 [[Snow Bowl (1950)|Snow Bowl]] game against [[Ohio State Buckeyes football|Ohio State]], in which he punted 24 times in a blizzard for 723 yards – still a Michigan record. The weather conditions were so inclement that Michigan punted on first down for its first two plays from scrimmage, after concluding that the best strategy was to keep the slick ball on the other side of the field and in the hands of Ohio State.<ref  name=BBC>{{cite web|title=The Ohio State - University of Michigan 'Snow Bowl' Game of 1950 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A31913417}}</ref> The strategy worked, as the game's only touchdown was scored after Ortman punted the ball out of bounds at the Ohio State six-yard line, Ohio State was forced to punt from deep in its own territory, and [[Tony Momsen]] recovered a blocked punt in the [[endzone]].<ref name=BBC/> Ortmann recalled: "You and I would not have gone outside to get the newspaper on a day like that.  But here we were, trying to play football." Michigan did not get a first down and had only 27 yards of total offense, while Ortman was 0 for 8 passing and gained only 9 yards in 10 rushing attempts. The fierce weather conditions stifled both offenses, and the Wolverines won 9–3 on a [[safety (American football score)|safety]] and Momsen's touchdown after the blocked punt. Interviewed about the Snow Bowl in 2006, Ortmann, then retired and living in [[Savannah, Georgia]], recalled: "Twice during the game, playing as the safety, I couldn't see [Heisman Trophy winner] [[Vic Janowicz]] and his backfield, the snow was falling so heavily. [[Tony Momsen]] was our regular punter and as we were ready to go out, he said, 'Charlie, I don't feel like punting today, you punt.' I hadn't punted in three months. But the hero of that game was not Chuck Ortmann, it was Carl Kreager, our center. I just put my hands down and the ball was always there. I still remind him every time we talk, 'Carl, you never got enough credit for that game.' It was so boring. I have a film of the game, and I haven't watched it since, if that tells you something."<ref>{{cite news|author=Lopresti, Mike|title=Games worth remembering in Wolverines-Buckeyes rivalry|date=November 15, 2006|url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/lopresti/2006-11-14-lopresti_x.htm | work=USA Today}}</ref>

===Other highlights===
[[File:Chuck Ortmann running with ball.png|thumb|right|175px|Ortmann running with the ball, 1950]]
Other highlights of Ortmann's playing career at Michigan include:
* Passing for 146 yards (15 for 19) in a 14–6 win over [[California Golden Bears football|California]], including six passes for 80 yards in the fourth quarter to lead Michigan's comeback from a 6–0 deficit, at the 1951 [[Rose Bowl (game)|Rose Bowl game]];<ref name=MFSAQP>{{cite web |url=http://stats.ath.umich.edu/football/footstart.php |title=Michigan Football Statistic Archive Query Page |access-date=February 7, 2008 |publisher=Regents of the University of Michigan |year=2003 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071112175906/http://stats.ath.umich.edu/football/footstart.php |archive-date=November 12, 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Tournament of Roses: 1951 Rose Bowl|url=http://www.tournamentofroses.com/photogallery/RBGtimeline/1950s.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100317110742/http://www.tournamentofroses.com/photogallery/RBGtimeline/1950s.htm|archive-date=March 17, 2010}}</ref>
* Rushing for 115 yards and passing for another 92 (207 total yards) in a 14–7 win over [[Minnesota Golden Gophers football|Minnesota]] in the 1949 [[Little Brown Jug (college football trophy)|Little Brown Jug]] game;<ref name=MFSAQP/>
* Passing for a career-high 186 yards passing in the 1950 Little Brown Jug game;<ref name=MFSAQP/> and
* Returning a kickoff 82 yards against [[Purdue Boilermakers football|Purdue]] in 1949.<ref name=MFSAQP/>
In his three years as a starter at Michigan, Ortmann had 2,078 yards passing (127 of 314) and 676 yards rushing (273 carries and six touchdowns).<ref name=Cnockaert>{{cite book|author=Cnockaert, Jim|title=Michigan: Where Have You Gone?, pp. 128-131|publisher=Sports Publishing|year=2004|isbn=1-58261-771-6|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/michiganwherehav0000cnoc}}</ref> He was named an All-[[Big Ten Conference|Big Ten]] halfback in 1950 and was also third-team [[All-America]]n.

==Professional football==
Ortmann was selected by the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] as the 20th pick in the [[1951 NFL draft]] and played in all 12 of the Steelers' games in 1951.<ref name=NFL>{{cite web|title=Pro-Football-Reference: Chuck Ortmann|url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/O/OrtmCh20.htm}}</ref> He was the Steelers' leading passer in 1951, throwing 56 completions for 671 yards, three touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He also had 327 yards rushing, 62 yards receiving, and 62 yards on an interception return. Ortmann was also the Steelers' backup punter, kicking seven times for a 43.1 yard average, including a 72-yard punt.<ref name=NFL/> Ortmann was waived by the Steelers after the 1951 season and signed by the [[Dallas Texans (NFL)|Dallas Texans]] in 1952. However, he injured his ankle and finished his playing career after playing only three games for the Texans, including two starts at quarterback.<ref name=Cnockaert/><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.rci.rutgers.edu/~maxymuk/home/qbabstract/startless10nq.html | title=The Quarterback Abstract: Ranking the Quarterbacks in Modern Day History | publisher=rci.rutgers.edu | access-date=December 16, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/O/OrtmCh20.htm | title=Chuck Ortmann | publisher=Sports Reference LLC | work=pro-football-reference.com | access-date=December 16, 2016}}</ref>

==Later years, family and honors==
After his football career ended, Ortmann accepted a job with a [[Chicago, Illinois|Chicago]] nonferrous metals company owned by former Michigan [[College Football All-America Team|All-American]] [[Ernie Vick]]. Ortmann retired in 1991 and moved to [[Savannah, Georgia]].<ref name=Cnockaert/> He was married to his high school sweetheart from Milwaukee, Betty Ortmann; they had four children. They settled in Glen Ellyn, where Chuck established a youth football program. Together with Tom Hoffman, Chuck coached both the Churchill Blue Raiders and Glen Ellyn Rams. During the Rams' first year, Larry Krupp served as student manager of the team. In 2004, Ortmann was inducted into the [[University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor]].<ref>{{cite web|title= Bentley Library - UM Athletic Hall of Honor|url=https://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/misc/hallhon.htm}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=M Club Site for Hall of Honor|url=http://www.letterwinnersmclub.com/hallofhonor.html|access-date=February 9, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071027023751/http://www.letterwinnersmclub.com/hallofhonor.html|archive-date=October 27, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> Asked about the honor, Ortmann modestly said: "When fans start talking about putting an all-time Michigan team together, I think they're wrong to pick someone from the old era. I led the [[Big Ten Conference|Big Ten]] one year with 750 yards running and passing. A guy like [[John Navarre]] has as many yards and passes in a game as I did in a season. Guys I played with were as good as they come, but nothing like the players today. [[Dominic Tomasi]] was a lineman at 5-8 and 180 pounds. They have cheerleaders that big today."<ref name=Cnockaert/> Ortmann died on March 7, 2018, in [[Gig Harbor, Washington]], at the age of 88.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://obituaries.mysuburbanlife.com/obituaries/chicagosuburbannews/obituary.aspx?n=charles-h-ortmann&pid=188455410|title=Charles H. Ortmann |agency=Suburban Life Publications|date=March 15, 2018 |access-date=June 1, 2018}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback navbox}}
{{1948 Michigan Wolverines football navbox}}
{{Steelers1951DraftPicks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ortmann, Chuck}}
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:2018 deaths]]
[[Category:American football halfbacks]]
[[Category:Dallas Texans (NFL) players]]
[[Category:Michigan Wolverines football players]]
[[Category:Pittsburgh Steelers players]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Milwaukee]]