Remembering Ted Uritus '62

1/10/2025 1:12:00 PM | By: Joe Ginley '16, SID

Uritus captained the 1961 Football team and was a member of the HOF 1959 Team

COLUMBUS – The John Carroll University community mourns the loss of a John Carroll Football star and captain. Theodore "Ted" Uritus '62 passed away on December 30, 2024 surrounded by his family after a long battle with Parkinson's Disease.

Uritus, 84, was raised in Willoughby, Ohio before becoming a long-time resident of Upper Arlington, Ohio.

Uritus captained the 1961 Blue Streaks, twice earning first team all-conference honors from the Presidents Athletic Conference. As a sophomore, the star end helped the Blue Streaks achieve a 7-0 record in 1959, the first-ever undefeated season in program history.

Uritus began his high school career at St. Joseph High School in Cleveland as a freshman. From there, he went to Marianist Prep in Beacon, New York. He did not play football there, but decided to tryout at JCU, and earned a starting spot on the frosh team. As the 1959 John Carroll program bio wrote prior to his sophomore campaign, "A surprise package from last year's frosh eleven, Ted is making a strong bid for a starting berth at end. He's capable of tremendous bursts of speed and thrives on contact on defense."

Soon after arriving in University Heights, Uritus became an impact player. The speedy sophomore mixed in the lineup at end on offense and defense alongside All-PAC star Bob Fitzgerald and Dave Nichting. As The Carroll News noted, Uritus earned a reputation for his spectacular catches made possible by his hustle.

Under the leadership of the legendary John Ray – who apparently gave Uritus the nickname "Sunshine" – the Blue Streaks enjoyed one of the best seasons in John Carroll history in 1959. Ray's Blue Streaks finished with a perfect 7-0 record, marking the first undefeated football season in school history. With an undefeated 5-0 PAC record, JCU's only points allowed in league play were off an interception return.

The 1959 Blue Streaks were just the second team inducted into the John Carroll Athletic Hall of Fame, with Uritus as one of the team members.

As a junior, Uritus continued to develop, earning a First Team All-PAC honor as a defensive end in 1960. As the gameday program noted in his bio, he was "very outstanding defensively, and above average pass receiver." With only four seniors on the squad, John Carroll did take a couple steps back with a 3-4 record, but did earn a winning 3-2 record in conference play. Uritus led the team in receiving with 8 catches for 114 yards and 1 touchdown. Additionally, he was the team's punter, ranking top 15 in the nation and tops in the PAC by averaging 38.3 yards per punt.

As a senior, Uritus was selected as team captain, a "near unanimous choice" in the balloting according to the 1961 Media Guide. As teammate and Hall of Famer Ron Timpanaro '64 recalls, Uritus was an "outstanding" leader for the team. He guided the Blue Streaks back to a winning record at 5-2, including 4-1 in conference action. Uritus again led the team in receiving with 5 catches for 94 yards and 1 touchdown. Once again serving as the punter, he averaged 34.2 yards per punt. Uritus was distinguished as a First Team All-PAC selection for the 1961 campaign.

And importantly, Uritus helped to lay the foundation for Ray's undefeated 1962 and 1963 Blue Streaks, inducted into the JCU Hall of Fame in 2013. As Timpanaro remembers, Uritus helped to make the game-sealing fourth-down tackle vs. Hobart in a 6-0 victory in the final game of the 1961 season. That victory started a 16-game winning streak for the program that continued until October 1964.

On campus, Uritus was heavily involved in student life, serving as President of the Cleveland Club, Vice-President of the Student Union, and a member of the Alpha Sigma Nu Honor Society. He was a Dean's List student, too. After graduating in 1962, Uritus joined the United States Marine Corps.

Uritus served as a Captain in the Marine Corps from 1963-69, with deployments in Vietnam and Okinawa. Back in those days, military bases fielded football teams. Uritus' Okinawa team won the championship of Pacific bases.

When Uritus returned to the States, he was shipped to Quantico. Uritus soon joined the Quantico Marines team, named the Devil Dogs. Uritus and the Quantico Football Team won the 1963 National Service Championship, defeating the San Diego Marines, 13-10, in the Missile Bowl. The game was televised and played in front of 8,000 fans in Orlando, Florida. Quantico finished the season with a 10-1 record. John Carroll faced the Quantico Marines five times – twice in the 1920's, twice in the 1930's, and lastly in 1951.

After his playing days ended, Uritus served as defensive coordinator for the Quantico Marines. He adopted John Ray's defense, utilizing the 4-4, so he recruited fellow Blue Streak Ron Timpanaro to play on his defense. Familiar with the system, Timpanaro fit right in, playing alongside other talented former college players, many Division I stars.

Long after that, Uritus helped to connect Timpanaro and many other former Quantico Marines in the 2000's, in order to honor their fallen teammates, such as star Navy guard Tom Holden, who was killed in Vietnam.

After completing his time in the Marines Corps, Uritus earned his MBA at University of Dayton while working as director of placement and on the football coaching staff.

As his obituary reads, "During a long and distinguished career in the single-family home construction industry, he worked for Ryan Homes, Beasley Homes, and Borror Corporation before founding Sovereign Homes and serving as the 1996 President of the BIA of Central Ohio."

The full obit can be found here.

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