{"id":89019,"date":"2026-07-12T12:00:36","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T16:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=89019"},"modified":"2026-07-11T22:13:47","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T02:13:47","slug":"48-days-away-from-college-football-kickoff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2026\/07\/12\/48-days-away-from-college-football-kickoff\/","title":{"rendered":"48 Days Away From College Football Kickoff"},"content":{"rendered":"
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We are 48 days away from <\/span>college football kickoff<\/a><\/span>. Today, on another Sunday Funday, we have Gale Sayers and Angelo Bertelli. \u00a0Tomorrow we will have two more fantastically talented players for you to read about. \u00a0Be sure to check back tomorrow for #47 in our <\/span>countdown<\/a><\/span> to kickoff. Enjoy!<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Gale Sayers (48) Days Away From College Football Kickoff<\/h2>\n
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The Kansas Comet<\/h3>\n

Gale Sayers<\/a> became one of football’s greatest running backs during his college and professional years. He was a two-time First Team All-America pick for the Jayhawks and finished his KU career with 2,675 rushing yards and 3,917 all-purpose yards. He was known as the “Kansas Comet,”<\/span><\/p>\n

Sayers led KU in rushing, touchdowns, and kickoff returns every year he played. As a junior and senior, he also led the team in receiving and punt returns. In 1963, Sayers became the first NCAA Division IA player to run 99 yards for a touchdown against Nebraska in Lincoln.<\/span><\/p>\n

In his senior year, Sayers returned a<\/span> kickoff 96 yards in a 15-14 upset win over Oklahoma and served as team captain. He was named First Team All-Big Eight three times and played in the East-West Shrine Game, Hula Bowl, and College All-Star Game. Kansas has retired Sayers’ No. 48 jersey, one of only three to receive that honor.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sayers was a first-round draft pick for both the Chicago Bears and Kansas City Chiefs. His NFL career lasted seven years and ended early because of a knee injury. Sayers led the league in rushing in 1966 and 1969.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1967, Sayers and his Bears teammate Brian Piccolo became the NFL’s first interracial roommates. Their friendship and Piccolo’s battle with cancer inspired the made-for-TV movie “Brian’s Song.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Sayers retired in 1972 with 4,956 career rushing yards. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977 at age 34, making him the youngest person ever selected. Despite his short career, Sayers left a lasting legacy.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Another Great #48, Angelo Bertelli, Notre Dame<\/h3>\n
Angelo Bertelli<\/a> won Notre Dame\u2019s first Heisman Trophy in 1943, becoming the first T-formation quarterback to earn the award. He is also one of only six Heisman winners who later finished as a runner-up.<\/span><\/div>\n
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Standing 6-foot-1 and weighing 173 pounds, Bertelli started as a single-wing tailback. Notre Dame coach Frank Leahy believed he would excel in the T-formation. \u00a0<\/span>Coach Leahy\u2019s decision paid off. As a sophomore, Bertelli led the nation with a 56.9 percent completion rate, completing 70 of 123 passes and finishing second in the Heisman voting. In 1942, he threw for 1,039 yards and 10 touchdowns, earning the nickname \u201cthe T-formation magician\u201d from sportswriter Grantland Rice. That year, Bertelli finished sixth in the Heisman race.<\/span><\/div>\n
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In his senior year in 1943, Bertelli was called to active duty by the Marine Corps after playing six of Notre Dame\u2019s ten games. In those six games, he completed 25 of 36 passes and threw 10 touchdowns. Bertelli’s performance in just half the season was enough to win the Heisman Trophy. Over his three seasons, Notre Dame lost only three games. In 1943, the team averaged a score of 43 to 5.<\/span><\/div>\n
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In 1944, Bertelli was promoted to second lieutenant and served as both an infantry and recreation officer. He was stationed at Quantico, Camp Lejeune, and Camp Pendleton before heading to the Pacific for combat. In February 1945, after arriving from Guam, he fought in the Battle of Iwo Jima and narrowly survived when a Japanese mortar shell landed just 15 feet away. Bertelli returned to Guam in March, then served in Sasebo, Japan, before coming back to the United States in March 1946. After the war, Bertelli joined the Marine Corps Reserves, eventually reaching the rank of captain and serving until 1957.<\/span><\/div>\n
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In 1946, Bertelli joined the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference. He later played for the Chicago Rockets from 1947 to 1948. After several knee surgeries, he retired before the 1949 season. Following his football career, Bertelli moved to Clifton, New Jersey, where he ran several businesses. In the 1950s and 60s, he also worked as a color analyst for Princeton University football games on WVNJ radio.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Editor’s Note: The countdown to college football kickoff has been a series on the Last Word on College Football social media platforms for the past 9 years. \u00a0They consisted of a photo and a small blurb for each player, with the jersey corresponding to the number of days until kickoff. \u00a0The rank of the players is sourced from articles by Bleacher Report, Fox Sports, and The Athletic. There are also some favorite players of the Last Word on College Football writers. \u00a0Their bios are sourced from multiple online sources, including but not limited to the College Football Hall of Fame, their Heisman profiles, and school websites.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Main Photo: University of Kansas Athletics<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We are 48 days away from college football kickoff. Today, on another Sunday Funday, we have Gale Sayers and Angelo Bertelli. \u00a0Tomorrow we will have two more fantastically talented players for you to read about. \u00a0Be sure to check back tomorrow for #47 in our countdown to kickoff. Enjoy! Gale Sayers (48) Days Away From […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1643,"featured_media":89072,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6,2,35666],"tags":[36114,36141],"class_list":["post-89019","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-big12","category-featured","category-kansas-jayhawks","tag-countdown-to-kickoff","tag-notre-dame"],"modified_by":"Kate Pearson Halyburton, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89019","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1643"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=89019"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89019\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":89074,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89019\/revisions\/89074"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89072"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89019"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89019"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89019"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}