Edward Homer Blaine (January 30, 1940 – March 22, 2026) was an American professional football player who was a guard in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Missouri Tigers, earning first-team All-American honors in 1961. After his football career, he became a professor of medical pharmacology and physiology and a cardiovascular researcher at the University of Missouri.

Ed Blaine
No. 60, 64
PositionGuard
Personal information
Born(1940-01-30)January 30, 1940
Farmington, Missouri, U.S.
DiedMarch 22, 2026(2026-03-22) (aged 86)
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Listed weight240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
High schoolFarmington
CollegeMissouri
NFL draft1962: 2nd round, 28th overall pick
AFL draft1962: 4th round, 29th overall pick
Career history
Awards and highlights
Career NFL statistics
Games played70
Games started55
Fumble recoveries5
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

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Blaine was born in Farmington, Missouri, on January 30, 1940.[1] He attended the University of Missouri, where he played offensive guard for the Tigers while a pre-med student there. Blaine was named All-Big Eight Conference and All-American in 1961.

Professional football career

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Blaine was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the second round (28th overall) of the 1962 NFL draft, and was also selected by the New York Titans in the fourth round (29th overall) of the American Football League (AFL)'s 1962 draft.

He played professionally in the NFL with the Packers in 1962, winning an NFL Championship under legendary coach Vince Lombardi as a rookie, and the Philadelphia Eagles from 1963-66. He was named All-Pro after the 1964 NFL season. Blaine was inducted into the University of Missouri Hall of Fame in 1991 and the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2011.[2]

Medical science career

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Blaine earned a doctorate in physiology from the University of Missouri in 1970. Over a period of 45 years, from 1970 until his retirement in 2015, he conducted pioneering research on the effect of kidney function on cardiovascular disease, and on how hormonal systems regulate blood pressure. Between the 1970s and the early 1990s he was a senior director of research for the Merck Institute for Therapeutic Research in West Point, Montgomery County, Missouri, and at G. D. Searle & Co. pharmaceuticals in Missouri. During the same period he taught at Temple University and at Washington University in St. Louis, and conducted research on the effects of salt on kangaroos at the University of Melbourne. From 1992 until his retirement, he was director of the Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center at the University of Missouri, where he was a professor of medical pharmacology and physiology.[3]

Later years and death

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In 2008, Blaine was recognized as a Distinguished Eagle Scout.[4] This award is given by the National Eagle Scout Association "to recognize Eagle Scouts who achieve extraordinary national-level recognition, fame, or eminence within their profession and/or service to the nation and have a strong record of voluntary service to their community".[5]

Blaine died in St. Louis on March 22, 2026, at the age of 86.[3][6]

References

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  1. Ed Blaine Past Stats, Statistics, History, and Awards - databaseFootball.com
  2. "Obituary for Edward Homer Blaine at Schrader Funeral Home And Crematory". www.schrader.com. Retrieved March 26, 2026.
  3. 1 2 Miles, Gary (April 3, 2026). "Ed Blaine, former Eagles All-Pro guard, professor emeritus of physiology, and pioneering cardiovascular researcher, has died at 86". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
  4. "Distinguished Eagle Scout Award Recipients". National Eagle Scout Association. December 2025. p. 14. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
  5. "Distinguished Eagle Scout". National Eagle Scout Association. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
  6. Hoornstra, Jon Paul. "Ed Blaine, a 5-year NFL veteran with the Eagles and Packers, died at 86". Newsweek. Retrieved March 26, 2026.
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