He played college football and wrestling for the Southern Illinois. He was named a Little All-American for football (the Salukis won the Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in 1960) and finished as second in the NAIA heavyweight division. He was inducted into the Southern Illinois University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1979.[2]
Pro career
He was selected by the AFL's Houston Oilers in the 1961 draft, but he was traded to the Boston Patriots for a fourth-round 1962 AFL draft pick. He did not play regularly in his first two seasons. He earned his first of six straight All-Star selections in 1963, a season where the Patriots tied for the best record in the East Division at 7–6–1. The Patriots won the Divisional Playoff game versus Buffalo before losing to the San Diego Chargers in the AFL Championship Game. It was the only playoff experience for Antwine.
Nicknamed "Twine",[3] Antwine was cited by Pro Football Hall of Famer Billy Shaw as one of the American Football League's best pass rushers, athletic and very quick on his feet, usually drawing double-team blocking for a line that also featured "Earthquake" Jim Lee Hunt.[4] Teammate Gino Cappelletti described Antwine with quickness akin to a cat that could rush with his speed and technique. He returned his only interception as a player (for two yards) in a 28–20 win over the Denver Broncos on December 12, 1965.
Houston was the AFL Defensive Player of the Week as he sacked Dan Darragh three times in the Patriots' 16–7 win over the Buffalo Bills at War Memorial Stadium on September 8, 1968. He had a career high in sacks that year with 7.5. He posted a career high ten tackles in the Patriots' 33–14 win over the Cincinnati Bengals at Fenway Park on December 1, 1968. He was traded in 1972 to the Philadelphia Eagles for Bill Hobbs and started nine games in his final season.
Statistics for sacks were not officially counted in his day, but Antwine is recognized as having 39 sacks in his 142 games with the Patriots, leading the team in three straight seasons (1967–1969). He was named to the American Football League All-Time Team in 1970 as a first-team defensive tackle alongside Tom Sestak (with future Hall of Famer Buck Buchanan named a second-team tackle). After years of being a finalist, Antwine was finally inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2015.[5][6]
Personal life
Antwine died of heart failure in Memphis, Tennessee on December 26, 2011, less than a day before his wife Evelyn died of lung cancer.[7][8]
