At 6'5" and 260, Left Guard John Contoulis was a captain for the Football Huskies 1962 squad, Coached by Robert Ingalls. The Huskies weren't turning heads in the early 60's as they went 5-4 in 1960 and just 2-7 in 1961. The 62' Team went 3-6 with home wins over Rutgers, a come from behind 15-9 win, Maine, 14-6 and a 27-0 home win over rival URI. Where Contoulis anchored the O-Line with big running days for the backs that included Dave Karponi, a solid two way player who had a 100y pick 6 in the Rhode Island win..
Contoulis at season's end earned numerous honors, Small Team All American, All New England, Third Team ECAC and All Yankee Conference....He was not just a 16th round pick (#213) of the NFL Minnesota Vikings, he was also an AFL Draft Pick of the New York Titans in the 4th round (#27)....But neither played out as in 1964, Contoulis played one season with The Giants, playing in 12 games blocking for the likes of Y.A. Tittle and Frank Giffford. However under Allie Sherman, the Giants went just 2-10-2.
Per a 1992 Hartford Courant Article, Contoulis was a Physical Education Teacher at Fitch H.S. in Groton who really wasn't interested in watching his Alma Mater play I-AA Football. But if it was I-A ?? Well we know a decade later that finally became reality...The Man they called "Big John" - Captain and powerful force up front for the 1962 Huskies and a UConn Legend.