Dick Wallen

Richard “Dick” Wallen (born c. June 6, 1937) is a former American football player who was a consensus All-American at the end position in 1957 while playing for UCLA.

True, he again jumped in the air and duplicated his Illinois game stunt of making an unbelievable one-handed catch of a ball thrown over his head.

Twice, acting with the quickness of a cat, the 175-pound Bruin junior backed away while rushing Washington Quarterback Al Ferguson and intercepted the latter's short lob passes aimed to go well over Wallen's head.

Voit Memorial Trophy, awarded each year by the Helms Athletic Foundation to the outstanding football player on the Pacific Coast.

Wallen caught two touchdown passes (UCLA's only touchdowns) in his final home game, prompting Mal Florence to write the following:"Florida won the ball game, but Bruin end Dick Wallen won the acclaim of everyone in the Coliseum who witnessed his spectacular pass-catching exhibition last night.

'"[7] The restriction on Wallen's playing time as a senior caused him to fall short of breaking UCLA's all-time pass receiving records.

In October 1958, the Los Angeles Times noted: "Had the Pacific Coast Conference not limited him to five games this season though, Wallen perhaps would have swept the slate clean.

"[1] Wallen was a physics major who expressed no interest in playing professional football, stating his intent instead to attend law school and become a patent attorney.

[1] He spent his summers working in a patent law office, and the author of the Times profile opined that "if they were picking an All-America of model college students, this 21-year-old junior from Alhambra might be named captain of the first team.