Frank Varrichione

Frank Joseph Varrichione (January 14, 1932 – January 6, 2018) was an American professional football player who spent eleven seasons as a tackle in the National Football League. Born in Natick, Massachusetts, he was the son of Joseph and Mary Varrichione, both born in Italy, who emigrated to the United States in 1913, arriving first in Boston before settling slightly more than twenty miles inland.

Varrichione played college football for Notre Dame, where he won a national championship as part of the 1953 squad that finished 9-0-1. In 1954 he was named a third-team All-American, recognition as one of the top thirty-three players in the college game.

He was the first lineman taken in the 1955 NFL draft, selected sixth overall. Varrichione spent his first six professional seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. A trade ahead of the 1961 season sent him to the Los Angeles Rams, where he played five more years. Across his career he earned five Pro Bowl selections between 1955 and 1964, marking him as a top-echelon offensive lineman of his era.