TC NATIVE, COLTS GM BALLARD NAMED NFL EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR

THE GENIUS OF Texas City High School alum Chris Ballard led to one of the biggest turnarounds of the NFL season, resulting in the Indianapolis Colts general manager receiving Executive of the Year honors from the Pro Football Writers Association. In just his second season with the Colts, Ballard helped them go from 4-12 in 2017 to a 10-6 record that included an AFC Wild Card win over the Texans before they fell at the Chiefs in the AFC Divisional Round. The Colts became only the third team in NFL history to make the playoffs after beginning the season with a 1-5 mark. Ballard’s astute eye for talent was evident in his drafting of offensive guard Quenton Nelson and linebacker Darius Leonard, who became the first rookie teammates since Hall of Famers Gale Sayers and Dick Butkus to be named first team All-Pro by the Associated Press. A quarterback for Texas City High School, Ballard led the Stingarees to a 7-3 record in 1987, the program’s best season between 1980-1993. He then played at the University of Wisconsin before starting his career at Texas A&M-Kingsville, where he coached from 1994-2000. Ballard was hired as a scout by the Chicago Bears in 2001 and remained with the franchise until 2013 when he was hired as the Chiefs’ director of football operations. “Chris is passionate,” said Colts head coach Frank Reich to Indianapolis sportswriter Mike Chappell. “He’s intelligent. He’s football through and through.”