DOLPHINS GO UNBEATEN THANKS, IN PART, TO BABB

The NFL has had one undefeated team in its illustrious history.

Take away one Charleston native from that team and the 1972 Dolphins don't go undefeated and they don't win the Super Bowl.

Charlie Babb, who once graced the football fields of Southeast Missouri, blocked and recovered a punt attempt in the 1972 playoff game against the Cleveland Browns.

Babb, a rookie that season after being picked 129th overall in the fifth round of the NFL draft, blocked the kick at the 17-yard line, scooped it up at the 7 and scored one of the team's two touchdowns as Miami beat Cleveland 20-14.

It was Babb's only professional touchdown.

Babb, who was raised by deaf parents, grew up on a farm near Charleston, where he set records as a quarterback and pole vaulter.

Remarkably, Babb -- a 6-foot, 190-pound strong safety as a Dolphin -- went 16 straight seasons, beginning in junior high, without missing a football game.

For the Dolphins, Babb played 97 games and had 219 solo tackles, 145 assists and intercepted 12 passes -- four of them coming in 1975.

Babb was awarded a game ball in 1976 when his interception led to the only touchdown in a 16-0 shutout to the New York Jets.

Babb went to Memphis State, where he recorded 229 tackles, intercepted nine passes and recovered five fumbles.

With everything that goes with being a member of NFL's only undefeated team, Babb -- now a business man in Florida -- still keeps his memories of Charleston close to his heart.

"I remember when we beat Poplar Bluff 7-6 when they had a 21-game winning streak and were rated No. 1 in the state," Babb told a reporter in 1992. "The game was played at Charleston. There were 5,000 people in the town and 6,000 showed up at the game with Bluff.

"Those days were really something."