Gary Barbaro

Gary Wayne Barbaro (born February 11, 1954 in New Orleans, Louisiana) is a former defensive back in the National Football League and United States Football League.

Barbaro, who played just one year of high school football at East Jefferson High School in Metarie, Louisiana, played college football from 1971–75 at Nicholls State University, where he is a member of the school's athletic hall of fame.

Selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the third round of the 1976 NFL Draft, the 6-foot-4, 200-pound Barbaro spent seven seasons with the Chiefs, earning Pro Bowl honors following the 1980, 1981, and 1982 seasons. In 1977, he led the NFL in interception return yards with 165. In seven NFL seasons (1976–1982), Barbaro intercepted 39 passes.

In a December 1977 game against the Seattle Seahawks, Barbaro, a free safety, intercepted a pass in the end zone and returned it 102 yards for a touchdown, an NFL record.

In November 1983, after sitting out the 1983 NFL season in a contract dispute, Barbaro signed a three-year contract with the New Jersey Generals of the USFL. Though he spent just one season in the USFL, Barbaro was voted by fans to the USFL All-Time Team. In his only USFL season (1984), he was named to The Sporting News USFL All-Star Team.

Barbaro, who injured his left knee in the Generals' July 1984 USFL playoff loss to the Philadelphia Stars, retired from football following the 1984 USFL season. Today, he resides in Metarie, Louisiana.