3 Ivy Players Are Picked As Draft Choices

Columbia quarterback Archie Roberts, Princeton fullback Cosmo Iacavazzi, and Yale fullback Chuck Mercein have been asked to play professional football.

The three backs, all members of the 1964 All-Ivy Offensive team, were selected by the two professional football leagues in the player drafts held over the weekend.

The New York Jets grabbed Roberts in the seventh round of the American League draft, and the National League Minnesota Vikings picked Iacavazzi in the 20th round.

Mercein was drafted by teams in both leagues, by the NFL New York Giants in the third round and by the AFL Buffalo Bills in the 10th round. Both these teams have had pleasant experiences with Ivy League choices of the recent past. Cornell graduate Gary Wood, a first-year with the Giants, is currently backing up quarterback Y. A. Tittle, and Wood's teammate of a year ago, Hungarian kicking specialist Pete Gogolak, has used his accurate instep to become a leading scorer for the Bills.

Mercein, Iacavazzi, and Roberts have all declined so far to sign contracts, but Roberts, a pre-med student at Columbia, has previously expressed an interest in playing for pay if he can get a contract that will allow him to continue his studies at the same time.

One other Harvard opponent of this year, quarterback Jerry Whelchel of the University of Massachusetts, was drafted by the pros. The AFL San Diego Chargers picked him in the ninth round.

Mercein, Iacavazzi, and Roberts have all declined so far to sign contracts, but Roberts, a pre-med student at Columbia, has previously expressed an interest in playing for pay if he can get a contract that will allow him to continue his studies at the same time.

One other Harvard opponent of this year, quarterback Jerry Whelchel of the University of Massachusetts, was drafted by the pros. The AFL San Diego Chargers picked him in the ninth round.