Alden Roche
Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame
Football, 1963-78
Xavier Prep/Southern University/NFL
Inducted: 1991
Alden Roche, a Gretna, La., product, was a star at Xavier Prep (Class of 1963) in New Orleans before serving three years in the United States Army. After his discharge, he enrolled at Southern University and was an honor roll student and a football star. In 1969, he was a first-team All-American selection. He was also an All-SWAC selection at defensive end and the Jaguars most valuable defensive lineman.
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Roche was selected by the Denver Broncos in the second round of the 1970 NFL Draft (No. 37 overall) and played in all 14 games of his rookie season with the Broncos. He was traded to the Green Bay Packers after his rookie season and earned Packers’ defensive MVP honors in 1971. He remained with the Packers through the 1976 season, playing in all but one game during his tenure. In 1972, Roche helped Green Bay finish second in the league in team defense as they won the division title – the organization’s only division title between 1967 and 1995. In 1976, he tied for the team lead with 8.5 sacks.
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Roche closed his NFL career with two seasons with the Seattle Seahawks (1977-78), playing in 23 games to close his career with 120 games played and 85 starts over nine years.
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Born April 9, 1945, in New Orleans, he died on May 29, 2022, at the age of 77. He was also inducted into the Southern University Sports Hall of Fame (1997).
