Ted Lea
Class of 1943
At both the high school and junior college level, Ted Lea was regarded as one of the greatest football players of his era.
A three-year letterman in football and basketball at Aberdeen, Lea received all-conference recognition in football and received the coveted John Mashin Award. In 1958 he was a unanimous choice on a high school football all-star team of the past 20 years.
He then spent two years at Grays Harbor College, where he earned all-conference recognition as a sophomore and was the leading vote-getter on the all-conference team. In 1964, he was selected as the quarterback on the all-time Grays Harbor College football team. He also lettered in basketball for the Chokers.
After lettering for two years at Central Washington State College, Lea began a distinguished career as an educator and coach at Auburn High School. Now deceased, he spent 14 years as Auburn High School principal and served six years on the Auburn City Council. A memorial scholarship is still presented in his honor each year at Aberdeen High School.
