Posted on 01/15/2020 1:55:33 PM PST by C19fan
Former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue joined a group of 12 who earned induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s centennial 2020 class on Wednesday.
Harold Carmichael, Jim Covert and Winston Hill were the first in the group announced to the Hall on Wednesday morning. They were followed by the induction of: NFL Films’ Steve Sabol, pioneer Duke Slater, the Detroit Lions’ Alex Karras, the Green Bay Packers’ Bobby Dillon, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Donnie Shell, the Chicago Bears’ Ed Sprinkle, the New York Giants’ George Young, the Dallas Cowboys’ Cliff Harris and the Cleveland Browns’ Mac Speedie.
(Excerpt) Read more at sports.yahoo.com ...
“Dallas WR Drew Pearson was rejected.”
I would have thought that Pearson would have gone in before Harold Carmichael — and I’m an Eagles fan. BTW, they should have inducted that old Redskins CB, Pat Fischer, along with Carmichael as he spent most of his time literally attached to HC. Those were some battles!
It’s an outrage Pearson isn’t in the HOF.
The voters must all be Vikings fans.
Mungo just pawn in game of life.
He was commissioner for many years after Pete Rozelle. I also can’t recall any great achievement by him as commissioner. Was he elected just because he was commissioner for many years?
Now you know how us Steelers fans have felt about L.C. Greenwood not making it.
With Shell now in, how many players on the Steelers dynasty have made it? I think it’s now Shell, Blount, Ham, Lambert, Greene, Webster, Bradshaw, Harris, Swann, and Stallworth. Plus Coach Noll and owner Rooney. It would be nice if super scout Bill Nunn could make it in too as he was the biggest reason for the Steelers success in the seventies. Yes, I’ll stand by that statement.
Haha - you beat to the post !!!
Are there any groundskeepers or stand cleaners, peanut or beer vendors in yet?
Better get crackin’, Roger.
Steve Sabol sure. Loved those old NFL Films with John Facienda narrating.
Duke Slater’s induction is LONG overdue. He made the inaugural class of the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951. He played 10 years in the very early NFL, making All Pro 6 times never missed a game because if injury even though he was one of the few, and for most of two seasons, was the ONLY black player in the NFL. The racists were trying to force all the blacks out, but Duke was just too good. His team just couldn’t afford to give him up and nobody could beat him up and out. Red Grange put him on his all-time NFL team 60 years ago; his other picks have all been in the NFL Hall of Fame for years. George Hallas, coaching Slater’s then cross town rival - Duke ended his career with the Chicago Cardinals - said he was hopeless to try running the ball against Duke’s side of the field.
He was famous at Iowa for playing there without a helmet, a habit he started in high school. His high school provided their uniform but neither shoes nor helmet. He couldn’t afford both and figured he needed the former more. He lead Iowa to an undefeated 1921 season including breaking Knute Rockne’s 20 game winning streak and lead the blocking on the winning score. An historic photo of helmetless Duke on that play has been made into a new sculpture at Kininick stadium. And no chronic traumatic encephalopathy for the heltmetless both way lineman. During his NFL offseasons he attended law school at Iowa and ended up being a well known and liked Judge in Chicago for decades.
Yeah, the “Voice of God” should get in, too (although he never said “frozen tundra” when referring to Lambeau Field).
Sam Spence should be in too, he composed most of the music for NFL Films.
With Shell in the HOF, that’s 5 for the Steelers from the rookie class of ‘74 (Swann, Stallworth, Lambert, and Webster as draft picks, Shell as a rookie free agent).
Although I despise the current makeup of the Negro Felons League, early pioneers like Duke Slater and Fritz Pollard were gentlemen, sportsmen, and deserving of all honor and respect.
Generally, I find veterans committee picks to be a lot more interesting than those made by the sportswriters.
I’m also pretty thrilled about the long-overdue enshrinement of Alex Karras, not only a great player but a great comical cutup to rival Artie Donovan.
Vikings fan here, and I think he should be in (even if that was offensive pass interference.) :-)
I would put groundskeeper George Toma in the Hall of Fame.
Glad to see Alex Karras got into the HOF. In addition to being a great defensive tackle, he also was featured in one of my favorite football books, “Mad Ducks and Bears.”
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