Over this year’s Super Bowl weekend, which finally featured an event that lived up to its pre-game hype, the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced the induction of six new members. It announced that a second Denver Bronco would join John Elway in the elite club – but it picked the wrong Bronco. Instead of selecting Floyd Little, sportswriters who vote on the honor picked former tackle Garry Zimmerman, whose career was split between Minnesota and Denver.
It’s not that Zimmerman is not worthy – he is – but he doesn’t deserve receiving the NFL’s highest compliment before Little, the first No.1 draft choice to sign with the Broncos. When he retired in 1975, Little was the seventh leading rusher in NFL history. The six ahead of him – some with less impressive stats – have been already enshrined in Canton, Ohio. After the annual enshrinement ceremonies in August, there will be 247 inductees.
Little, who owns a Ford-Lincoln-Mercury car dealership in suburban Seattle, says he has been passed over so many times that he doesn’t care about winning the honor anymore. But I care and so do many other football fans that recognize Little as one of pro football’s premier running backs.
Before signing with Denver, Little had firmly established his credentials as a superstar. He was a three- time All-American at Syracuse (1964, 65 and 66), eclipsing school records set by two others that had worn the famed #44 jersey for the Orangemen – NFL great Jim Brown and Ernie Davis, the first African-American to win the Heisman Trophy.
Little broke most of their records, rushing for 2,704 yards, returning punts for another 845 yards, kickoffs for 797 yards and passed for 19, a total of 4,947 combined yards. He scored 46 touchdowns in the 30 games he played in, including five in one game. In the 1966 Gator Bowl, he ran for 216 yards against Tennessee, averaging 7.4 yards on 29 carries.
This past Super Bowl featured the answer to a sports trivia question: Who played in the same Syracuse backfield as Floyd Little and Larry Csonka? Answer: New York Giants Coach Tom Coughlin.
Writing in his book, "Tales From the Broncos Sideline," Little recalled that Coughlin "got on the nerves of a few guys because he not only knew all the plays, he also memorized all of the assignments of every player. If quarterback Rick Cassata called a play in the huddle and he mispronounced it or called the wrong formation, Tom would correct him. And if someone was unclear on an assignment, Tom wouldn’t hesitate to tell them what they needed to do."
Before there was a John Elway, before there was a Randy Gradishar, before there was a Terrell Davis and, yes, before there was a Gary Zimmerman in Denver, there was Floyd Douglas Little, nicknamed "The Franchise."
At 5’10 and 195 pounds, even small by standards of the day, Little pioneered small running backs being featured in an NFL offense. An exciting runner that could cut on a dime and give you a nickel in change, Little was a human highlight film. At his size, he could drag would-be tacklers an extra five or six yards. And in the open field, the best view tacklers had of him was reading #44 on the back of his jersey as he crossed the goal line.
Unlike most players today, Little played his entire career with one team. From 1967 to 1975, he collected 12,103 All-Purpose yards, including a team record 2,523 on kickoff returns. He led the NFL in rushing in 1971 and played in five All-Star/Pro Bowls.
Entering the Hall of Fame is not always a fair process and some teams and former players are inevitably slighted. Twelve players from the Pittsburgh Steelers teams of the 1970s are in the Hall of Fame. But the San Francisco 49ers, which also won four Super Bowls, has only four representatives. The Dallas Cowboys, winner of three Super Bowls, has only two members. Retired Oakland Raider punter Ray Guy, in his 17th year of consideration, still has not been selected.
In an introduction to Little’s book, Jim Brown adds: "I’ve said for years that Floyd deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. There’s no question in my mind that he’s one of the game’s greatest players."
Others that share their view have created a Web site, www.littleinthehalloffame.com, to collect petitions on his behalf.
The tragedy isn’t just that Little has been passed over, it’s that he was not even among the finalists to be considered for the honor this year. When pro football writers on the 44-member selection committee meet in Canton next August, they will have yet another opportunity to correct this travesty.
In the meantime, sign the petition on line protesting this slight and contact sportswriters in your community, urging them to voice their support. The ball is now in our hands.
