Otto Graham
Encyclopedia
Otto Everett Graham, Jr. (December 6, 1921 – December 17, 2003) was a professional American football
and basketball
player who played for the Cleveland Browns
in both the All-America Football Conference
and National Football League
, as well as the Rochester Royals
in the National Basketball League
.
, USA, Graham grew up with a strong connection to music, with his father serving as Waukegan High School
's band director. However, it would be on a variety of athletic fields where Graham's talents would manifest, making him the most famous native of Waukegan since comedian
Jack Benny
.
Graham graduated from Northwestern University
, attending the school on a basketball scholarship. He was an active member of the Alpha Delta Phi
social fraternity. In 1944, he was named an All-American in basketball. He was talked into playing football by Northwestern's head football coach, Lynn Waldorf, who saw him throwing a football on campus. By the time he was finished, he had played four years of basketball, three of football, two of baseball and also played the cornet in the Wildcats' school band. Graham's time on the football field would be spent at tailback
. He finished third in the 1943 Heisman Trophy
voting. Graham left Northwestern with the school record for total offensive yards (2,938), a record which would stand until 1964.
's Detroit Lions
, but was obligated to serve in the United States Coast Guard
, serving his time with the Coast Guard while it was still operating in the service of the United States Navy
. His football coach during his Coast Guard-Navy career was Bear Bryant
. Even before Graham's term was ended, head coach Paul Brown
of the Cleveland Browns
of the All-America Football Conference
(AAFC) offered him a two-year contract for $7,500 per season. In addition, Brown offered a $1,000 bonus and $250 per month for the duration of the war, an agreement Graham quickly signed. Brown knew all about Graham's talent having been head coach at Big Ten Conference
rival Ohio State University
during the latter's college days.
However, Graham also found time to play one year of professional basketball for the Rochester Royals. In what would become one of his trademarks, the Royals captured the 1945-46 National Basketball League
title.
Upon joining the Browns in 1946, he was switched to quarterback
, where he would lead the team to the league championship game in each of his 10 seasons, winning on seven occasions. During the AAFC's four-year existence, the Browns won the championship each year as Graham threw for 10,085 yards and 86 touchdowns and rushed for 11 more. Graham won the league's Most Valuable Player
award in 1947 and 1948, sharing the honor the latter year with San Francisco 49ers
quarterback Frankie Albert
.
The Browns joined the National Football League
in 1950, and won the league championship in their first NFL season, deflecting the criticism of their domination of the AAFC
. Graham paced the team to a 10-2 record on the season, the only two losses coming against the New York Giants
, whose Umbrella Defense proved to be a source of frustration for the quarterback.
Graham gained revenge in the 1950, 8-3 playoff win against those same Giants. Playing on a frozen field that hindered both team's passing, Graham rushed for 36 yards in the Browns' 4th quarter drive, leading to Lou Groza
's field goal which broke a 3-3 tie and gave Cleveland the lead for good.
Graham's clutch play also led to the NFL title one week later. Trailing the Los Angeles Rams by one point with 1:48 remaining and starting their drive at their own 31-yard line, Graham started with a 15-yard run, then followed with passes to receivers Rex Bumgardner
and Dub Jones, before running one more play to set up Lou Groza
's game-winning 16-yard field goal.
After signing a contract during the offseason that reportedly made him the highest-paid player in the game, Graham helped the 1951 team to 11 consecutive wins following a loss to the San Francisco 49ers
in the season opener. The streak helped him win NFL Player of the Year accolades, but more importantly, helped garner a return match against the Rams.
In contrast to the previous season which saw the Browns win with a late score, it would be the Rams that captured the game on a touchdown pass with 7:35 left in the game. Graham had been sharp in the game's first series, when he moved 54 yards on three pass plays for a quick 7-0 lead. Unfortunately, his later fumble helped set up a Ram touchdown, while a fourth quarter interception put a major dent in the Browns' comeback hopes.
During the 1952 campaign, Graham and the Browns proved to be consistent by winning two games, then losing one over the course of the year to finish with a 9-3 mark. The team's 37-34 loss to the New York Giants in the regular season finale proved to be an omen two weeks later when the Detroit Lions stopped the Browns by a 17-7 score. The pain of losing a second straight championship paled in comparison to the tragedy that befell Graham on January 2. While Graham was practicing for the Pro Bowl
in Los Angeles, his six-week-old son Stephen died from a severe cold.
During the next season, Graham bounced back, scoring two touchdowns on quarterback sneaks and throwing for 292 yards in the season-opening 27-0 shutout of the Green Bay Packers
. That victory would be the first of 11 straight for the Browns, whose bid for a perfect regular season ended one week later with a 42-27 defeat at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles
. Despite the 11-1 mark, the team came up short for the third consecutive year in the NFL Championship, falling 17-16 to the Detroit Lions
. Bobby Layne's 33-yard pass to Jim Doran with less than three minutes remaining provided the heartbreak for the Browns.
Graham would go on to win Player of the Year honors that year, but became a painful footnote in the development of the football helmet
facemask during a game against the San Francisco 49ers
on November 15, 1953. With six minutes remaining in the second quarter, Graham was injured after receiving a blow to the jaw by a 49er player, but returned to the game after receiving 15 stitches. The injury compelled Paul Brown to work toward developing the prototype of what would become the facemask.
Before the start of the Browns' 1954 training camp, Graham's name became connected to the infamous Sam Sheppard
murder case. As one of the osteopath's neighbors, Graham and his wife were asked by police for information on Sheppard, with the signal caller noting that the couples had attended local stock car races four days before the murder.
Back on the field, the Browns got off to a sluggish start, dropping two of their first three contests. However, eight straight wins again helped put the team into the title game, facing the Detroit Lions
for the third straight season. In what was expected to be his farewell to the game, Graham ran for three touchdowns and passed for three more in a 56-10 rout of the Lions. As expected, Graham announced his retirement following the game.
After his potential successors struggled during the 1955 training camp, Graham was convinced to come back following an appeal from Paul Brown. Shaking off the rust from his brief departure, he led the Browns to a 10-2 regular season mark, then officially closed out his playing career with a 38-14 victory over the Los Angeles Rams in the NFL Championship on December 26, 1955.
During the latter half of his career, Graham's popularity was such that he and his wife Beverly hosted a local television
show in Cleveland
entitled, At Home With the Grahams.
Graham's 57-13-1 record as a starter in the NFL represents the highest winning percentage of any quarterback (.810).
In his final year of play, Graham won the Hickok Belt
as top professional athlete of the year, and ten years later, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
. In 1999, he was ranked number 7 on The Sporting News
list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, the highest-ranking player who had played in the AAFC.
Otto Graham is considered by many sports historians to be one of the greatest winners in the history of professional sports, and by many football historians to be the greatest quarterback of all time. Graham played six seasons in the NFL and took the Cleveland Browns to the NFL Championship Game all six seasons, winning three NFL titles. Including four seasons in which his team captured four AAFC titles, Graham played ten total seasons of professional football and made the league championship game all ten seasons, winning seven league titles. In his single season as a professional basketball player, the Rochester Royals (today's Sacramento Kings
) also captured the league title. Thus, in 11 seasons as a professional athlete, Otto Graham's teams made the championship all eleven years, winning eight titles.
Midway through his career in 1952
, the NFL passed a rule requiring offensive lineman to wear jersey numbers 50-79, in order for the referees to identify an ineligible receiver
; this rule has since passed down to every other level of football. Unlike the more rigid numbering system that would go into effect in 1973
, players were not given a grandfather clause
if they played in the league before 1952, and Graham had to switch his jersey number
from 60 to 14. Although Graham was better known with number 60, the Browns retired his number 14 while 60 remains in circulation, currently worn by offensive lineman Steve Vallos
. While at Northwestern, Graham wore number 48.
in their 1958 clash against the defending NFL champions, leading the squad to a convincing 35-19 victory over the Detroit Lions
.
The following year, he accepted a full-time position as head football coach at the Coast Guard Academy, where he served for seven seasons, leading the team to an undefeated regular season campaign and a Tangerine Bowl
appearance in 1963. In that same year he coached the College All Stars to a 20-17 upset victory over Vince Lombardi's
Green Bay Packers.
Graham found time to return to professional football during the 1964 and 1965 seasons by moonlighting as a radio commentator for the American Football League
's New York Jets
.
, but whatever magic he had as an NFL
player disappeared on the sidelines as the team recorded a mark of 17-22-3 during that time period.
After resigning the Redskins' post in favor of the legendary Vince Lombardi
, Graham returned as athletic director
of the Coast Guard Academy before retiring at the end of 1984.
Graham and Lombardi would be linked again when Graham underwent surgery for colorectal cancer
in 1977, the disease that claimed Lombardi's life seven years earlier. Graham subsequently became a vocal supporter of early detection of the disease
Graham's 1963 CGA team was undefeated in the regular season but was trounced by a Western Kentucky team, 27-0 in the Tangerine Bowl
.
in 2001, died of a heart aneurysm
in Sarasota, Florida
on December 17, 2003. At the funeral held days later, Graham's longtime friend, George Steinbrenner
, fainted, leading to extensive media speculation that he was in ill health, but Steinbrenner lived another six years.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player who played for the Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in both the All-America Football Conference
All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the nation's best players, and introduced many lasting innovations...
and National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
, as well as the Rochester Royals
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
in the National Basketball League
National Basketball League (United States)
Founded in 1937, the National Basketball League, often abbreviated to NBL, was a professional men's basketball league in the United States. The league would later merge with the Basketball Association of America to form the National Basketball Association in 1949.- League history :The...
.
Early life
Born in Waukegan, IllinoisWaukegan, Illinois
Waukegan is a city and county seat of Lake County, Illinois. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 87,901. The 2010 population was 89,078. It is the ninth-largest city in Illinois by population...
, USA, Graham grew up with a strong connection to music, with his father serving as Waukegan High School
Waukegan High School
Waukegan High School, or WHS, is a public, four-year high school located in Waukegan, Illinois, USA, a city to the North of Chicago, Illinois. WHS first opened its doors in 1870. Today, the Brookside Campus extends from Berwick Avenue to McAree Road, and from Brookside Avenue to the center line of...
's band director. However, it would be on a variety of athletic fields where Graham's talents would manifest, making him the most famous native of Waukegan since comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
Jack Benny
Jack Benny
Jack Benny was an American comedian, vaudevillian, and actor for radio, television, and film...
.
Graham graduated from Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
, attending the school on a basketball scholarship. He was an active member of the Alpha Delta Phi
Alpha Delta Phi
Alpha Delta Phi is a Greek-letter social college fraternity and the fourth-oldest continuous Greek-letter fraternity in the United States and Canada. Alpha Delta Phi was founded on October 29, 1832 by Samuel Eells at Hamilton College and includes former U.S. Presidents, Chief Justices of the U.S....
social fraternity. In 1944, he was named an All-American in basketball. He was talked into playing football by Northwestern's head football coach, Lynn Waldorf, who saw him throwing a football on campus. By the time he was finished, he had played four years of basketball, three of football, two of baseball and also played the cornet in the Wildcats' school band. Graham's time on the football field would be spent at tailback
Tailback
Tailback can mean:* Halfback * A line of motor vehicles caught up in traffic congestion; a traffic jam...
. He finished third in the 1943 Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
voting. Graham left Northwestern with the school record for total offensive yards (2,938), a record which would stand until 1964.
AAFC and NFL career
In 1944, Graham was drafted by the NFLNational Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
's Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
, but was obligated to serve in the United States Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
, serving his time with the Coast Guard while it was still operating in the service of the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
. His football coach during his Coast Guard-Navy career was Bear Bryant
Bear Bryant
Paul William "Bear" Bryant was an American college football player and coach. He was best known as the longtime head coach of the University of Alabama football team. During his 25-year tenure as Alabama's head coach, he amassed six national championships and thirteen conference championships...
. Even before Graham's term was ended, head coach Paul Brown
Paul Brown
Paul Eugene Brown was a coach in American football and a major figure in the development of the National Football League...
of the Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
of the All-America Football Conference
All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the nation's best players, and introduced many lasting innovations...
(AAFC) offered him a two-year contract for $7,500 per season. In addition, Brown offered a $1,000 bonus and $250 per month for the duration of the war, an agreement Graham quickly signed. Brown knew all about Graham's talent having been head coach at Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
rival Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
during the latter's college days.
However, Graham also found time to play one year of professional basketball for the Rochester Royals. In what would become one of his trademarks, the Royals captured the 1945-46 National Basketball League
National Basketball League (United States)
Founded in 1937, the National Basketball League, often abbreviated to NBL, was a professional men's basketball league in the United States. The league would later merge with the Basketball Association of America to form the National Basketball Association in 1949.- League history :The...
title.
Upon joining the Browns in 1946, he was switched to quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
, where he would lead the team to the league championship game in each of his 10 seasons, winning on seven occasions. During the AAFC's four-year existence, the Browns won the championship each year as Graham threw for 10,085 yards and 86 touchdowns and rushed for 11 more. Graham won the league's Most Valuable Player
Most Valuable Player
In sports, a Most Valuable Player award is an honor typically bestowed upon the best performing player or players on a specific team, in an entire league, or for a particular contest or series of contests...
award in 1947 and 1948, sharing the honor the latter year with San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
quarterback Frankie Albert
Frankie Albert
Frank Cullen "Frankie" Albert was an American football player. He played as a quarterback with the San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League...
.
The Browns joined the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
in 1950, and won the league championship in their first NFL season, deflecting the criticism of their domination of the AAFC
All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the nation's best players, and introduced many lasting innovations...
. Graham paced the team to a 10-2 record on the season, the only two losses coming against the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, whose Umbrella Defense proved to be a source of frustration for the quarterback.
Graham gained revenge in the 1950, 8-3 playoff win against those same Giants. Playing on a frozen field that hindered both team's passing, Graham rushed for 36 yards in the Browns' 4th quarter drive, leading to Lou Groza
Lou Groza
Louis Roy Groza was an American football placekicker and offensive tackle who played his entire career for the Cleveland Browns....
's field goal which broke a 3-3 tie and gave Cleveland the lead for good.
Graham's clutch play also led to the NFL title one week later. Trailing the Los Angeles Rams by one point with 1:48 remaining and starting their drive at their own 31-yard line, Graham started with a 15-yard run, then followed with passes to receivers Rex Bumgardner
Rex Bumgardner
Rex Bumgardner is a former running back in the NFL for the Buffalo Bills, and the Cleveland Browns. He was drafted in the 1948 NFL Draft out of West Virginia....
and Dub Jones, before running one more play to set up Lou Groza
Lou Groza
Louis Roy Groza was an American football placekicker and offensive tackle who played his entire career for the Cleveland Browns....
's game-winning 16-yard field goal.
After signing a contract during the offseason that reportedly made him the highest-paid player in the game, Graham helped the 1951 team to 11 consecutive wins following a loss to the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
in the season opener. The streak helped him win NFL Player of the Year accolades, but more importantly, helped garner a return match against the Rams.
In contrast to the previous season which saw the Browns win with a late score, it would be the Rams that captured the game on a touchdown pass with 7:35 left in the game. Graham had been sharp in the game's first series, when he moved 54 yards on three pass plays for a quick 7-0 lead. Unfortunately, his later fumble helped set up a Ram touchdown, while a fourth quarter interception put a major dent in the Browns' comeback hopes.
During the 1952 campaign, Graham and the Browns proved to be consistent by winning two games, then losing one over the course of the year to finish with a 9-3 mark. The team's 37-34 loss to the New York Giants in the regular season finale proved to be an omen two weeks later when the Detroit Lions stopped the Browns by a 17-7 score. The pain of losing a second straight championship paled in comparison to the tragedy that befell Graham on January 2. While Graham was practicing for the Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
in Los Angeles, his six-week-old son Stephen died from a severe cold.
During the next season, Graham bounced back, scoring two touchdowns on quarterback sneaks and throwing for 292 yards in the season-opening 27-0 shutout of the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
. That victory would be the first of 11 straight for the Browns, whose bid for a perfect regular season ended one week later with a 42-27 defeat at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. Despite the 11-1 mark, the team came up short for the third consecutive year in the NFL Championship, falling 17-16 to the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
. Bobby Layne's 33-yard pass to Jim Doran with less than three minutes remaining provided the heartbreak for the Browns.
Graham would go on to win Player of the Year honors that year, but became a painful footnote in the development of the football helmet
Football helmet
A football helmet is a protective device used primarily in American football and Canadian football. It consists of a hard plastic top with thick padding on the inside, a face mask made of one or more plastic bars, and a chinstrap. Some players add polycarbonate visors to their helmets, which are...
facemask during a game against the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
on November 15, 1953. With six minutes remaining in the second quarter, Graham was injured after receiving a blow to the jaw by a 49er player, but returned to the game after receiving 15 stitches. The injury compelled Paul Brown to work toward developing the prototype of what would become the facemask.
Before the start of the Browns' 1954 training camp, Graham's name became connected to the infamous Sam Sheppard
Sam Sheppard
Dr. Samuel Holmes Sheppard was an American osteopathic physician and neurosurgeon, who was involved in an infamous and controversial murder trial. He was convicted of the murder of his pregnant wife, Marilyn Reese Sheppard, in 1954, while residing in the Cleveland, Ohio area. Sheppard served...
murder case. As one of the osteopath's neighbors, Graham and his wife were asked by police for information on Sheppard, with the signal caller noting that the couples had attended local stock car races four days before the murder.
Back on the field, the Browns got off to a sluggish start, dropping two of their first three contests. However, eight straight wins again helped put the team into the title game, facing the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
for the third straight season. In what was expected to be his farewell to the game, Graham ran for three touchdowns and passed for three more in a 56-10 rout of the Lions. As expected, Graham announced his retirement following the game.
After his potential successors struggled during the 1955 training camp, Graham was convinced to come back following an appeal from Paul Brown. Shaking off the rust from his brief departure, he led the Browns to a 10-2 regular season mark, then officially closed out his playing career with a 38-14 victory over the Los Angeles Rams in the NFL Championship on December 26, 1955.
During the latter half of his career, Graham's popularity was such that he and his wife Beverly hosted a local television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
show in Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
entitled, At Home With the Grahams.
Graham's 57-13-1 record as a starter in the NFL represents the highest winning percentage of any quarterback (.810).
Legacy
During an astounding career in which the Browns compiled a 105-17-4 record, at the time of his retirement Graham's 86.6 career pass rating (combined AAFC and NFL) served as one of the best of all time, tossing 188 touchdowns in ten seasons of play.In his final year of play, Graham won the Hickok Belt
Hickok Belt
The S. Rae Hickok Professional Athlete of the Year award, known as the Hickok Belt, was a trophy awarded for 27 years to the top professional athlete of the year in the United States...
as top professional athlete of the year, and ten years later, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
. In 1999, he was ranked number 7 on The Sporting News
The Sporting News
Sporting News is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball"...
list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, the highest-ranking player who had played in the AAFC.
Otto Graham is considered by many sports historians to be one of the greatest winners in the history of professional sports, and by many football historians to be the greatest quarterback of all time. Graham played six seasons in the NFL and took the Cleveland Browns to the NFL Championship Game all six seasons, winning three NFL titles. Including four seasons in which his team captured four AAFC titles, Graham played ten total seasons of professional football and made the league championship game all ten seasons, winning seven league titles. In his single season as a professional basketball player, the Rochester Royals (today's Sacramento Kings
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
) also captured the league title. Thus, in 11 seasons as a professional athlete, Otto Graham's teams made the championship all eleven years, winning eight titles.
Midway through his career in 1952
1952 NFL season
The 1952 NFL season was the 33rd regular season of the National Football League. Prior to the season, New York Yanks owner Ted Collins sold his team back to the NFL...
, the NFL passed a rule requiring offensive lineman to wear jersey numbers 50-79, in order for the referees to identify an ineligible receiver
Eligible receiver
In American football and Canadian football, not all players on offense are entitled to receive a forward pass. Only an eligible pass receiver may legally catch a forward pass, and only an eligible receiver may advance beyond the neutral zone if a forward pass which crosses the neutral zone is thrown...
; this rule has since passed down to every other level of football. Unlike the more rigid numbering system that would go into effect in 1973
1973 NFL season
The 1973 NFL season was the 54th regular season of the National Football League. The season featured O.J. Simpson becoming the first man to rush for 2,000 yards in one season...
, players were not given a grandfather clause
Grandfather clause
Grandfather clause is a legal term used to describe a situation in which an old rule continues to apply to some existing situations, while a new rule will apply to all future situations. It is often used as a verb: to grandfather means to grant such an exemption...
if they played in the league before 1952, and Graham had to switch his jersey number
Uniform number (American football)
The uniform numbers in American football are unusual compared to those in any other sport. They are displayed in more locations on the uniform than in those of other sports , and on the front of the jersey, they are displayed very large, taking up almost the entire front of the jersey...
from 60 to 14. Although Graham was better known with number 60, the Browns retired his number 14 while 60 remains in circulation, currently worn by offensive lineman Steve Vallos
Steve Vallos
Steve Vallos is an American football guard and center for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League. He was originally drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the seventh round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
. While at Northwestern, Graham wore number 48.
After retirement
Following his retirement, Graham served as head coach of the College All-StarsCollege All-Star Game
The Chicago Charities College All-Star Game was a preseason American football game played annually from 1934 to 1976 between the National Football League champions and a team of star college seniors from the previous year...
in their 1958 clash against the defending NFL champions, leading the squad to a convincing 35-19 victory over the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
.
The following year, he accepted a full-time position as head football coach at the Coast Guard Academy, where he served for seven seasons, leading the team to an undefeated regular season campaign and a Tangerine Bowl
Capital One Bowl
The Capital One Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played in Orlando, Florida at the Citrus Bowl, and previously known as the Tangerine Bowl and the Florida Citrus Bowl...
appearance in 1963. In that same year he coached the College All Stars to a 20-17 upset victory over Vince Lombardi's
Vince Lombardi
Vincent Thomas "Vince" Lombardi was an American football coach. He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight league championships and five in seven years, including winning the first two Super Bowls following the 1966 and...
Green Bay Packers.
Graham found time to return to professional football during the 1964 and 1965 seasons by moonlighting as a radio commentator for the American Football League
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
's New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
.
NFL coaching career
Between 1966 and 1968, Graham coached the Washington RedskinsWashington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
, but whatever magic he had as an NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
player disappeared on the sidelines as the team recorded a mark of 17-22-3 during that time period.
After resigning the Redskins' post in favor of the legendary Vince Lombardi
Vince Lombardi
Vincent Thomas "Vince" Lombardi was an American football coach. He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight league championships and five in seven years, including winning the first two Super Bowls following the 1966 and...
, Graham returned as athletic director
Athletic director
An athletic director is an administrator at many American colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and related staff involved in intercollegiate or interscholastic athletic programs...
of the Coast Guard Academy before retiring at the end of 1984.
Graham and Lombardi would be linked again when Graham underwent surgery for colorectal cancer
Colorectal cancer
Colorectal cancer, commonly known as bowel cancer, is a cancer caused by uncontrolled cell growth , in the colon, rectum, or vermiform appendix. Colorectal cancer is clinically distinct from anal cancer, which affects the anus....
in 1977, the disease that claimed Lombardi's life seven years earlier. Graham subsequently became a vocal supporter of early detection of the disease
Graham's 1963 CGA team was undefeated in the regular season but was trounced by a Western Kentucky team, 27-0 in the Tangerine Bowl
Capital One Bowl
The Capital One Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played in Orlando, Florida at the Citrus Bowl, and previously known as the Tangerine Bowl and the Florida Citrus Bowl...
.
Death
Graham, who had previously been diagnosed as being in the early stages of Alzheimer's DiseaseAlzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
in 2001, died of a heart aneurysm
Aneurysm
An aneurysm or aneurism is a localized, blood-filled balloon-like bulge in the wall of a blood vessel. Aneurysms can commonly occur in arteries at the base of the brain and an aortic aneurysm occurs in the main artery carrying blood from the left ventricle of the heart...
in Sarasota, Florida
Sarasota, Florida
Sarasota is a city located in Sarasota County on the southwestern coast of the U.S. state of Florida. It is south of the Tampa Bay Area and north of Fort Myers...
on December 17, 2003. At the funeral held days later, Graham's longtime friend, George Steinbrenner
George Steinbrenner
George Michael Steinbrenner III was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees. During Steinbrenner's 37-year ownership from 1973 to his death in July 2010, the longest in club history, the Yankees earned seven World Series...
, fainted, leading to extensive media speculation that he was in ill health, but Steinbrenner lived another six years.
External links
- Pro Football Hall of Fame: Member profile
- New York Times Obit