Post by KotO on Nov 14, 2021 11:45:42 GMT
www.yahoo.com/sports/nfl-hall-of-famer-sam-huff-dies-giants-washington-230117995.html
Sam Huff, the fearsome middle linebacker whose play defined an NFL generation, died on Saturday according to the Washington Post, eight years after he was diagnosed with dementia. He was 87.
Both a College Football Hall of Famer and Pro Football Hall of Famer, Huff grew up in a West Virginia coal mining camp and starred at the Mountaineers football program as a lineman. He eventually reached the NFL as a third-round draft pick by the New York Giants.
Huff's first NFL training camp went poorly, to the point that he left the camp after he failed to find a position where he could play. As the Pro Football Hall of Fame recounts, he was eventually coaxed back by a Giants assistant coach by the name of Vince Lombardi.
Sam Huff's career was historic in many ways
Huff later found his position thanks to one of the most significant tactical developments in NFL history, the institution of the 4-3 defense under Giants defensive coordinator and future Dallas Cowboys legend Tom Landry. Landry moved Huff to the middle linebacker position, where he would soon star as a rookie.
With a defense built on funneling plays into Huff, the Giants finished with an 8-3-1 record and won the NFL championship game. Huff was the first rookie middle linebacker to ever start an NFL championship game.
Huff continued to excel from there, leading the Giants to five more NFL championship games (and unfortunately losing them all). The Giants' 1958 championship loss to the Baltimore Colts is widely remembered as "The Greatest Game Ever Played," and is credited with sparking the NFL's rise in popularity.
Sam Huff, the fearsome middle linebacker whose play defined an NFL generation, died on Saturday according to the Washington Post, eight years after he was diagnosed with dementia. He was 87.
Both a College Football Hall of Famer and Pro Football Hall of Famer, Huff grew up in a West Virginia coal mining camp and starred at the Mountaineers football program as a lineman. He eventually reached the NFL as a third-round draft pick by the New York Giants.
Huff's first NFL training camp went poorly, to the point that he left the camp after he failed to find a position where he could play. As the Pro Football Hall of Fame recounts, he was eventually coaxed back by a Giants assistant coach by the name of Vince Lombardi.
Sam Huff's career was historic in many ways
Huff later found his position thanks to one of the most significant tactical developments in NFL history, the institution of the 4-3 defense under Giants defensive coordinator and future Dallas Cowboys legend Tom Landry. Landry moved Huff to the middle linebacker position, where he would soon star as a rookie.
With a defense built on funneling plays into Huff, the Giants finished with an 8-3-1 record and won the NFL championship game. Huff was the first rookie middle linebacker to ever start an NFL championship game.
Huff continued to excel from there, leading the Giants to five more NFL championship games (and unfortunately losing them all). The Giants' 1958 championship loss to the Baltimore Colts is widely remembered as "The Greatest Game Ever Played," and is credited with sparking the NFL's rise in popularity.