Double Majors: Prolonged Drought for Hoop All-Americans Competing in NFL
America's Team, the Dallas Cowboys, warrants recognition as the last NFL franchise to give versatile college basketball All-Americans (Utah State's Cornell Green and Tennessee's Ron Widby in mid-1970s) an opportunity to labor as authentic NFL players.
Versatile athletes are becoming an endangered species although Rico Gathers, Baylor's all-time leading rebounder (fourth in nation as junior in 2014-15), was retained by the Cowboys as fourth tight end several years ago to avoid losing him to waivers. Promptly after Labor Day is when majority of college basketball annuals hit the newsstands about same time NFL regular season kicks off into high gear. In an era of specialization, the odds are staggering against any of the projected college hoop All-Americans in the magazines enjoying a genuine AAFC/NFL career such as the following alphabetical list of seven well-rounded athletes including two from Utah State:
| Hoops All-American | College | Hoops Position (A-A Year) | Summary of NFL Career |
|---|---|---|---|
| Otto Graham | Northwestern | F (1943 and 1944) | Five-time All-Pro QB played 10 seasons (1946 through 1955) with the Cleveland Browns and led team to championship game each year (All-America Football Conference from 1946 through 1949 and NFL from 1950 through 1955). Fourth pick overall in 1944 NFL draft by the Detroit Lions. |
| Cornell Green | Utah State | F (1962) | Five-time Pro Bowler intercepted 34 passes in 13 years as a DB with the Dallas Cowboys (1962 through 1974). |
| Vern Huffman | Indiana | G (1936) | QB-DB passed for 484 yards and rushed for 368 yards with the Detroit Lions in 1937 and 1938. Third-round selection in 1937 NFL draft (27th pick overall). |
| Ron Kramer | Michigan | C (1957) | WR for 10 seasons (1957 and 1959 through 1967) with the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions. First-round draft choice caught 229 passes for 3,272 yards and 16 TDs. Pro Bowl selection in 1963. |
| Banks McFadden | Clemson | C (1939) | Selected by the Brooklyn Dodgers in the first round (third pick overall) of the 1940 NFL draft. Finished fourth in rushing in the NFL in his only pro season, averaging 6.3 yards per carry. |
| Glen "Max" Morris | Northwestern | C-F (1945 and 1946) | End caught 53 passes for 677 yards and two touchdowns with the AAFC's Chicago Rockets and Brooklyn Dodgers from 1946 through 1948. He was selected by the Chicago Bears in 26th round of 1947 NFL draft. |
| Kent "Rip" Ryan | Utah State | F-C (1936) | Halfback with the Detroit Lions for three seasons from 1938 through 1940. |
| Ron Widby | Tennessee | F (1967) | Punter appeared in the Pro Bowl following the 1971 campaign. Averaged 42 yards per punt in six seasons (1968 through 1973) with the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers. First selection in fourth round of 1967 NFL draft by the New Orleans Saints (81st pick overall). |
NOTE: Hoop All-Americans selected in the NFL draft but not playing in the league include Kentucky's Wallace "Wah Wah" Jones as an E by the Chicago Bears in 7th round in 1949, San Francisco's K.C. Jones as an E by the Los Angeles Rams in 30th round in 1955, Ohio State's John Havlicek as a WR by the Cleveland Browns in 7th round in 1962, Kentucky's Pat Riley as a FL by the Cowboys in 11th round in 1967, Providence's Jimmy Walker as a WR by the New Orleans Saints as last pick in 17th and final round in 1967, West Virginia's Ron "Fritz" Williams as a DB by the Cowboys in 18th round in 1968, Indiana's Quinn Buckner as a DB by the Washington Redskins in 14th round in 1976 and Louisiana State's Al Green as a DB by the San Diego Chargers in 10th round in 1979.