Les Richter Inducted Into Pro Football Hall of Fame Today

Later generations knewthe late Les Richteras head honcho at Riverside Raceway, financial partner in the International Race of Champions (IROC) series and lastly, VP, Competition for NASCAR. But first and foremost he was a stellar football player who today will be inducted into the Professional Football Hall of Fame. Richter, a politician, replaced Bill Gazaway, a racer, as NASCAR's competition head and I didn't always see eye to eye with him and we traded a few barbs. However, his football credentials are amazing. If you never met Les in person let me tell you this, when he shook your hand in his vice grip, your hand literally disappeared in that big hamhock-like hand of his.

Here's a few stats gleaned fom the AP wire story on this year's inductees:

Les played pro ball from 1954-1962. The LA Rams traded 11 players to get him, the second largest tradeever for one football player. In nine seasons, Richter made the Pro Bowl eight times. In addition to being a devastating linebacker, he occassionally played on the offensive line and was also the Rams' kicker, leading the team in scoring twice and interceptions once.

On a personal note, one of the most interesting reunions I ever saw took place in the Richmond media center in the early 90s between old foes Richter and legendary Hall of Fame receiver Bobby Mitchell. Many current and former Washing Redskins players used to frequent the Richmond races and Mitchell, long retired had been coming for years. Mitchell was the first African American player on the Redskins roster. The team was the last in the NFL to integrate. When Mitchell saw Richter in the Richmond media center he became very animated and asked all the press corps to come over to he and Richter for a minute. "Folks," he said, "Les Richter was the hardest hitting player in pro football. The first time he hit me, I thought I'd turned white!" That got one of the biggest laughs I've ever heard in a media center as the two former players genuinely embraced at the prospect of having seen each other again years after their on-field skirmishes.We ought to be proud that one of our own is getting a very unique and well deserved posthumous honor today.

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"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:02:07PM

These 2 photos and the writeup below come from the Pro Football Hall of Fame website:

Linebacker Les Richter was the second player selected overall in the 1952 NFL Draft by the New York Yanks. Two days later, the franchise folded and was sold back to the NFL. Shortly thereafter the assets of the club, including the signing rights to Richter, were granted to the expansion Dallas Texans. The Los Angeles Rams dealt 11 players to the Texans to obtain the All-American from California. Los Angeles had to wait two years while Richter served in the military. When he returned he signed with the Rams and embarked on a nine-season career that earned him the reputation as one of the best linebackers of his era. He was especially known for his rugged and punishing style of play. Richter was selected to eight straight Pro Bowls. The only time he did not receive the honor was in his final season in 1962. He was also named a first- or second-team All-NFL each season during a six-year span from 1955 to 1960. Aside from his play at linebacker, Richter also saw some time at center and handled the Rams placekicking duties early in his career. He received much attention in 1955 for his play on defense as well as clutch placekicking that helped the Rams to an 8-3-1 record to win the NFL Western Division crown and a berth in the championship game. He led the Rams in scoring in 1955 and 1956. In all, he totaled 193 points off of 29 field goals and 106 extra points during his career. Richter recorded 16 career interceptions which he returned for 206 yards. Twice he had four picks in a season (1957 and 1961) and was the Rams leading interceptor in 1957. Richter battled through various injuries but never missed a game during his 112-game NFL career. In fact, early in the 1961 season he suffered a broken cheekbone during a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played through the injury not initially knowing it was broken. He had a protective guard added to his helmet and completed the season even though he broke his cheekbone again five weeks later. Richter passed away on June 12, 2010 at the age of 79.


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"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"