Lance Alworth

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Lance Alworth
Date of birth	August 3, 1940 (age 66)
Place of birth	Houston, Texas
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight	184 lb (84 kg)
Position(s)	Flanker
College	Arkansas
NFL Draft	1962 / Round 1/ Pick 8
AFL Draft	1962 / Round 2/ Pick 9
Career Highlights
Pro Bowls	AFL All-Star 7 times
Awards	1963 UPI AFL MVP
Honors	All-Time All-AFL Team NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, Chargers Hall of Fame, College Football HOF
Retired #s	San Diego Chargers #19
Stats
Statistics	Pro Football Reference CBS.com DatabaseFootball
Team(s)
1962-1969 1970 1971-1972	AFL San Diego Chargers NFL San Diego Chargers NFL Dallas Cowboys
College Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1978

Lance Dwight Alworth (born August 3, 1940 in Houston, Texas) is a former American football wide receiver. He is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

At the University of Arkansas, the six-foot (1.83 m), 180-pound (82 kg) Alworth was a running back who led all colleges in punt return yardage in 1960 and 1961. He also was a track star: running the 100 and 220 yard dashes (9.6 seconds and 21.3 seconds) and long jump. He is a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity.

The American Football League's San Diego Chargers drafted Alworth in the second round of the 1962 AFL draft and signed him after a bidding war with the NFL's San Francisco 49ers. The Chargers moved Alworth to wide receiver. His slender build, speed, grace, and leaping ability earned him the nickname "Bambi." He was an all-American Football League selection seven consecutive times, from 1963 through 1969; was the UPI's 1963 AFL Most Valuable Player; and is a member of the All-time All-AFL Team. Alworth scored on a 48-yard touchdown pass in the Chargers' 1963 AFL Championship Game victory over the Boston Patriots. In Alworth's 8 AFL seasons, he led the league in receiving yards and receptions 3 times.

He held records for the most consecutive games with a reception (96), the most games with 200 or more yards on receptions (5) and was the only receiver to average more than 100 yards a game in three consecutive seasons (1964–1966). Alworth formed a formidable tandem along with Chargers quarterback John Hadl, and is considered by many to be the best wide receiver in all of professional football during the 1960s. Alworth played his final two seasons (1971 and 1972) with the Dallas Cowboys, catching a touchdown pass for the team in Super Bowl VI, a 24-3 victory over the Miami Dolphins. Alworth would later call the two receptions he made in Super Bowl VI(one that converted a third and long and the other for the touchdown)the two most important catches of his career. He had all the statistics, but now he finally was a champion.

Alworth finished his 11 AFL/NFL seasons with 543 receptions for 10,266 yards. He also rushed for 129 yards, returned 29 punts for 309 yards, gained 216 yards on 10 kickoff returns, and scored 87 touchdowns (85 receiving and 2 rushing).

In 1972, he was inducted to the San Diego Hall of Champions' Breitbard Hall of Fame. In 1977, he was inducted in the Charters Hall of Fame. In 1978 he became the first San Diego Charger and the first player who had played in the AFL to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He chose to be presented at the Canton, Ohio ceremony by Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis, who had much to do with the success of the AFL.

Alworth's #19 is retired by the Chargers, only the second number ever retired by the team. In 1994, he was selected as a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team.

In 1999, he was ranked number 31 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, making him the highest-ranking Charger and the highest-ranking player to have spent more than one season in the AFL.

In a 2006 interview, Carolina Panthers wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson complained about the state of trash-talking in the NFL, and the ignorance of young players to the great history of the game. During the interview, rookie tailback DeAngelo Williams mocked Johnson, using his cell phone as if it was a microphone. Johnson asked Williams if he even knew who Lance Alworth was (it has been speculated Johnson wears #19 as an homage to the Hall of Famer), to which Williams replied yes, but then walked away quickly, leaving doubt as to whether he actually recognized the name.

[edit] See also

Other American Football League players

[edit] External links

Alworth's Pro Football Hall of Fame page

Breitbard Hall of Fame bio

Preceded by Len Dawson & Cookie Gilchrist	American Football League MVP 1963 with Clem Daniels Tobin Rote	Succeeded by Gino Cappelletti

American Football League \| All-Time Team
Joe Namath \| Clem Daniels \| Paul Lowe \| Lance Alworth \| Cookie Gilchrist* \| Don Maynard \| Fred Arbanas \| Jim Otto \| Ed Budde \| Billy Shaw \| Ron Mix \| Jim Tyrer \| George Blanda \| Nick Buoniconti \| Bobby Bell \| George Webster \| Johnny Robinson \| George Saimes \| Willie Brown \| Dave Grayson \| Houston Antwine \| Tom Sestak \| Jerry Mays \| Gerry Philbin \| Jerrel Wilson \|