DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Bethune-Cookman University football great Larry Little has
been selected as one of 11 members to be inducted into the 2013 Black College
Football Hall of Fame class announced this week.
The newest members were selected from a list
of 35 finalists who had been determined earlier this year by the Black College
Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee comprised of journalists and former
football executives from around the country. Former inductees also submitted
their votes in an effort to determine who will join this elite group of
pioneers who have significantly impacted college football.
Larry Little, a former offensive lineman and coach at Bethune-Cookman
College (now University), played as an offensive guard for the Wildcats from
1963-66, eventually signing as an undrafted player in the National Football
League (NFL) following the 1967 NFL Draft. He also coached for the Wildcats
from 1983-91, later coaching at North Carolina Central University from 1993-98.
He led the Wildcats to two Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) titles in
1984 and '88, respectively.
As a player in the NFL,
Little played two seasons for the San Diego Chargers from 1967-68, before
moving on to the Miami Dolphins for the 1969 campaign. Following the 1969 playing
season, he would be named as an AFL All-Star, continuing his career with the
Dolphins through the 1980 season. His career stretched 183 total games,
including 157 starts along the offensive line, mainly at the guard position.
Little was a key
contributor to the success of the Dolphins' punishing running attack of the
early and mid-1970s, which featured Larry Csonka, Mercury Morris, Paul Warfield
and Jim Kiick. On December 16, 1993, Little was added to the Miami Dolphins
Honor Roll.
He was named as an
All-NFL First Team member from 1971 through 1975, and again in 1977. For three
consecutive years, Little was named the NFL Players Association's AFC Lineman
of the Year.
In 1999, he was ranked
number 79 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football
Players. He was a five-time Pro Bowl selection (1970, '72, '73, '74 and '75);
in addition to playing on two Super Bowl championship teams with the Dolphins
in Super Bowl VII and VIII.
In 2007, he was named
to the Florida High School Association All-Century Team which selected the Top
33 players in the 100 year history of high school football in the state of
Florida.
The crowning
achievement of his career might have been being inducted into the Pro Football
Hall of Fame (1993 class) in Canton, Ohio, as well as being inducted into the
first Bethune-Cookman University Athletic Hall of Fame class.
| Name of Inductee |
Institution (Years) |
| Elvin Bethea |
North Carolina A&T (1964-67) |
| Charles Brackins |
Prairie View A&M (1951-54) |
| Joe Gilliam, Jr. |
Tennessee State (1968-71) |
| Ken Houston |
Prairie View A&M (1964-67 |
| Charles Joiner |
Grambling State (1965-68 |
| Ed "Too Tall" Jones |
Tennessee State (1970-73) |
| Larry Little |
Bethune-Cookman (1963-66) |
| Shannon Sharpe |
Savannah State (1986-89) |
| Jackie Slater |
Jackson State (1973-76) |
| John "Big John" Merritt |
Tennessee State (1973-76) |
| Charlie Neal |
Long time commentator for Black College Football |
The inductees will be
honored February 16, 2013 at the Loews Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia at the Black
College Football Hall of Fame's Fourth Annual Enshrinement Ceremony presented
by the Atlanta Falcons. The NFL Network's Steve Wyche will serve as Master of
Ceremonies for the Enshrinement Ceremony. For more information please visit www.blackcollegefootballhof.org.
For all
the latest information on the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats, follow the official
Twitter feed, @BCUathletics, or "Like Us" on Facebook at Bethune-Cookman Athletics.
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