This small Northeastern Ohio city will turn into the epicenter of professional football for the enshrinement of the latest class of greats into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at 7 p.m. Saturday in an event to be televised on NFL Network and ESPN2.
The city was the birthplace of the NFL inside a car dealership in downtown Canton on Sept. 17, 1920. One of the key attendees was the great Jim Thorpe.
A federal office building stands on the site of the car dealership today.
“This is a great weekend, which I told the Hall of Famers (Friday), “ NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said. “We have a great new class. But it’s also a sign the NFL season is starting soon and that’s exciting for all of us.”
The class of inductees has some deep Georgia roots this year.
In addition to former Falcons defensive end Claude Humphrey, Oakland punter Ray Guy, a native of Swainsboro who played in high school in Thomson, is set to become the first punter enshrined.
Other inductees include cornerback Aeneas Williams (Arizona Cardinals/St. Louis Rams), defensive end Michael Strahan (New York Giants), wide receiver Andre Reed (Buffalo Bills/Washington Redskins), offensive tackle Walter Reed (Seattle Seahawks) and linebacker Derrick Brooks (Tampa Bay Buccaneers).
Humphrey will be the first Falcons player who played most of his career with the franchise to be enshrined. He’s set to be the second player to speak during the ceremony.
Humphrey will be presented by his daughter, Cheyenne Humphrey-Robinson, who becomes just the third daughter of a player to serve as a presenter. Claudia Humphrey, his other daughter, has helped as the organizer for the family.
“It’s well-deserved for Claude and his family and really our Atlanta Falcons family,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “It’s quite an honor to have one of our early-on Atlanta Falcons going into the Hall of Fame.”
Humphrey, 70, the Falcons’ all-time sack leader, has been credited with 122 sacks.
It was a long wait for Humphrey, who retired in 1981. He was a finalist in 2003, 2005 and 2006. He fell short in 2009 as a senior candidate, before being presented again by the seniors committee in February.
“He was a guy who should have been in there the first time he ever was brought up,” said Gil Brandt, a former personnel executive for the Dallas Cowboys who scouted Humphrey when he was coming out of Tennessee State in 1968.
Humphrey was the third player selected in the 1968 draft, by the Falcons.
He had stellar career terrorizing offensive tackles and quarterbacks. He went on to become a six-time Pro Bowler and was named first-team All-Pro five times.
While he was clearly a star, the Falcons were perennial losers. They managed only three winning seasons during his 11 seasons with the team. He was an integral part of the “Grits Blitz,” the Falcons’ defense that still holds the record for fewest points allowed in a 14-game season, with 129.
“He was awesome,” said Jerry Glanville, the architect of the defense. “I put Claude over the tight end on run downs. No tight end, at that time, ever had an assignment where he had to block the defensive end. They were only blocking linebackers.
“These tight ends would break the huddle and there was Claude standing there, bow-legged, pigeon-toed, hands down to his knees, a 32-inch waist and weighing 285. We led the National Football League and broke the record because you could not run to the tight end side.”
Guy, 64, also was a senior-committee candidate. It’s been 22 years since he retired.
Guy, at 6-foot-3, 195 pounds, played safety at Southern Mississippi. In baseball, he was a good enough pitcher to be drafted by the Braves, Cincinnati Reds and Houston Astros.
When Guy reached the NFL, he redefined the punter position, while also running wide receiver routes in practice and serving as the team’s emergency quarterback.
Guy, who was a finalist seven times, averaged 42.4 yards punting over 14 seasons and helped the Raiders earn three Super Bowl titles.
He will be presented by John Madden.
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