Sam Huff was a Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker and a four-time Pro Bowler, as well as a popular player and announcer in Washington. He passed away on Saturday. He was 87 years old.
A lawyer for the Huff family – Deborah Matthews – told the Associated Press that he died of natural causes in Virginia.
Huff was born and raised in a West Virginia coal mining camp. He went to West Virginia University, and was an All-American offensive lineman for the Mountaineers’ football team. He was also the catcher for the baseball team.
He enjoyed an illustrious career on and off the field, with the Washington Redskins and the New York Giants.
New York Giant
The Giants selected Huff out of West Virginia in the third round of the 1956 NFL Draft. He also signed a deal with Cleveland to play professional baseball.
It is generally believed that Vince Lombardi convinced Huff to stick with the Giants and play football. Lombardi found a home for him at middle linebacker, and Huff took over the position during his rookie season. The Giants won the NFL championship in Huff’s first season.
He played eight seasons with the G-Men from 1956 to 1963 and was selected for the Pro Bowl four times. In eight seasons in New York, he logged 99 games and recorded 19 interceptions.
The ferocious linebacker participated in what is considered by some to be the “Greatest Game Ever Played.” The Giants suffered a 23-17 overtime loss in the 1958 championship game against the Baltimore Colts.
On Nov. 30, 1959, Huff became just the second NFL player to be on the cover of Time magazine (Bobby Layne was the first).
He was one of the first player’s with a “media presence.” He starred in a television show in 1960 called, “The Violent World of Sam Huff.” CBS News wired him up with microphones to pick up the sound of him playing football.
Washington Redskin
He played for Washington from 1964 to 1969. He stayed in Washington after retiring from the game, and became a legendary radio broadcaster.
He held that role for the team for more than 30 seasons. The triumvirate of Huff, Sonny Jurgensen and Frank Herzog were the men that voiced the Washington success years. Viewers would turn down the volume on their TV sets to hear the three on the radio instead.
Hall Of Fame president Jim Porter said in a news release, “The entire Pro Football Hall of Fame family mourns the passing of Sam Huff. He was an outstanding player on the gridiron and an even greater man off the field. Our thoughts and prayers are with Sam’s family during this difficult time. The Hall of Fame will forever guard his legacy. The Hall of Fame flag will be flown at half-staff in Sam’s memory.”
Huff’s Hall Of Fame biography quote sums up the football player and man perfectly:
“You play as hard and as tough as you can, but you play clean. We hit each other hard, sure. But this is a man’s game and any guy who doesn’t want to hit hard doesn’t belong in it.”
Rest in peace.
