TWO MORE GONE

A pair of Hall of Famers, NFL great Floyd Little and NBA star Paul Westphal, die.

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1942-2021

Floyd Little, the great running back who starred at Syracuse and for the Denver Broncos, has died. He was 78.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame said he died Friday night at his home in Nevada. No cause was given.

“Floyd Little was not only a Hall of Fame running back, he was a Hall of Fame person,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said. “Faith, family and football were the pillars of his life.”

Little was a three-time All-american at Syracuse, where he wore No. 44 like Jim Brown and Ernie Davis before him. From 1964-66, he ran for 2,704 yards and 46 touchdowns.

A native of New Haven, Conn., he was the sixth overall pick in the 1967 AFL-NFL Draft. He played nine seasons in Denver, where he earned the nickname “The Franchise” because his signing was credited with keeping the team from relocating and helped persuade voters to approve funds for the old, iconic Mile High Stadium, which has since been replaced by Empower Field at Mile High.

“I know when I got there the talk was about the team moving to Chicago or Birmingham,” Little told The Associated Press in an interview in 2009. “So, I supposedly saved the franchise, and I think (former team spokesman) Jim Saccomano gave me that nickname. It’s been a part of my name ever since.”

Little was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010. A five-time Pro Bowler, Little led the NFL in rushing in 1971 with 1,133 yards and in touchdown runs in 1973 with 12. He also was one of the league’s best kick returners, leading the AFL in punt returns as a rookie in 1967.

During his nine-year pro career, Little rushed for 6,323 yards and 43 touchdowns and caught 215 passes for 2,418 yards and nine TDS. He had the most all-purpose yards in pro football and ranked second only to O.J. Simpson in yards rushing over his career.

After a three-decade wait, Little made it into Canton in 2010. He told the AP when he was nominated by the hall’s senior committee that he had given up hope of ever making it into the Hall of Fame.

“I was running out of guys who had seen me play,” said Little, whose career in Denver spanned the years 196775, lean times in the former AFL franchise’s history. “The people that had seen me play were starting to fade off and retire. All these guys were no longer there, so who’s going to talk about Floyd Little? Nobody. I thought I’d just fallen through the cracks never to be seen or heard from again.”

He was never forgotten in Denver, where the late team owner Pat Bowlen once hailed Little’s “immeasurable contributions to this franchise and the NFL.”

Little was a vibrant presence at Broncos reunions and events over the years.

During his long wait for enshrinement, Little said he was regularly approached by fans wanting him to settle a bet: Which year did he go into the Hall of Fame?

“And I have to tell them I’m not in the Hall of Fame and I’ve never even been nominated,” Little said in the months before his selection on Feb. 6, 2010.