Floyd Little

Floyd Douglas Little (born July 4, 1942) is a Pro Football Hall of Fame running back, and was a three-time American football All-American running back at Syracuse University. In 1967 he was the 6th selection of the first common AFL-NFL draft. He was the first ever first-round draft pick to sign with the American Football League's Denver Broncos where he was known simply as "The Franchise."

Syracuse
Little was the only three time All-America running back to compete for the Syracuse University Orange.

Professional career
Little led American Professional Football in rushing for the six-year period from 1968 to 1973. He retired as the 7th leading rusher in Professional Football history with 6,323 yards rushing and 54 touchdowns. As a Denver Broncos, Little was team captain in his rookie season and in his final season.

Little was one of the first players selected for the Broncos' Ring of Fame in 1984. He was the first Bronco to win the rushing title in the new AFC in 1970 with 901 yards and the following year he became the first Bronco to eclipse 1,000 yards, gaining 1,133 to lead the NFL. Little was the first player to lead his conference in rushing for a last place team and the 13th player ever in professional football to rush for at least 1,000 yards in one season. He was an American Football League All-Star in 1968, named first-team "All-AFL" in 1969, and made the AFC-NFC Pro Bowl in 1970, 1971 and 1973. At 5'10" and 195 pounds, Little was the smallest back to lead the league in rushing since World War II. He led the league in combined yards in 1967 & 68 and was the only player to return punts for TDs in both seasons. From 1968 to 1973 he led the NFL in Rushing and Yards from Scrimmage (rushing and receiving).

In 2009 Little was a finalist for induction into the Hall of Fame. He was voted in on February 6, 2010, his induction took place in Canton, OH on August 7, 2010. Little was the first Bronco to have his jersey number "44" retired.

Post football
Little coached at the University of California, Santa Barbara when the university briefly reinstated NCAA football in the mid-eighties. He briefly served as a Football analyst for NBC in the late 1970s, and was featured as a contestant on Family Feud in the mid-2000s. Little is a member of The Pigskin Club Of Washington, D.C. National Intercollegiate All-American Football Players Honor Roll. In 1983 he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

Other
Little finished 40th in his class of 140 at the University of Denver law school, from which he received his masters in legal administration degree in 1975. Little owned automobile dealerships in Denver, the Seattle area and Santa Barbara, though he is believed to be retired.

He graduated from Bordentown Military Institute (BMI), Bordentown, NJ, in 1963. He was portrayed in the 2008 Ernie Davis biopic The Express by Chadwick Boseman.

Awards and honors

 * His number 44 was retired by Syracuse in 2005.


 * On August 7, 2010, Little was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame alongside Jerry Rice, Emmitt Smith, Russ Grimm, Rickey Jackson, John Randle, and Dick LeBeau.


 * On September 15, 2011, the New Haven Athletic Center, billed as the largest scholastic athletics facility in New England, was renamed the Floyd Little Athletic Center.