For Immediate Release           
                                                  

Hall of Fame Presenters Named

CANTON, OH – Almost immediately after receiving the good news of their election, each of the newest members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, turn their attention to who they will ask to serve as their presenter at the annual enshrinement ceremony in Canton, Ohio.  The presenters chosen by this year’s enshrinees – Marcus Allen, Elvin Bethea, Joe DeLamielleure, James Lofton, and Hank Stram – each played a significant role in their lives and careers.  Their choices include a parent, college coach, sportswriter, son, and a Hall of Fame quarterback.

Former Los Angeles Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs running back Marcus Allen wasted no time in declaring his choice.  “I want my dad to be a part of a major moment like this,” he stated during the press conference announcing his election the day before Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego, California.  “Especially in a time when there are so many fractured families in the black community, I want people to know that my father was there for me every step of the way.”  Harold “Red” Allen is just the third father to serve as a presenter.  Ronnie Lott and John Hannah also chose their fathers.

Defensive end Elvin Bethea played 16 years in the pros with the Houston Oilers.  The man he credits with much of his success is former North Carolina A&T coach Hornsby Howell.  “Coach Howell was the guy that got me ready for where I am,” said Bethea, the first Aggie to be voted into the Hall.  “From day one, when he was a defensive line coach at A&T, he was the guy that instilled in me all the things it takes to be a college athlete and a determined athlete.”  Hornsby is the 16th college coach to present a former player. 

Guard Joe DeLamielleure, who distinguished himself with the Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns, has selected the recently retired Buffalo News sports writer/columnist Larry Felser.  “Although I didn’t always agree with what he said, Larry was always honest and fair,” DeLamielleure said.  “Plus he’s so proud of his children and grandchildren, I thought it’d be nice for them to see their father and grandfather recognized during the ceremony in Canton.”  Felser, the sixth sportswriter so honored served on the Hall of Fame’s Board of Selectors from 1968 through 2002.

James Lofton, like Allen, choice a family member.  The star receiver, who spent the majority of his playing years with the Green Bay Packers and the Bills, has turned to David Lofton, the oldest of his three children, to introduce him.  “He’s a lot like I am – he’s pretty reserved,” the senior Lofton explained.  “So when I asked him, he said, ‘Yes.’  Then, he paused for a couple of seconds and said, ‘I was hoping you would ask me.”  David is a freshman at Stanford University and is the eighth son to presenter a father.

Hank Stram is no stranger to the Hall of Fame stage.  Four times he’s served as a presenter for one of his former players, including Lenny Dawson in 1987.  This year, however, the tables are turned, as he has asked Dawson to do the honors.  The Stram-Dawson relationship goes back to the mid-1950s when both were at Purdue; Lenny as a strong-armed passer and Hank as a coach.  Lenny, after five seasons in the NFL rejoined Stram in 1962 as quarterback of the AFL’s Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs.  “If I hadn’t known Lenny personally, and believed in his abilities,” Hank once admitted, “I might not have signed him.”

This year’s Enshrinement Ceremony will be held on Sunday, August 3 in Canton’s Fawcett Stadium, located just across the street from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.