[Buckskin86]

LeBeau nomination near and dear

All I can say is, finally.

After more than 50 years in the NFL, as a great _ not good, great _ player and then a game-changing defensive assistant coach, Dick LeBeau has been named a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame by the hall's seniors committee.

You probably know LeBeau's credentials by now. He has been getting a lot of publicity since February, when the Steelers won their second Super Bowl in four years with LeBeau as their defensive coordinator.

You've probably read of his days as a standout halfback/defensive back at Ohio State, and his two touchdowns against Michigan in 1957 as the Buckeyes went on to win a national title.

Maybe you've heard that he played 14 years as a cornerback, mostly for the Detroit Lions, and had 62 career interceptions, which still ranks seventh all-time even though he retired more than 35 years ago. He also played in something like 120 consecutive games, remarkable considering he is not a particularly big guy.

He went on to help invent the zone blitz scheme in the 1980s, which originally was designed to help maximize the talents of oversized Cincinnati Bengals safety David Fulcher.

LeBeau nomination near and dear (Blogging the Buckeyes)