The Haggar Gold Jacket Report - Issue 15

The Haggar Gold Jacket Report is a weekly update on recent news surrounding the very select group of men who’ve earned a place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Class of 2005 enshrinee DAN MARINO has stayed extremely active following his playing career which ended after the 1999 season. Marino, who turned 50 last year, was announced as the new AARP’s “Men’s Life Ambassador” this past week.

“There’s a lot of life ahead of you and a lot of things to accomplish after 50. You have to take advantage of it,” said Marino this past Monday on CBS “This Morning.”

In this role, Marino will share his views and expertise on a variety of men’s interests including health, fitness, sports, lifestyle, entrepreneurship, aging and community service.

“At the end of the day, age is really just a number and I want to help people—no matter what life stage they’re in—realize that they can be healthy, stay fit, explore their interests and passions, and enjoy the many opportunities they have in life, in the years to come,” he commented.

The 2012 NFL Draft has begun and a former Pro Football Hall of Fame presenter is eligible and waiting to be selected by an NFL franchise.  Jared Green, who presented his father former Washington Redskins cornerback DARRELL GREEN for induction in 2008, has been preparing to follow his father’s footsteps his entire life.

“It’s a privilege being his son,” Jared said. “He was always responsible with the gifts that he was given and the notoriety that he had. I’m going to be responsible with the name I was given. I never wanted to be anything other than who I am.”

Jared, who played for the University of Virginia and Southern University, is bigger than his dad at 6-1, 193 pounds and rather than prevent players from catching passes like his dad, he catches them as a receiver. While there are a few differences between father and son one of their main similarities is speed. Jared runs the 40-yard dash in 4.32 seconds and is a major reason why NFL teams might draft the 23-year-old during the next six rounds.

“Jared’s a big kid and he can run,” an NFL scout said. “When you’re getting later in the draft, you’re looking for things that Jared has that you can’t coach: size, speed and he’s a great kid. He learns well and he’s got the bloodlines and he’s been around the game his whole life.”

Darrell is extremely proud of his only son and is looking forward to seeing him fulfill his dream.

“Jared’s a role model,” Darrell said “He’s a leader. He’s a moral kid, a sharp kid. If Jared was all about the pros, he would’ve left UVA a year earlier. But he can play. He’s got Green speed. He doesn’t have Green hands. He has great hands. He loves the game. I didn’t let him play until the ninth grade. My mama didn’t let me play until the 11th grade. I came to the NFL fresh and hungry. Jared’s fresh and hungry.”

Speaking of the draft; six Pro Football Hall of Famers are going to announce picks during the second- and third-rounds of the 2012 NFL Draft live from Radio City Music Hall in New York City tonight. The enshrinees scheduled to be on hand to make the announcements for their former clubs include two from the Class of 2012. WILLIE ROAF and DERMONTTI DAWSON, who are being enshrined this August, will announce the picks of the New Orleans Saints and the Pittsburgh Steelers respectively.

The other Hall of Famers set to make their former teams selections include ROGER WEHRLI for the Arizona Cardinals, BARRY SANDERS for the Detroit Lions, DWIGHT STEPHENSON for the Miami Dolphins and WILLIE BROWN for the Oakland Raiders.

On Thursday night Andrew Luck was selected by the Indianapolis Colts with the first overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft.  With that pick Luck became the 20th quarterback selected number one overall. While the choice by the Colts wasn’t a surprise what was revealed by Ancestry.com a few days before the draft may very well have been. The world's largest online family history resource claims to have discovered a link between Luck and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 1964 WILLIAM ROY “LINK” LYMAN.

The former Chicago Bears tackle, who also played for the Canton Bulldogs, Cleveland Bulldogs, and Frankford Yellowjackets, played on four NFL championship teams during his career from 1922-1934. He pioneered a more sophisticated style of defensive line play by sliding and shifting to confuse his opponents. Lyman was one of the most respected players of his era and one of the greatest players ever to play pro football.

Luck and Lyman are said to be related through their common ancestor John Lyman. An immigrant to America born in England in the early 1600s, John Lyman is Luck's 9th great-grandfather and Lyman's 7th great-grandfather, making the pair 8th cousins, twice removed.

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Links Related to this story:

HOF Bios: Willie Brown | Dermontti Dawson | Darrell Green | William Roy “Link” Lyman | Dan Marino | Willie Roaf | Barry Sanders | Dwight Stephenson | Roger Wehrli
More: Fathers & Sons who played pro football | 2012 NFL Draft | All-time list of NFL franchises

Archived:

Issue 14 (April 20) | Issue 13 (April 13) | Issue 12 (April, 6) | Issue 11 (Mar. 30) | Issue 10 (Mar. 23) | Issue 9 (Mar.16) | Issue 8 (Mar. 9) | Issue 7 (Mar. 2) | Issue 6 (Feb. 24) | Issue 5 (Feb. 17) | Issue 4 (Feb. 10) | Issue 3 (Feb. 3) |  Issue 2 (Jan. 27) | Issue 1 (Jan. 20)