Pro Football Hall’s NFL Awards of Excellence pulls Sherman Lewis’ trailblazing career out of shadows

PHOTO (Courtesy Pro Football Hall of Fame): Sherman Lewis with his NFL Awards of Excellence trophy presented on June 29 at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio). Duffy is still establishing milestones Visit my website homepage, TomShanahan.Report By TOM SHANAHAN Sherman Lewis established himself as a true 1960s pioneer of college football integration at Michigan State, but a step toward writing his name back into history takes place this week thanks to the Pro Football…

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The Rooney Rule needs a Schottenheimer addendum

By TOM SHANAHAN Pro Football Hall of Famers Bill Walsh of the San Francisco 49ers and Chuck Noll of the Pittsburgh Steelers receive the lion’s share of credit among NFL coaches for having provided Black coaching opportunities. And rightly so. The NFL, left on its own, moved at a glacial pace. It needed to be prodded. When Jimmy Raye was hired in 1977 by then-49ers head coach Ken Meyer, there were only seven other Black assistants in a…

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