Floyd Little's pro football career ended after the 1975 season, and his Hall of Fame eligibility began in 1980. It took 30 years for him to finally have his name enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Although DeBorah Little was not there for his career, she was there for his Hall of Fame journey. This is the final part of Broncos Wire's interview with DeBorah.
When asked about her favorite memory from Floyd Little's career or life, DeBorah didn't hesitate. "I think a favorite story of Floyd's life is how humble he was," she said. "Floyd retired from the Broncos in 1975, and all these years later, he was not inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, even though he was the seventh leading rusher in the NFL (at the time). Numbers 1-6 were in the Hall of Fame, and eight, nine and 10 were in the Hall of Fame, and they went right past Floyd because he had never played in the Super Bowl. He was hurt by that; he was hurt for a long, long time.
"He's a very humble man. But when we got that call in late 2009 with (the Hall of Fame) telling (Floyd) that he had been nominated and was on the ballot to be inducted... when we hung up the phone, Floyd got out of bed -- because it was early in the morning and we were living in Seattle -- and he literally danced around that room. He had tears in his eyes. He was overjoyed. He was only nominated. He wasn't elected to go in yet. He finally got an official nomination that he was on the ballot finally, and he danced, and he kind of cried and he called his family, his kids, his sisters and he was telling them about it.
"I'm not Floyd's first wife. I'm the second wife; I'm 21 years younger than Floyd, but to watch my amazing husband express the kind of joy where he got up on the bed, and he danced around the bedroom when he was nominated, and he was overjoyed. We partied and celebrated, and he called everybody, and he tried to maintain his nerve, and it was the funniest thing: he would tell (friends and loved ones about his nomination) and he would hang up and he'd have to gather himself. And his reaction to that after so many years; that, that is one of my favorite because I was a witness to it. I watched a very, very humble man express in the privacy of our home, his overwhelmed joy that finally he was being recognized for his greatness. He did not have a bad attitude, he wasn't cocky. He wasn't, 'well, it's about doggone time!' That was not him at all. That was not him at all. Of all the stories I could potentially think of, that's a moment that comes to me because it brings tears to my eyes; about how incredibly great he was, how gracious he was, how humble he was and how overjoyed he was when he finally, after so many years got the recognition (he deserved after 30 years of waiting).
"He was overlooked for far too long. But that's DeBorah speaking," she joked. "Floyd would never say that."
DeBorah was also present when Floyd eventually received the news of his official induction at the 2009 NFL Honors in Florida, as part of the Hall of Fame class of 2010. "We (Floyd, myself, his kids and nephew) decide to go into the green room (of the NFL Honors) to hear the announcement -- because you could wait outside, so that if you don't go, you could just leave -- but we went inside, and Floyd and his son Marc were joking. People were coming in and celebrating Floyd and the nomination, and they basically joke, they said, 'let me tell you what, if they don't induct him to go (into the Hall), we can burn this mother down. We gotta burn it down, burn it down.'
"We cracked up for a minute. I was like, 'Oh, that's kind of scary. What the hell, are they serious?' because we are here in full force with the family. When he went in, when they called his name, he was sitting down and he literally rolled out of that chair and fell on the ground in that green room and just rolled over. We jumped up and partied. But there were tears in his eyes and he said, 'OK, no flames today, no flames today.'
"It was overwhelming, just (as it is) for every football player. There are thousands of football players who played the pros, but there's only like 300 and something Hall of Famers, and to be among the best, know that you're among the best. To know that you are called 'The Franchise,' because you saved this football franchise. You were a integral part of saving this football franchise in Denver. They built a team around you, and then you retire and that's the end of your identity as a Bronco, that's the end of your accolades. The Hall of Fame, it was one of the last, the highest recognitions that he could've received, and he should've had it so many years earlier. Let me just let be very, very sure that you knew he was such an amazingly humble guy. Even though his heart was broken because he was overlooked year after year, after year; and Tom Mackie did 44 reasons why Floyd should be in the Hall of Fame and Jim Gray, the great a sports commentator also was epic on behalf of Floyd; Floyd was his hero. Year after year, you are not going in but Floyd was overwhelmed with joy, and he rode around on the floor, and then they decided not to burn the building down."
Little was presented for the Hall of Fame by his son, Marc, in the Hall of Fame class of 2010. You can read his enshrinement speech on the Hall of Fame's website.
Floyd Little's importance and legacy as a member of the Denver Broncos cannot be overlooked. The franchise stands in Denver today in large part because of the greatness of Floyd Little. Through Foundation 44: The Legacy of Floyd Little, DeBorah Little is making good on her promise to "not let people forget him easily."
