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LSU has a sprinter/footballer named Trinton Holliday, who is 5-6. He's also only a 170 pounds. Obviously that doesn't matter as far as track goes but there are few guys who can make it at 170 pounds in big time football. Kick returner might work. Getting him the ball in space, might work.
Then there was Buddy Young all 5-5 of him, who was an NCAA 100 champ and a star running back in the NFL. He played from 47-55. Back then defenders weren't the monsters they are today however.
Then there was Howard Stevens out of Louisville who was a star, gaining over 1400 yards in a season. He was 5-5. He had a few good years as a Saint, mostly as a kick returner/WR.
When it comes to just sprinting I think of Ira Murchison and Mel Pender both WR holders in that 5-6 and shorter range.
The smallest player ever in the NFL was Jack "Soapy" Shapiro, who played back in 1929 for the Staten Island Stapleton's. He played in only one game, returning a punt for 12 yards was his NFL highlight. Believe it or not he was 5-1 119 pounds.
What's that about dynamite coming in small packages...ha!
Buddy Young
Claude "Buddy" Young was both one of the smallest and one of the biggest men in pro football history. Game programs said he was 5'4-1/2", but that was only measured on the outside.
Born in Chicago, January 5, 1926, into a fatherless family of nine children, Buddy grew up as a self-professed "smart punk." When his Englewood High School coach refused to let him play because he was too small, he switched to rival Phillips High and returned to score four TDs against Englewood. Still, the time at Englewood wasn't wasted for there he met his future wife.
At the University of Illinois, he tied Red Grange's school touchdown record while earning All-American recognition. After time spent in the Navy, he returned to lead the Illini to a 1947 Rose Bowl victory. Because he was married and needed the money, he left school to sign with the New York Yankees of the All-America Football Conference in 1947.
One of the first blacks to play pro football (after the "unofficial" ban from 1934 to 1945), Buddy experienced the humiliations of prejudice. When the Yankees first played in Baltimore, racists showed up at the stadium in blackface. But he always insisted that the worst prejudice he encountered was against his size.
Few believed that anyone so short and weighing only 172 pounds could last long with the pros, but Buddy had a track star's speed, waterbug elusiveness, and courage. Those added up to much more than any missing size.
Although the teams he played for were seldom in championship contention, Buddy kept them dangerous with his long runs. He could go all the way from scrimmage, with a pass, or after fielding a kick.
In 1953, when he joined the Colts, Buddy didn't know quite what to expect after his experience in Baltimore in '47. With his sense of humor and sparkling personality, he needn't have worried. Before the season ended, he was voted the Colts' most popular player by the fans. It was a landslide. When he hung up his cleats in 1956, the Colts retired his number 22. In 1966, Buddy joined the NFL staff as administrative assistant to the commissioner. At his death in 1983, he was Director of Player Relations for the league.
Then there was Buddy Young all 5-5 of him, who was an NCAA 100 champ and a star running back in the NFL. He played from 47-55. Back then defenders weren't the monsters they are today however.
Then there was Howard Stevens out of Louisville who was a star, gaining over 1400 yards in a season. He was 5-5. He had a few good years as a Saint, mostly as a kick returner/WR.
When it comes to just sprinting I think of Ira Murchison and Mel Pender both WR holders in that 5-6 and shorter range.
The smallest player ever in the NFL was Jack "Soapy" Shapiro, who played back in 1929 for the Staten Island Stapleton's. He played in only one game, returning a punt for 12 yards was his NFL highlight. Believe it or not he was 5-1 119 pounds.
What's that about dynamite coming in small packages...ha!
Buddy Young
Claude "Buddy" Young was both one of the smallest and one of the biggest men in pro football history. Game programs said he was 5'4-1/2", but that was only measured on the outside.
Born in Chicago, January 5, 1926, into a fatherless family of nine children, Buddy grew up as a self-professed "smart punk." When his Englewood High School coach refused to let him play because he was too small, he switched to rival Phillips High and returned to score four TDs against Englewood. Still, the time at Englewood wasn't wasted for there he met his future wife.
At the University of Illinois, he tied Red Grange's school touchdown record while earning All-American recognition. After time spent in the Navy, he returned to lead the Illini to a 1947 Rose Bowl victory. Because he was married and needed the money, he left school to sign with the New York Yankees of the All-America Football Conference in 1947.
One of the first blacks to play pro football (after the "unofficial" ban from 1934 to 1945), Buddy experienced the humiliations of prejudice. When the Yankees first played in Baltimore, racists showed up at the stadium in blackface. But he always insisted that the worst prejudice he encountered was against his size.
Few believed that anyone so short and weighing only 172 pounds could last long with the pros, but Buddy had a track star's speed, waterbug elusiveness, and courage. Those added up to much more than any missing size.
Although the teams he played for were seldom in championship contention, Buddy kept them dangerous with his long runs. He could go all the way from scrimmage, with a pass, or after fielding a kick.
In 1953, when he joined the Colts, Buddy didn't know quite what to expect after his experience in Baltimore in '47. With his sense of humor and sparkling personality, he needn't have worried. Before the season ended, he was voted the Colts' most popular player by the fans. It was a landslide. When he hung up his cleats in 1956, the Colts retired his number 22. In 1966, Buddy joined the NFL staff as administrative assistant to the commissioner. At his death in 1983, he was Director of Player Relations for the league.
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