Dick Lane

Richard Lane (April 16, 1928 – January 29, 2002), commonly known as Dick "Night Train" Lane, was an American football player. A native of Austin, Texas, he played professional football in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 years as a defensive back for the Los Angeles Rams (1952–1953), Chicago Cardinals (1954–1959), and Detroit Lions (1960–1965). As a rookie in 1952, Lane had 14 interceptions, a mark that remains an NFL record more than 65 years later. He played in the Pro Bowl seven times and was selected as a first-team All-NFL player seven times between 1956 and 1963. His 68 career interceptions ranked second in NFL history at the time of his retirement and still ranks fourth in NFL history. He was also known as one of the most ferocious tacklers in NFL history and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1974. He was also named to the NFL's all-time All-Pro team in 1969 and its 75th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1994. In 1999, he was ranked number 20 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. After retiring from professional football, Lane worked for the Detroit Lions in various administrative positions from 1966 to 1972 and then held assistant coaching positions at Southern University (1972) and Central State University (1973). For 17 years from 1975 to 1992, he was in charge of Detroit's Police Athletic League.