Nebraska is retiring the jersey numbers of eight former Husker greats, the team announced Wednesday.
Guy Chamberlin, Ed Weir, Clarence Swanson, George Sauer, Sam Francis, Forrest Behm, Bobby Reynolds and Wayne Meylan – all members
of the College Football Hall of Fame – will have their names and numbers added to the display on the façade of the North Stadium and honored before the Huskers open their 2017 season against Arkansas State on Sep. 2.
“This is a fitting recognition for the greatest players of the first 75
years of Cornhusker football,” athletic director Shawn
Eichorst said in a release. “These men were at the pinnacle of the sport, earning
induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. They are deserving of
their names being placed alongside our other all-time greats at the top
of the North Stadium. We will be recognizing the 125th Anniversary of
the N-Club at the season opener against Arkansas State, making this the
right time to honor this group of legendary players.”
The players’ uniform numbers will continue to be used, but their names will join a list of 17 other Husker greats with retired jerseys.
Chamberlin earned first team All-America honors as an end in 1915. Swanson (No. 1) earned All-America and All-Missouri Valley Conference honors for the Cornhuskers in 1921. After his playing days were done, Swanson served as a Regent on the Board of Regents and had a hand in the hiring of coach Bob Devaney in 1962.
Weir (No. 35) was Nebraska’s first two-time All-American, earning first-team honors as a tackle in 1924 and again in 1925. The outdoor track was also dedicated to him in 1974. Sauer (No. 25) was a first-team All-American as a fullback in 1933. In three seasons, Sauer had a diverse set of stats. He ran for 1,570 yards, passed for more than 700 yards and also served as the team’s punter.
Francis (No. 38) finished second for the Heisman Trophy in 1936 and was a
first-team All-American as a fullback. He placed fourth in
the shot put at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin and was the 1937 NCAA
Shot Put champion. Francis was also the first overall pick in the 1937 draft. Behm (No. 33) earned first-team All-America honors as a tackle in 1940.
Reynolds (No. 12) was a first-team All-American as a sophomore running back in 1950 after setting a then-school season record with 1,342
yards and then-season record for touchdowns (22). Meylan (No. 66) was an All-American and Big Eight Conference Player of the Year in 1966 and again in 1967.
Derek is a newbie on the Hail Varsity staff covering Husker athletics. In college, he was best known as ‘that guy from Twitter.’ He has covered a Sugar Bowl, a tennis national championship and almost everything in between (except an NCAA men’s basketball tournament game… *tears*). In his spare time, he can be found arguing with literally anyone about sports.
