 Creekmur at Pro Football Hall of Fame induction | |||||||||
| No. 76 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Offensive tackle | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1927-01-22)January 22, 1927 Hopelawn, New Jersey, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | July 5, 2009(2009-07-05) (aged 82) Tamarac, Florida, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 246 lb (112 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Woodbridge (Woodbridge, New Jersey) | ||||||||
| College | William & Mary (1944; 1947–1949) | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1948: 26th round, 243rd overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Louis Creekmur (January 22, 1927 – July 5, 2009) was an American professionalfootballoffensive tackle who played for 10 years from 1950 to 1959 with theDetroit Lions of theNational Football League (NFL). He was inducted into thePro Football Hall of Fame in 1996.
Creekmur played his first two seasons in the NFL as aguard. He appeared in every pre-season, regular-season, and post-season game played by the Lions from 1950 to 1958—a streak of 165 consecutive games. He played in eight consecutivePro Bowl games from 1950 to 1957 and was selected as anAll-Pro player eight consecutive years from 1951 to 1958. During Creekmur's tenure with the team, the Lions advanced to the NFL championship game four times and won the championship in 1952, 1953, and 1957.
Creekmur playedcollege football for theWilliam & Mary Indians in 1944, then from 1947 to 1949.
Creekmur was born in 1927 inHopelawn, New Jersey. He attendedWoodbridge High School inWoodbridge Township, New Jersey.[1]
Creekmur attended theCollege of William & Mary, though his college education was interrupted by U.S. Army service in 1945 and 1946.[2] He played for theWilliam & Mary Indians football team in 1944 and from 1947 to 1949.[3] He played for the #14-ranked1947 William & Mary team that lost toArkansas in the 1948Dixie Bowl, and in the 1949Delta Bowl, he returned an interception 70 yards to help the #17-ranked1948 William & Mary team defeatMissouri Valley Conference championOklahoma A&M by a 20–0 score.[4]
Creekmur was drafted by thePhiladelphia Eagles in the 26th round, 243rd overall pick, of the1948 NFL draft,[1] but continued playing college football in 1948 and 1949. He was acquired by theDetroit Lions prior to the1950 NFL season and spent his entire NFL career with the Lions.[5] Beginning with the 1950 season, Creekmur appeared in every pre-season, regular season, and post-season game played by the Lions from 1950 to 1958—a streak of 165 games.[6] He played through multiple injuries, including dislocated shoulders, knee injuries, and one whole season with a crushed sternum.[7]
Creekmur began his career with the Lions as an offensive guard for two years and then moved to the offensive tackle position, though he also played some on defense as well.[6] He was considered an "outstanding blocker" for Detroit teams that featured backfield starsBobby Layne andDoak Walker.[6] He played in eight consecutivePro Bowl games from 1950 to 1957 and was selected by theAssociated Press as a first-team All-Pro player six times in seven years from 1951 to 1954 and 1956–1957.[1] With Creekmur in the line, the Lions advanced to the NFL championship game four times and won the championship in 1952, 1953, and 1957.
During his rookie season, Creekmur was the victim of a highly publicized extortion attempt in which a "notorious hoodlum" schemed with others to falsely accuse him of sexual assault on a night club dancer.[8][9] Two individuals were later convicted after a trial in the matter.[10]
Near the end of the 1958 season, Creekmur, at age 31, announced that he would retire at the end of the season, ending his 168-game playing streak. The Lions held a "Lou Creekmur Day" for their December 14, 1958, game against theNew York Giants.[11] In October 1959, after the Lions lost their first four games, the Lions persuaded Creekmur to return to the club.[12] Creekmur appeared in the final eight games of the 1959 season.[1]
During his playing career, Creekmur worked a second job as the terminal manager for the Saginaw Transfer Company and made more money as terminal manager than he did as an All-Pro football player.[7]
After retiring from football, Creekmur worked for a time in the 1960s and 1970s forRyder Trucks as a director of labor relations and later as vice president of labor relations in Florida.[13][14]
Creek received numerous honors, including the following:
Creekmur died in 2009 at University Hospital inTamarac, Florida.[2][21] He was diagnosed post-mortem as having developedChronic traumatic encephalopathy following a 30-year decline of cognition.[22] He was one of at least 345NFL players to be diagnosed after death with this disease, which is caused by repeated hits to the head.[23][24]