Emlen Tunnell

Emlen Lewis Tunnell (March 29, 1924 – July 23, 1975), nicknamed "the Gremlin", was an American professional football player and coach. He was the first African American to play for the New York Giants and also the first to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Born and raised in the Philadelphia area, Tunnell played college football for the Toledo Rockets in 1942, the San Francisco Coast Guard Pilots in 1944, and the Iowa Hawkeyes in 1946 and 1947. He also served in the United States Coast Guard from 1943 to 1946. He received the Silver Lifesaving Medal for heroism in rescuing a shipmate from flames during a torpedo attack in 1944 and rescuing another shipmate who fell into the sea in 1946. He next played 14 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) as a safety and return specialist for the New York Giants (1948–1958) and the Green Bay Packers (1959–1961). He was selected as a first-team All-Pro six times and played in nine Pro Bowls. He was a member of NFL championship teams in 1956 and 1961. When he retired as a player, he held NFL career records for interceptions with 79, interception return yards with 1,282, punt returns (258), and punt return yards (2,209). He is widely considered one of the greatest undrafted players in NFL history. After retiring as a player, Tunnell served as a special assistant coach and defensive backs coach for the New York Giants from 1963 to 1974. In addition to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he was named to the NFL 1950s All-Decade Team and the all-time All-Pro team, and was ranked number 70 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.