Paul "Tank" Younger

Rushing yards:	3,640
Rushing average:	4.7
Receptions:	100
Receiving yards:	1,167
Total touchdowns:	35
	Stats at Pro Football Reference

Tank Younger
	Younger on a 1952 Bowman football card
No. 13, 11, 35
Position:	Fullback ; Halfback ; Linebacker
Personal information
Born:	June 25, 1928; Grambling, Louisiana, U.S.
Died:	September 15, 2001 (aged 73); Inglewood, California, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:	225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High school:	Grambling State U. Lab. (LA)
College:	Grambling State
Undrafted:	1949
Career history
	Los Angeles Rams (1949–1957); Pittsburgh Steelers (1958);
Career highlights and awards
	NFL champion (1951); First-team All-Pro (1951); 2× Second-team All-Pro (1952, 1954); 4× Pro Bowl (1951–1953, 1955);
Career NFL statistics
Rushing yards:
Rushing yards:	3,640
Rushing average:	4.7
Receptions:	100
Receiving yards:	1,167
Total touchdowns:	35
	Stats at Pro Football Reference
	College Football Hall of Fame

Paul Lawrence "Tank" Younger (June 25, 1928 – September 15, 2001) was an American professional football player who was a fullback, halfback, and linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) from 1949 through 1958. He played college football for Grambling State University, was the first NFL player from a predominantly black college, and was the first African American to become an NFL front-office administrator (scout and executive with the Rams until 1975).

College career

At Grambling, Younger started off as a tackle, but coach Eddie Robinson soon recognized that Younger's skills better suited him to play in the offensive backfield and at linebacker. Younger earned the nickname "Tank" by deftly plowing over countless would-be tacklers. In 1945, as a freshman, Younger led the nation in scoring with 25 touchdowns. In his junior year, he rushed for 1,207 yards and scored 18 touchdowns. Younger also completed 43 of 73 pass attempts, 11 for touchdowns. When he graduated in 1948, his NCAA career total of 60 touchdowns (scored mostly on punt returns and end-around plays) was an all-time record. After his senior season, he was voted Black College Football's Player of the Year and named a member of the 1948 Pittsburgh Courier All-America team.

Professional career

Undrafted by an NFL team, Younger signed with the Los Angeles Rams as a free agent and became the first NFL player from an HBCU.^[1] He was a member of the Rams renowned "Bull Elephant" backfield (with "Deacon" Dan Towler and Dick Hoerner), and he is the sixth-leading rusher in Rams history with 3,296 yards.

In his ten-year professional career with the Rams and the Pittsburgh Steelers, Younger was named to the Pro Bowl four times (1951, 1952, 1953, and 1955), rushed for 3640 yards on 770 carries, caught 100 passes for 1167 yards, scored 35 touchdowns (34 rushing, 1 receiving), and intercepted three passes on defense (also throwing an interception on his only NFL pass attempt). He was the first black player to play in an NFL All-Star Game and became the league's first black assistant general manager (with the San Diego Chargers, 1975–1987). In 2000, Younger was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. The Professional Football Researchers Association named Younger to the PRFA Hall of Very Good Class of 2007.^[2]

NFL career statistics

Legend
	Won the NFL championship
	Led the league
Bold	Career high

Regular season

Year	Team	Games		Rushing					Receiving
Year	Team	GP	GS	Att	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
1949	RAM	12	8	52	191	3.7	16	0	7	119	17.0	33	0
1950	RAM	12	12	8	28	3.5	6	2	0	0	0.0	0	0
1951	RAM	12	12	36	223	6.2	24	1	5	72	14.4	52	0
1952	RAM	12	12	63	331	5.3	38	1	12	73	6.1	12	0
1953	RAM	12	3	84	350	4.2	39	8	20	259	13.0	48	1
1954	RAM	8	8	91	610	6.7	75	8	8	76	9.5	21	0
1955	RAM	8	7	138	644	4.7	54	5	6	51	8.5	13	0
1956	RAM	12	10	114	518	4.5	33	3	18	268	14.9	54	0
1957	RAM	12	9	96	401	4.2	29	3	8	61	7.6	16	0
1958	PIT	12	8	88	344	3.9	36	3	16	188	11.8	51	0
		112	89	770	3,640	4.7	75	34	100	1,167	11.7	54	1

Playoffs

Year	Team	Games		Rushing					Receiving
Year	Team	GP	GS	Att	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
1949	RAM	1	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	1	6	6.0	6	0
1950	RAM	2	2	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0
1951	RAM	1	1	4	20	5.0	14	0	0	0	0.0	0	0
1952	RAM	1	1	4	14	3.5	13	0	0	0	0.0	0	0
		5	4	8	34	4.3	14	0	1	6	6.0	6	0

References

^ Atwood, Gretchen (September 6, 2016). Lost Champions: Four Men, Two Teams, and the Breaking of Pro Football's Color Line. New York: Bloomsbury USA. p. 12. ISBN 9781620406007. OCLC 956379043.
^ "Hall of Very Good Class of 2007". Archived from the original on July 7, 2018. Retrieved November 23, 2016.

External links

Paul "Tank" Younger at the College Football Hall of Fame
Career statistics from NFL.com · Pro Football Reference
Paul "Tank" Younger at Find a Grave

[1] Atwood, Gretchen (September 6, 2016). Lost Champions: Four Men, Two Teams, and the Breaking of Pro Football's Color Line. New York: Bloomsbury USA. p. 12. ISBN 9781620406007. OCLC 956379043.

[2] "Hall of Very Good Class of 2007". Archived from the original on July 7, 2018. Retrieved November 23, 2016.

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