George Taliaferro

NFL player


DateOfBirth=Birth date and age|1927|1|8|mf=y
Birthplace=Gates, Tennessee, United States
DateOfDeath=
DraftedYear=1949
DraftedRound=13 / Pick 129
(By the Chicago Bears)
Position=HB, QB
ProBowls=1951, 1952, 1953
College=Indiana
NFL=TAL407039
DatabaseFootball=TALIAGEO01
PFR=TaliGe00
years=1949
1950-1951
1952
1953-1954
1955
teams=Los Angeles Dons (AAFC)
New York Yanks
Dallas Texans
Baltimore Colts
Philadelphia Eagles
CollegeHOF=40018

George Taliaferro (born January 8, 1927 in Gates, Tennessee) is a former professional American football player. He was the first African-American drafted by a National Football League team [http://www.profootballhof.com/history/general/african-americans.jsp] .

As the leading rusher and an All-American at Indiana University, he led the Hoosiers to their only undefeated Big Ten Conference championship. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1981.

Taliaferro, a halfback, quarterback, and punter, was picked by the Chicago Bears in the thirteenth round of the 1949 NFL draft but chose to play instead with the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference. He played with the Dons in 1949, then moved to the NFL, where he played with the New York Yanks 1950-51, Dallas Texans 1952, Baltimore Colts 1953-54, and Philadelphia Eagles 1955. He went to the Pro Bowl in 1951, 1952, and 1953. Taliaferro was also a member of Kappa Alpha Psi.

He now resides in Bloomington, Indiana.

External links

* [http://www.iupress.indiana.edu/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=41771 Taliaferro: Breaking Barriers from the NFL Draft to the Ivory Tower] by Dawn Knight