Dante Lavelli

Dante Lavelli

Date of birth:	February 23, 1923(1923-02-23)
Place of birth:	Hudson, Ohio
Date of death:	January 20, 2009(2009-01-20) (aged 85)
Place of death:	Cleveland, Ohio
Career information
Position(s):	End
College:	Ohio State
Organizations
As player:
1946-1956	Cleveland Browns
Career highlights and awards
Pro Bowls:	1951, 1953, 1954
Awards:	All-AAFC, 1946-1947
Honors:	NFL 1940s All-Decade Team
Playing stats at DatabaseFootball.com
Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1975

Dante Bert Joseph "Gluefingers" Lavelli (February 23, 1923 – January 20, 2009) was an American football end (wide receiver) who played for the Cleveland Browns in the All-America Football Conference and National Football League from 1946 to 1956.^[1] He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1975.

High school career

Lavelli played football for Hudson High School in Hudson, Ohio. He graduated in 1941. Hudson High's current stadium is named in honor of him.

College career

Lavelli attended the Ohio State University, where the Browns' first coach Paul Brown was then coaching, but played just three games before a knee injury ended his season. He joined the U.S. Army before the start of the 1943 season to fight in World War II. He landed at Omaha Beach, and was in Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge.^[2]

Professional career

Nicknamed "Gluefingers", Lavelli was an original member of the Browns franchise, where he starred alongside American football legends like Otto Graham, Lou Groza and Marion Motley. Lavelli quickly became Graham's top passing target and led the AAFC in receiving as a rookie, also catching the game-winning touchdown pass in the 1946 championship game.

He was part of four Browns championships from 1946 to 1949 in the AAFC and three more NFL championships in 1950, 1954 and 1955. During the team's inaugural year in the NFL in 1950, Lavelli caught 11 passes in the NFL Championship game against the Los Angeles Rams.

Overall in his career, Lavelli caught 386 passes for 6,488 yards and 62 touchdowns in 11 seasons.

Post football life

Lavelli resided in the Cleveland suburb of Westlake with his wife Joy. He had three grown children: Lucinda, Edward and Lisa, as well as four grandchildren: Aaron, Danielle, Noah and Luke. After he retired from football, he went into the furniture business and ran a store known as Lavelli's Furniture in Rocky River, Ohio. He died in 2009 at the age of 85.^[3] Personal life. Dante Levelli sold cars during the off season of his professional career.

Death

On January 20, 2009 he died at age 85 at Fairview Hospital from complications of kidney and bladder infections as well as congestive heart failure.

References

1. ^ Dolgan, Bob (2009-01-20). "Browns legend Dante Lavelli, 85, passes away". The Plain Dealer. http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2009/01/browns_legend_dante_lavelli_85.html. Retrieved 2009-01-21. 
2. ^ Pluto, Terry (2009-01-24). "Lavelli caught everything, but his family insists they received the most". The Plain Dealer. http://www.cleveland.com/pluto/blog/index.ssf/2009/01/lavelli_caught_everything_but.html. Retrieved 2009-01-25. 
3. ^ "Browns Hall of Famer Dante Lavelli dies". WKYC. 2009-01-20. http://www.wkyc.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=105510. Retrieved 2009-01-20. 

External links

• Pro Football Hall of Fame bio
• Interview/Profile from ClevelandSeniors.com

Persondata
Name	Lavelli, Dante
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1923-02-23
Place of birth	Hudson, Ohio
Date of death	2009-01-20
Place of death	Cleveland, Ohio