Charley Harraway

Last updated

Charley Harraway
No. 31
Position: Running back
Personal information
Born: (1944-09-21) September 21, 1944 (age 79)
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school: Monterey (Monterey, California)
College: San Jose State
NFL draft: 1966  / Round:  18  / Pick: 273
AFL draft: 1966  / Round: 14 / Pick: 124
  (Kansas City Chiefs)
Career history
Career NFL statistics
Rushing yards:3,019
Average:3.7
Total touchdowns:27

Charles Edward Harraway, Jr. (born September 21, 1944) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for eight seasons with the Cleveland Browns and Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He also played one season in the World Football League, with the champion Birmingham Americans in 1974. He played college football for the San Jose State Spartans.

Contents

Early years

Born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Harraway's father was in the U.S. Army and he attended the American high school in Baumholder, West Germany, and graduated from Monterey High School in California in 1962. [1]

He played college football nearby at San Jose State University under head coaches Bob Titchenal and Harry Anderson and is a member of the Spartans' hall of fame. [2]

Playing career

NFL

Harraway was selected in the 18th round of the 1966 NFL draft by the Cleveland Browns, the 273rd overall pick. He was also taken in the 14th round of the AFL draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.

He signed with the NFL and played three seasons in Cleveland under head coach Blanton Collier; the Browns won the Century Division in 1967 and 1968 and went to the playoffs. Harraway was the Browns' second-leading rusher in 1968, but he was waived in September 1969 and claimed by the Redskins, [3] by Vince Lombardi in his only season as Washington head coach.

Harraway was paired in the backfield with Larry Brown, [4] and the Redskins made the playoffs three consecutive seasons starting in 1971 under head coach George Allen, including the NFC title in 1972 and a berth in Super Bowl VII.

WFL

Harraway played out his option in Washington in 1973 and signed for a significant salary increase with the Birmingham Americans of the World Football League in 1974, one of the few NFL starters to jump in the league's first season. [5] [6] [7] [8] The Americans won the first World Bowl by a point in early December, [9] but were less successful financially and folded in March 1975. [10] [11] [12]

His NFL rights were traded by Washington to the Miami Dolphins for veteran tight end Marv Fleming in 1975; [13] Harraway did not report, Fleming was waived in September, and both retired. [14]

After football

In 2012, Harraway resided in Sarasota, Florida, and showed early signs of Alzheimer's disease. [15]

Video

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References

  1. Leyde, Tom (February 1, 2016). "Monterey High celebrates its Super Bowl ties". Monterey Herald. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
  2. "Hall of Fame". San Jose State University Athletics. Archived from the original on March 25, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
  3. Moran, Sheila (September 10, 1969). "Redskins claim Harraway; Ryan cut". Free Lance-Star. Fredericksburg, Virginia. Associated Press. p. 10.
  4. "Familiar faces face Browns". Toledo Blade. Ohio. Associated Press. December 15, 1971. p. 52.
  5. "Skins lose Harraway". Schenectady Gazette. New York. Associated Press. April 24, 1974. p. 39.
  6. "Harraway sees move as 'the will of God'". Boca Raton News. UPI. April 26, 1974. p. 11.
  7. "Harraway: Americans' running back scores on another front". Lakeland Ledger. Florida. (Washington Post). September 5, 1974. p. 3B.
  8. Lacy, Sam (April 27, 1976). "Harraway may rejoin Skins". Baltimore Afro-American. p. 14.
  9. Browning, Al (December 6, 1974). "Birmingham stops Florida for first World Bowl title". Tuscaloosa News. Alabama. p. 13.
  10. "Disenchanted Americans agree to play World Bowl". The Day. New London, Connecticut. Associated Press. December 4, 1974. p. 35.
  11. "Americans won but lost their shirts". Ottawa Citizen. Canada. Associated Press. December 7, 1974. p. 26.
  12. "Birmingham team state of confusion". Gadsden Times. Alabama. Associated Press. March 13, 1975. p. 17.
  13. "Fleming trade may be called off". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. July 24, 1975. p. 32.
  14. "Harraway announces retirement". St. Petersburg Times. Florida. August 6, 1975. p. 2C.
  15. Mangels, John (May 27, 2012). "Former Browns player Charley Harraway paying a price for long-ago football collisions". Cleveland Plain Dealer. Retrieved March 11, 2016.