Dick Hoerner

Lester Junior "Dick" Hoerner (July 25, 1922 – December 11, 2010) was an American professional football player who was a fullback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL) from 1947 to 1951. He played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes in 1942 and 1946. He helped lead the Rams to three consecutive NFL championship games from 1949 to 1951, played for the 1951 Los Angeles Rams team that won the 1951 NFL Championship Game, and was selected to play in the inaugural 1951 Pro Bowl. He was the Rams' all-time leading rusher at the end of his playing career with the team. He concluded his professional football career as a member of the Dallas Texans in 1952.

Iowa A native of Dubuque, Iowa, Hoerner was a state track champion while attending Dubuque High School. He also led Dubuque to Mississippi Valley Conference championships in 1939 and 1940 and was twice selected as an All-Iowa player. He enrolled at the University of Iowa in 1941 and played for the Iowa Hawkeyes football team as a sophomore in 1942. He ran 88 yards for a touchdown against Fritz Crisler's 1942 Michigan Wolverines. In May 1943, Hoerner was inducted into the U.S. Army. After missing three years due to war-time service, including service overseas in the field artillery, After he signed with the Rams, the Los Angeles Times touted his potential: "When you find a 6-foot, 4-inch, 220-pounder that can move, you have something. But when you run across one who is downright fast, can handle himself like a 160-pounder and can kick and pass to boot, they you have Lester (Dick) Hoerner, the Los Angeles Rams' great fullback prospect." As a rookie in 1947, he was sidelined by a broken foot in an October 1947 game against the Chicago Cardinals. In 1948, Hoerner was the Ram's leading rusher with 354 yards and average of 4.7 yards per carry that ranked 4th in the NFL. Hoerner also played linebacker for the Rams. In December 1948, the Los Angeles Times wrote that Hoerner was a "6 foot 4 inch speedster" and "a murderous line backer."

In June 1949, Hoerner signed a 1949 contract with the Rams. The Los Angeles Times reported that he was both the fastest man on the team and "by far the hardest hitting." He helped lead the Rams to the 1949 NFL Championship Game, led all fullbacks in rushing during the 1949 NFL season and ranked among the league's leaders in rushing yards (6th, 582 yards) and yards from scrimmage (7th, 795 yards). He also totaled 827 yards from scrimmage in 1950, with 381 rushing yards and 446 receiving yards. In November 1950, Frank Finch of the Los Angeles Times wrote: "Many stars have twinkled for the Rams this season, but none more brilliantly than Dick Hoerner. Off the field the 220-yard Ram fullback wears glasses, but on the field he wears a mean expression with a disposition to match." In the 1950 NFL Championship Game, Hoerner scored two touchdowns and accounted for 86 of the Rams' 106 rushing yards, but the Rams lost in a close game to the Cleveland Browns by the score of 30–28. After the 1950 season, the Los Angeles Times wrote that, although he had been dogged by injuries in 1947 and 1948, "the giant Hoerner has been probably the hardest running fullback in the league since."

In his final year with the Rams, Hoerner helped lead the 1951 Rams to the NFL championship as part of the Rams' famed "Bull Elephant" backfield along with Paul "Tank" Younger and "Deacon" Dan Towler.

After five seasons with the Rams, Hoerner was the team's all-time career leader with 2,020 rushing yards. The trade was described as "unquestionably the biggest shift of pigskin personnel in National Football League history." The Texans compiled a record of 1–11–0 in 1952, and Hoerner rushed for 162 yards and a career-low 2.9 yards per carry. However, Hoerner retired from football in July 1953 before appearing in any regular season games with the Lions.

NFL career statistics Legend Won the NFL championship Led the league Bold Career high

Regular season Year Team Games Rushing Receiving GP GS Att Yds Avg Lng TD Rec Yds Avg Lng TD 1947 RAM 4 0 30 124 4.1 23 2 1 20 20.0 20 0 1948 RAM 12 5 76 354 4.7 23 4 18 227 12.6 45 2 1949 RAM 12 12 155 582 3.8 37 6 17 213 12.5 29 0 1950 RAM 12 11 95 381 4.0 64 10 26 446 17.2 48 1 1951 RAM 12 10 94 569 6.1 43 6 8 102 12.8 21 1 1952 DTX 11 5 56 162 2.9 14 2 10 172 17.2 54 0 63 43 506 2,172 4.3 64 30 80 1,180 14.8 54 4

Playoffs Year Team Games Rushing Receiving GP GS Att Yds Avg Lng TD Rec Yds Avg Lng TD 1949 RAM 1 1 7 10 1.4 - 0 1 19 19.0 19 0 1950 RAM 2 2 31 104 3.4 24 2 1 9 9.0 9 0 1951 RAM 1 1 5 5 1.0 4 1 1 13 13.0 13 0 4 4 43 119 2.8 24 3 3 41 13.7 19 0

Later life After retiring from football, Hoerner went into business in Southern California where he specialized in turning around struggling businesses, taking them "out of the red and into the black."