Louis Weller

Louis "Rabbit" Weller (March 2, 1904 – April 17, 1979) was a professional football halfback with the Boston Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) in 1933. He was a Native American member of the Caddo tribe. He attended Haskell Institute. In 1972, Weller was a charter inductee into the American Indian Athletic Hall of Fame.

Early life Weller was born in Anadarko, Oklahoma. He was a multi-sport athlete at Arkansas City High School in Arkansas City, Kansas and then played football for Arkansas City Junior College from 1925 to 1926. During those two seasons, Weller scored 190 total points, which included 28 touchdowns. In 1927, he attended Chilocco Indian School, where he once returned seven punts for touchdowns in one game. After attending Chilocco, Weller was a four-sport athlete at the Haskell Institute. He was the first three-time captain of the Haskell football team, where he scored thirteen touchdowns of 60 yards or more.

Other sports Besides football, Weller excelled at other sports, including track and baseball. James Naismith, who invented the sport of basketball in 1891, called Weller "the most expert dribbler I have ever seen."

Professional career After college, Weller played two years of professional football. In 1933, he played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Boston Redskins under his former coach at Haskell, William Henry "Lone Star" Dietz, as well as with two other American Indian football players, "Chief" Larry Johnson and John Orien Crow. In 1934, he played in the American Football League for the Tulsa Oilers.

Personal life After retiring from football, Weller worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs. He died on April 17, 1979, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, following a heart attack he sustained while playing golf with former teammate and former Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs John Orien Crow.