Elmo Wright

Last updated

Elmo Wright
No. 23, 17
Position: Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1949-07-03) July 3, 1949 (age 75)
Brazoria, Texas, U.S.
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High school: George Washington Carver/Sweeny (Sweeny, Texas)
College: Houston
NFL draft: 1971  / round: 1 / pick: 16
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Receptions:70
Receiving yards:1,116
Receiving TDs:6
Stats at Pro Football Reference
College Football Hall of Fame

Elmo Wright (born July 3, 1949) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). Playing college football for the Houston Cougars, he became the first football player ever to perform an end zone dance. [1]

Contents

Early life

Wright was born on July 3, 1949, in Brazoria, Texas. [2] He attended Carver High School in Sweeny, Texas, where his team won two state football championships during his two years of play (1965-1966); the first year in a segregated school system, and the next year desegregated. [3] He was an All-State player in high school. [4] In the Bulldogs' 1966 championship season, Wright had 33 receptions for 780 yards (23.6 yards per reception), while scoring 82 points. [5]

College Football

Wright received a football scholarship to the University of Houston, where he studied engineering and was an Academic All-American. [4] [6] [7] He played three years on the varsity team (1968-1970), wearing number 23. As a sophomore he had 43 pass receptions for 1,198 yards and 11 touchdowns; as well as 113 yards rushing in only five attempts. His 27.2 yards per reception average led all of Division I college football, 2.7 yards per catch more than any other player. He was third in total receiving yards and tied for fourth in touchdowns, even though not in the top 18 for total receptions. [8] [9] [6] The Cougars finished the season ranked 18th, and Wright earned honorable mention All-America honors. He set the NCAA single-season record with eight touchdown receptions of 50 yards or more. [2]

As a junior (1969), he had 63 receptions for 1,275 years, 14 touchdowns, and a 20.2 yards per reception average. The 14 touchdowns were either first or second in the nation, and he was third in yardage, seventh in receptions, and 11th in average yards. [10] [8] [2] In a November 1999 game against Wyoming, he had 262 receiving yards. [6] Wright was named Second Team All-American, and the Cougars ranked 12th at the end of the year. Houston defeated Auburn in the Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl, 36–7. [2] [11]

As a senior, he had 47 receptions, for 874 yards, nine touchdowns and an 18.6 yards per receptions average; in the top 10 for touchdowns, and top 20 for total and average yards. [8] [12] The Cougars were ranked 19th in the nation at the end of the year. [2] In 1970, Wright was a consensus First Team All-American, and was named the Touchdown Club of Columbus Player of the Year. [2] [13]

His 111.6 career receiving yards per game were the second most in FBS history at the end of his career and still rank 12th all-time (as of 2020). [2] [4] His 21.9 yards per reception career average is fourth all-time in NCAA Division I history (as of 2024). [14] Wright holds five Houston records: all-purpose career average yards per play (21.0); yards per reception in a season (27.9); yards per reception in a career (21.9); 200-yard receiving games in a season (2 each in 1968 and 1969); and 200-yard receiving games in a career (4). He also holds the school record with four touchdown receptions in a game. [2] [15] [4]

While an outstanding football player, Wright also became known for his running style and celebratory scoring. During a game in his junior year against Florida, he caught a pass and was wrapped up by the defender, future NFL player Steve Tannen. Wright broke away from Tannen by "high-stepping", and continued high-stepping toward the endzone for a touchdown. Once he scored, Wright began rapidly pumping his legs while high-stepping, which some have called the first touchdown celebration dance. He repeated his high-stepping dances after other ensuing touchdowns. Wright had been in the high school band before joining the football team, and this had given him an "'entertainment mindset'". [4] [1] [7] While this was no comparison to the antics later displayed by such famed celebrators as Billy "White Shoes" Johnson, Ickey Woods or Terrell Owens, [16] being as much a drum major strut as a dance, [17] it was almost equally shocking at the time, being booed by the Florida fans as he high-stepped toward the endzone that very first time. [18] There was also a racial component in negativity toward his celebrations when Houston played some of the southern universities. Other critics thought it expressed too much individuality for a military-like team sport. [18]

Professional Football

The Kansas City Chiefs selected Wright in the first round of the 1971 NFL draft (16th overall). [19] As a rookie, he started all 14 games, had 26 receptions for 528 yards (20.3 yards per catch), with three touchdowns and a career-long reception of 69 yards. [20] A knee injury toward the end of the season was the beginning of a steep decline in Wright's play. He would have three knee surgeries during his shortened five-year career. [6] In 1972, he played in only seven games for the Chiefs, with 11 receptions. In 1973-74 with the Chiefs, he played in more games, but had only 16 and 13 receptions, respectively. [20] In 1975, Wright's final year in the NFL, he played two games for the Houston Oilers with no receptions, and four games for the New England Patriots with four receptions. [20]

On November 18, 1973, Wright introduced his endzone celebratory dance into the NFL, a first in the league. [21] [6] He would have stopped doing it if his coach Hank Stram had asked, but Stram just told him to keep scoring touchdowns, understanding the entertainment aspect of football. [7]

Honors and awards

In 1976, Wright was inducted into the University of Houston Athletics Hall of Fame. [22] In 1993, he was inducted into the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame. [5] In 2020, Wright was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. [2]

Personal life

After retiring, Wright worked in land development in the private and public sectors. He was a finance officer for Harris County, and became Chief of Staff to Harris County Commissioner Jim Fontino, working in his office for over two decades. During this time Wright obtained a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Houston's C.T. Bauer College of Business (MBA 1985). He subsequently mentored Bauer business students. [4] [1]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Finley, Bill (November 13, 2005). "Father of End-Zone Dance Explains His Happy Feet". The New York Times . Retrieved September 16, 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Elmo Wright (2020) - Hall of Fame". National Football Foundation. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  3. ↑ Fisher, Jeff (March 12, 2020). "Elmo Wright, the player invented the end zone celebration, is headed to the College Football Hall of Fame". High School Football America. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Navarro, Jessica; Sebesta, Amanda (October 23, 2024). "Dancing Through Life". bauerstories.uh.edu. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Texas High School Football Hall of Fame Inductees: Elmo Wright". www.texasfootball.com. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 CAMPBELL, STEVE (November 12, 2007). "Campbell: Early end-zone showboat Wright of UH still has some moves". Chron. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  7. 1 2 3 Smale, David (January 5, 2021). "Former Chiefs WR Elmo Wright still dancing after touchdowns. Hey, Stram was OK with it". The Kansas City Star.
  8. 1 2 3 "Elmo Wright College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  9. ↑ "1968 College Football Leaders". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  10. ↑ "1969 College Football Leaders". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  11. ↑ "Bluebonnet Bowl - Auburn at Houston Box Score, December 31, 1969". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  12. ↑ "1970 College Football Leaders". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  13. ↑ "Consensus All-America Teams (1970-1979)". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  14. ↑ "Receiving Yards Per Reception Career Leaders and Records". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  15. ↑ "Houston Cougars Receiving Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  16. ↑ "Garber: An informal look at the history of the end zone celebration". ESPN.com. November 22, 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  17. ↑ "Deadspin | The Man Who Invented The End-Zone Dance". deadspin.com. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  18. 1 2 Balke, Jeff (January 30, 2018). "Elmo Wright Says Football Is Supposed to Be Fun". Houstonia Magazine. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  19. ↑ "71 | Pro Football Hall of Fame". pfhof. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  20. 1 2 3 "Elmo Wright Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  21. ↑ "The dance of the happy people". The Sporting News: 9. December 28, 1998.
  22. ↑ "Elmo Wright (1976) - University of Houston Athletics Hall of Honor". University of Houston Athletics. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
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