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KEN FOR CANTON

Riley fans anxiously await Pro Football Hall of Fame 2023 class

he 12th Annual NFL Honors is set for Feb. 9, 2023 at 9 p.m. ET, where awards for the 2022 NFL season will be handed out and the 2023 Hall of Fame class is unveiled.

It has been a painful wait for the family of former FAMU great Ken Riley. It has been an anxious ride for the Florida A&M faithful. It has been even an unjust delay in the eyes of several NFL players who played with or against Riley and sports journalists who covered his career. To virtually add insult to injury, Riley passed in 2020 and would never get to walk the aisle and accept his gold jacket himself.

Riley, who is a candidate for the hall as a senior candidate, has reached a level he has never attained before. With a change in selection process, this year the selection committee actually got to hear testimony on behalf of Ken Riley. It has led him to be selected in the final three candidates in the senior division that started out with exponentially more nominations. It’s as close as Riley has ever come to taking the final step to enshrinement.

Another major step to this was Riley’s induction into the Cincinnati Bengals’ inaugural “Ring of Honor.” One theory as to why Riley hadn’t been selected to the hall of fame was because without the Ring of Honor, the Bengals had not declared him one of their best. Odd as it seems, this is exactly the scenario that another FAMU great, Bob Hayes, endured.

Hayes was seemingly a clear-cut candidate for the hall, but was delayed for decades. In 2001, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones selected Hayes to be added to the Dallas Cowboys’ Ring of Honor. Shortly thereafter, he would finally earn his gold jacket in 2008. Unfortunately, similar to Riley the delay would have dire consequences. Hayes died in 2002 and would not be able to take the walk down the aisle donned in his gold jacket in Canton, Ohio.

With statistics worthy of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Riley’s snub has been unfathomable. In the minds of most people who have become aware of his omission and his statistics alike, leaving Riley out of the hall of fame can only be attributable to prejudice against him or ignorance of what he actually did as a player.

Riley was a standout quarterback for legendary FAMU coach Jake Gaither. During that time, blacks were simply not allowed to play quarterback. Great black college quarterbacks were changed to running backs, wide receivers or defensive backs. It’s simply how the NFL operated at the time. There was a belief that black quarterbacks did not have the mentality to play that position at the highest level. Ironically, Riley was brilliant, earning a Rhodes Scholar nomination his senior year. “Paul Brown said ‘You are a defensive back’,” Riley said.

After Riley graduated, NFL teams showed interest in him. The Bengals told Riley to begin training as a defensive back…a position he had never played. “When I was in high school and in college, as a quarterback we were somewhat pampered. All teams protected their quarterbacks,” Riley said in a 2019 interview. After being taken by the Bengals, Riley would spend his summer at Florida State training in hip rotation and drills to teach him to break on passes and drive to a receiver. In the end, Riley credits being a quarterback with understanding what was going on from the other side of the ball.

Riley had a chip on his shoulder since he left FAMU as he faced the scrutiny being from FAMU. “I wanted to prove to everyone that even though I went to a small black college, I could play on a larger level,” Riley said.

“Being a quarterback, I wasn’t a brash guy, I did my job. Every coach I had from high school to the NFL, I was always taught humility, let your work speak for you,” Riley said. There were some times when I led the conference (three times) in interceptions. It went unnoticed. That’s something I can’t control. There are guys that are in there (Pro Football Hall of Fame) that don’t have the numbers I have. In Cincinnati we were not publicized or glorified so to speak. Paul Brown’s philosophy was that was what he was paying you to do.”

During the Bengals’ Ring of Honor celebration, Riley’s widow Barbara was asked what she thought of the celebration. In tears she replied “It was wonderful. I just wish Ken was here to see it.”

Ken Riley is knocking on the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s door

It had been a sore spot for Ken Riley before his sudden passing in June of 2020. Being overlooked for the Pro Football Hall of Fame bothered the usually quiet Riley. His career 65 interceptions were more than several football players that made their way to Canton and a gold jacket before him. By many accounts, his blue collar style of playing and not being flashy, while playing in the smaller football market of Cincinnati, all contributed to him being overlooked for over four decades after retirement.

Riley and his family moved a step closer to closure on Aug. 17 as the Pro Football Hall of Fame committee announced Riley as one of three finalists for the senior division. This is the farthest along in the process Riley has made it. Riley, Joe Klecko and Chuck Howley were all selected from a large pool of senior division candidates to emerge as finalists. With recent rules changes in the selection process, all three are likely to be entered into the 2023 class.

Bengals have done their part

While there has been plenty of finger pointing and head scratching, the Bengals corrected what many have thought was a reason Riley had not been selected by enshrining him in their inaugural “Ring of Honor.” Even Sports Illustrated wrote an article signifying that by the Bengals declaring him as an all-time great, the hall of fame would find it easier to induct him as a NFL legend.

In September of 2021 on a Thursday night nationally-broadcast game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Riley joined Paul Brown, Ken Anderson and Anthony Munoz as the first four to be inducted in the Bengals’ Ring of Honor. This is the highest honor bestowed upon athletes on any NFL team. Judging by the passing through the hall of fame process this time, the ring might have been the edge Riley had been looking for all along.

Riley’s family remains hopeful.

Riley’s son Ken II, a former All-MEAC cornerback while playing for his father at FAMU, is the virtual spokesman for the family. While Riley’s wife Barbara still supports the efforts, it’s the younger Riley who is the dignitary. He approaches each encouragement and disappointment with class. He was chosen to don the Bengals’ Ring of Honor jacket last season in his father’s honor while wearing his father’s snake skin boots. Shortly after the ceremony, he spoke of the significance of the Bengals” honoring of his late father.

“I think that Cincinnati is one of the last teams to get a ring of honor. We’ve always talked about that if you don’t honor your own, you can’t expect the rest of the nation to do it for you. We are a family that is appreciative of this opportunity,” Riley II said.

It is common thought that Riley has been shunned by the Pro Football Hall of Fame. With 65 interceptions for his career, he holds more than even Deion Sanders, who is considered the best corner in NFL history by some accounts. Every NFL player who has 65 interceptions or more is currently enshrined in Canton…except for Riley.

The next step for Riley is to attain 80-percent of the votes from the hall of fame committee. That will have to wait until January of 2023.

Riley II added his gratefulness and support they have received. "I want to thank HBCU Gameday, FAMU and HBCUs across the country and all of the people who have been pouring into us in this process. It is humbling and much appreciated."

Former FAMU great Ken Riley Inducted into Bengals Ring of Honor

Former FAMU great, the late Ken Riley, was enshrined last night into the Cincinnati Bengals Ring of Honor. This was the first-ever class and Riley was joined by Bengals co-founder/coach Paul Brown, quarterback Kenny Anderson and stalwart offensive tackle Anthon Munoz.

In a ceremony that followed a spirited banquet where the Bengals also honored the 1981 Bengals, the unveiling took place at halftime of the Bengals vs. Jacksonville Jaguars game. Riley, who suddenly passed in 2020, was represented by his son Ken Riley II.

Riley II also played and was a four-year starter at cornerback for FAMU. Riley’s wife Barbara and several family members were honored with a suite for the game as dedications to him appeared on the video boards throughout the game.

Riley Family joined in the festivities

The family was honored at the recognition by the Bengals organization and hope that it catapults the narrative of Riley making it into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Members of the Riley Family

“I think that Cincinnati is one of the last teams to get a ring of honor. We’ve always talked about that if you don’t honor your own, you can’t expect the rest of the nation to do it for you. We are a family that is appreciative of this opportunity,” Riley II said.

In a game where Michael Irvin and Steve Smith were reporting for the NFL Network, they stopped by to congratulate the honorees and their families.

It is common thought that Riley has been shunned by the Pro Football Hall of Fame. With 65 interceptions for his career, he holds more than even Deion Sanders, who is considered the best corner in NFL history by some accounts. In fact, every NFL player who has 65 interceptions or more is currently enshrined in Canton…except for Riley.

One theory for the omission is the fact that Riley played in a small market and was a low-key player. With Riley’s credentials and a personality like Sanders, no doubt he would already be in a gold jacket. Riley’s motto was to let his work speak for him. When he would run one of the five pick-sixes he had over his career, he would simply hand the ball to the referee. He never drew attention to himself.

Bengals president Mike Brown was extremely proud of the Ring of Honor. “We have a long history of players, many of them great players. Ken Anderson and Ken Riley are at the top of that list of great players…They were the type of players that we like to think our team is all about. I am pleased that they are both top picks of the fans.

Riley’s demeanor came from playing quarterback

As a high school and college quarterback, Riley was always expected to be a team leader. He picked up on the expectations from his coaches and it carried him through his career. That discipline is what some attribute to his success in transitioning to defensive back in the NFL, though he had never played the position previously.

The soft-spoken Riley was a no-nonsense businessman when it came to the way he carried himself. After his playing ended in 1983, he returned to FAMU in 1986 as head coach. He would go on to win multiple MEAC championships. Upon leaving his position as head football coach, he would take the reigns of the athletics department. He would fine tune the athletics department into the most profitable it has ever been. Upon his retirement from the position of athletics director, FAMU Athletics had amassed a $1.2 million surplus. This was a historic achievement for an FCS school…HBCU or PWI.

1981 Bengals has vast HBCU roots

Being honored as well on this night was the only Bengals team to make it to the Super Bowl, the 1981 team. As many of them gathered in celebration at a pre-game banquet at the luxurious ICON Music Hall, the HBCU connection to the team came to light.

Riley was a member of that team and represented FAMU. Defensive back Louis Breeden hailed from North Carolina Central. Defensive Back Oliver Davis came from Tennessee State. Defensive lineman Mike St. Clair hailed from Grambling State.

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