View source for Lee Roy Selmon

{{Short description|American football player (1954–2011)}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{More citations needed|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| position    = [[Defensive end]]
| number      = 63
| image       = Lee Roy Selmon.jpg
| caption     = Selmon with the [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers]]
| birth_date  = {{Birth date|1954|10|20|mf=y}}
| birth_place = [[Eufaula, Oklahoma]], U.S.
| death_date  = {{Death date and age|2011|9|4|1954|10|20|mf=y}}
| death_place = [[Tampa, Florida]], U.S.
| height_ft   = 6
| height_in   = 3
| weight_lb   = 256
| draftyear   = 1976
| draftround  = 1
| draftpick   = 1
| high_school = [[Eufaula High School (Eufaula, Oklahoma)|Eufaula (OK)]]
| college     = [[Oklahoma Sooners football|Oklahoma]] (1972–1975)
| teams       =
* [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers]] ({{NFL Year|1976}}–{{NFL Year|1984}})
| highlights  =
* [[AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year|NFL Defensive Player of the Year]] (1979)
* 3× First-team [[All-Pro]] ([[1979 All-Pro Team|1979]], [[1980 All-Pro Team|1980]], [[1982 All-Pro Team|1982]])
* 2× Second-team All-Pro ([[1978 All-Pro Team|1978]], [[1984 All-Pro Team|1984]])
* 6× [[Pro Bowl]] ([[1980 Pro Bowl|1979]]–[[1985 Pro Bowl|1984]])
* [[NFL 1980s All-Decade Team]]
* [[NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team]]
* [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers#Ring of Honor|Tampa Bay Buccaneers Ring of Honor]]
* [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers#Tampa Stadium Krewe of Honor|Tampa Stadium Krewe of Honor]]
* [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers#Retired numbers|Tampa Bay Buccaneers No. 63]] retired
* 2× [[College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS|National champion]] ([[1974 Oklahoma Sooners football team|1974]], [[1975 Oklahoma Sooners football team|1975]])
* [[Outland Trophy]] (1975)
* [[Lombardi Award]] (1975)
* [[UPI Lineman of the Year (College)|UPI Lineman of the Year]] (1975)
* [[List of unanimous All-Americans in college football|Unanimous All-American]] ([[1975 College Football All-America Team|1975]])
* First-team [[College Football All-America Team|All-American]] ([[1974 College Football All-America Team|1974]])
* [[Big Eight Conference football#Defensive Player of the Year|Big Eight Defensive Player of the Year]] (1975)
* 2× First-team All-[[Big Eight Conference|Big Eight]] ([[1974 All-Big Eight Conference football team|1974]], [[1975 All-Big Eight Conference football team|1975]])
*[[AP All-Time All-America college football team#Second team|Second-team AP All-Time All-American]] (2025)
| statlabel1  = [[Tackle (football move)|Tackle]]s
| statvalue1  = 742
| statlabel2  = [[Quarterback sack|Sacks]]
| statvalue2  = 78.5
| statlabel3  = [[Fumble]]s forced
| statvalue3  = 28.5
| HOF         = lee-roy-selmon
| CollegeHOF  = 1956
| pfr         = SelmLe00
}}
'''Lee Roy Selmon''' (October 20, 1954 – September 4, 2011) was an American professional [[American football|football]] player who was a [[defensive end]] for the [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers]] of the [[National Football League]] (NFL). He played [[college football]] as a [[defensive tackle]] at the [[University of Oklahoma]], the youngest of three brothers to play football there.

He was a consensus [[1975 College Football All-America Team|All-American in 1974 and 1975]] and a member of consecutive [[College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS|national championship]] teams for the [[Oklahoma Sooners football|Oklahoma Sooners]] in 1974 and 1975.

Selmon was selected by the expansion Buccaneers as the first overall pick in the [[1976 NFL draft]]. He played in the NFL for nine seasons, from 1976 to 1984, all with the Buccaneers.

Selmon joined the athletic department at the [[University of South Florida]] in 1993 and served as the school's [[athletic director]] from 2001 to 2004.  He was inducted into the [[College Football Hall of Fame]] in 1988, the [[Pro Football Hall of Fame]] in 1995, and the [[Oklahoma Hall of Fame]] in 2009.<ref>Anon, eds., ''2005 NFL Record & Fact Book'' (New York: Sports Illustrated Almanac, 2005), p. 398.</ref>{{rp|398}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://oklahomahof.com/member-archives/s/selmon-lee-roy-2009 |title=Selmon, Lee Roy {{!}} 2009|publisher=Oklahoma Hall of Fame|access-date=January 31, 2023}}</ref>

==Early life==
Selmon was the youngest of nine children of Lucious and Jessie Selmon, raised on a farm near [[Eufaula, Oklahoma]].  A [[National Honor Society]] member at [[Eufaula High School (Eufaula, Oklahoma)|Eufaula High School]], he graduated in 1972 after playing football through high school. His two brothers also played football and went to the University of Oklahoma, which he attended and where he graduated.

==College career==
In 1972, Selmon joined his brothers [[Lucious Selmon|Lucious]] and [[Dewey Selmon]] in playing on the defensive line at the [[University of Oklahoma]].  He blossomed into a star in 1974, anchoring one of the best defenses in [[Oklahoma Sooners football]] history. The Sooners were [[College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS|national champions]] in 1974 and 1975.  Selmon won the [[Lombardi Award]] and the [[Outland Trophy]] in 1975. Oklahoma head coach [[Barry Switzer]] called him the best player he ever coached, and ''[[College Football News]]'' placed him as the 21st-best college player of all time.

Selmon was known as "The Gentle Giant." In the fall of 1999, Selmon was named to the ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' 'NCAA Football All-Century Team.'

Selmon was named a consensus All-American in 1974 and 1975 by Newspaper Enterprise Association. His list of achievements include the National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete, GTE/CoSIDA Academic All-American, and Graduate Fellowship Winner National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame.  The 1996 [[Walter Camp Alumni of the Year|Walter Camp "Alumnus of the Year"]] was voted to the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame <ref>[http://www.jimthorpeassoc.org/OKSportsHOF/LeeRoySelmon.html Jim Thorpe Association] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071007125144/http://www.jimthorpeassoc.org/OKSportsHOF/LeeRoySelmon.html |date=October 7, 2007 }}</ref> in 1992.

===Statistics===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Season
!
!Tackles
!
! Sacks
!
! TFL
!
|-
!
! UT
! AT
! TT
! Sack
! YdsL
! TFL
! Yds
|-
|1972
|5
|6
|11
|3
|16
|1
|?
|-
|1973
|37
|20
|57
|9
|49
|2
|?
|-
|1974
|65
|60
|125
|18
|71
|1
|?
|-
|1975
|88
|44
|132
|10
|48
|4
|?
|-
|'''Career'''
|'''195'''
|'''130'''
|'''325'''
|'''40'''
|'''184'''
|'''8'''
|'''?'''
|}

==Professional career==
In 1976, Selmon was the first player picked in the NFL draft, the first-ever pick for the expansion [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers]]. He was joined by his older brother, Dewey, who was a second-round pick of the Bucs. In his first year, Selmon won the team's 'Rookie of the Year' and [[Most Valuable Player|MVP]] awards. Selmon played in six straight [[Pro Bowl]]s and was named [[NFL Defensive Player of the Year]] in 1979. Buccaneer assistant [[Abe Gibron]] said, "Selmon has no peers" at defensive end, while former [[Detroit Lions]] coach [[Monte Clark]] compared him to "a grown man at work among a bunch of boys".<ref>Dielschnieder, Jim. "Lee Roy Selmon: A Man Among Boys," ''The Gainesville Sun.'' September 6, 1981</ref>

Selmon began his career on a team that lost its first 26 games in franchise history (including a winless inaugural season) and only won a total of seven games in his first three seasons. However, he helped the Bucs rebound to three playoff appearances in four years from 1979 to 1982.

A back injury forced him to leave at the end of the 1984 season; the Bucs retired his number, 63, in 1986. He was elected to the [[Florida Sports Hall of Fame]]. In January 2008, Selmon was voted by a panel of former NFL players and coaches to ''[[Pro Football Weekly]]''{{'}}s All-Time 3-4 defensive team along with [[Harry Carson]], [[Curley Culp]], [[Randy Gradishar]], [[Howie Long]], [[Lawrence Taylor]] and [[Andre Tippett]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/PFW+Online/Volume+22+-+2007/Issue29_view.htm|title=Volume 22 Issue 29|work=[[Pro Football Weekly]]}}{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> He was the first player to be inducted into the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Ring of Honor on November 8, 2009.

==After football==
Selmon stayed in [[Tampa, Florida]], working as a bank executive and being active in many charities.

From 1993 to 2001, Selmon served as an assistant athletic director at the [[University of South Florida]] under Paul Griffin.  After Griffin was forced to resign,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sptimes.com/News/031001/TampaBay/USF_s_Griffin_forced_.shtml |title=Tampabay: USF's Griffin forced to quit |publisher=Sptimes.com |access-date=February 2, 2015}}</ref> Selmon was promoted to take over the athletic department. As the USF Athletic Director, Selmon launched the football program, spearheaded the construction of a new athletic facility, and led the university's move into [[Conference USA]], and into the [[Big East Conference (1979–2013)|Big East Conference]].

Citing health issues, Selmon resigned as the USF Athletic Director in 2004. He took the role as president of the USF Foundation Partnership for Athletics, an athletics fund-raising organization.

==Awards and honors==
*Selmon was inducted into the [[College Football Hall of Fame]] in 1988.
*In 1995, he was inducted into the [[Pro Football Hall of Fame]], becoming the first Hall of Famer to have earned his credentials primarily in Tampa Bay. (He was later joined by [[Warren Sapp]] in 2013 and [[Derrick Brooks]] in 2014.)
*Also in 1995, Selmon became the first Buccaneer, former or current, to participate in a Super Bowl when he joined the coin toss ceremonies for [[Super Bowl XXIX]], joining fellow Class of 1995 members [[Kellen Winslow]] and then-[[U.S. Congressman]] [[Steve Largent]] who flipped the coin to end the ceremonies, along with 75th Anniversary team members [[Ray Nitschke]] (representing [[Henry Jordan]] who was inducted posthumously), [[Mean Joe Greene]], [[Otto Graham]] and [[Gale Sayers]].
*In 2010, he was ranked #98 on the top 100 greatest players of all time, as surveyed by [[NFL Network]].
*In 2012, Selmon was posthumously inducted into the [[University of South Florida Athletic Hall of Fame]].
*The [[Lee Roy Selmon Expressway]] is named for him.<ref name="naming" />
*The chain restaurants, Lee Roy Selmon's, was named for him. As of 2018, all seven locations were no longer in business.<ref name="naming">{{cite web |url=http://www.leeroyselmons.com/ |title=Lee Roy Selmon's |publisher=Leeroyselmons.com |access-date=February 2, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205221236/http://leeroyselmons.com/ |archive-date=February 5, 2015 |url-status=usurped |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://cityguides.msn.com/citylife/cityarticle.aspx?cp-documentid=18491453&page=2 |title=msn |publisher=Cityguides.msn.com |date=January 29, 2015 |access-date=February 2, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090320233457/http://cityguides.msn.com/citylife/cityarticle.aspx?cp-documentid=18491453&page=2 |archive-date=March 20, 2009 }}</ref>

==Death==
Selmon suffered a massive stroke on September 2, 2011, which left him hospitalized in extremely critical<ref name="stroke3">{{Cite web |last=Stroud |first=Rick |date=September 3, 2011 |title=Former Tampa Bay Buccaneer great Lee Roy Selmon in 'extremely critical condition' |url=http://www.tampabay.com/sports/football/bucs/report-former-tampa-bay-buccaneer-great-lee-roy-selmon-suffers-stroke/1189484 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121016204540/http://www.tampabay.com/sports/football/bucs/report-former-tampa-bay-buccaneer-great-lee-roy-selmon-suffers-stroke/1189484 |archive-date=October 16, 2012 |access-date=September 2, 2011 |publisher=St. Petersburg Times}}</ref> condition.<ref name="stroke">{{cite web|url=http://www.wtsp.com/news/topstories/article/208671/250/Lee-Roy-Selmons-brother-Bucs-great-in-serious-condition-not-dead-after-stroke|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130209160120/http://www.wtsp.com/news/topstories/article/208671/250/Lee-Roy-Selmons-brother-Bucs-great-in-serious-condition-not-dead-after-stroke|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 9, 2013|title=Lee Roy Selmon, Hall of Fame football player, suffers stroke|publisher=[[WTSP|10 News]]|date=September 2, 2011|access-date=September 2, 2011}}</ref><ref name="stroke2">{{cite web|url=http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/sports/nfl/report%3A-lee-roy-selmon-suffers-stroke-090211|title=Reports conflict about Selmon's health|publisher=[[WTVT|MyFoxTampaBay.com]]|author=Noah Pransky|date=September 2, 2011|access-date=September 2, 2011|archive-date=January 30, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120130022823/http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/sports/nfl/report%3A-lee-roy-selmon-suffers-stroke-090211|url-status=dead}}</ref> His restaurant initially released a statement announcing his death; however, this was later confirmed to be false.<ref name="stroke3" /> In fact, at one point his condition was said to be improving.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/6927652/hall-famer-lee-roy-selmon-showing-signs-improvement|title=Lee Roy Selmon improving|date=September 3, 2011|agency=Associated Press|publisher=espn.go.com|access-date=September 5, 2011}}</ref>

On September 4, 2011, Selmon died at the age of 56 from complications of the stroke.<ref name="Death">{{cite web|url=http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/sports/nfl/buccaneers/lee_roy_selmon_passes_away090411|publisher=[[WTVT|MyFoxTampaBay.com]]|title=Lee Roy Selmon passes away|date=September 4, 2011|access-date=September 4, 2011}}{{Dead link|date=December 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Visitation was scheduled for the following Thursday at the Exciting Central Tampa Baptist Church. The funeral was held the next day at Idlewild Baptist Church. Former teammates, the current Buccaneer team, the USF football team, other members of the NFL, and the general public attended.  The USF football team wore a #63 decal on their helmets for the 2011 season, as did the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  Both teams conducted a ceremony to honor Selmon the weekend following his death.<ref name="funeralservices">{{cite web|url=http://www2.tbo.com/sports/breaking-news/2011/sep/05/9/funeral-services-for-selmon-to-be-held-friday-ar-255528/|publisher=[[The Tampa Tribune]]|title=Funeral services for Selmon to be held Friday|author=Joey Johnston|date=September 5, 2011|access-date=September 5, 2011}}</ref> He is buried in Trice Hill Cemetery in [[Oklahoma City, Oklahoma]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://oklahoman.com/article/3603158/sooner-legend-lee-roy-selmon-laid-to-rest|title=Sooner legend Lee Roy Selmon laid to rest|work=[[The Oklahoman]]|date=September 10, 2011|first=Berry|last=Tramel|access-date=September 22, 2020}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Profootballhof|id=191|name=Lee Roy Selmon}}
* {{cfbhof|id=1956|name=Lee Roy Selmon}}
* [https://oklahomahof.com/member-archives/s/selmon-lee-roy-2009 Lee Roy Selmon] at the [https://oklahomahof.com/ Oklahoma Hall of Fame]
* {{find a Grave|75974418}}
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20070420052205/http://www.leeroyselmons.com/ Lee Roy Selmon's Restaurants]}}

{{South Florida Bulls athletic director navbox}}
{{Navboxes
| title = Lee Roy Selmon—awards, championships, and honors
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{{Pro Football Hall of Fame members}}
{{Outland Trophy}}
{{Lombardi Award}}
{{UPI Lineman of the Year}}
{{1974 Oklahoma Sooners football navbox}}
{{1975 Oklahoma Sooners football navbox}}
{{1975 NCAA Division I FBS College Football Consensus All-Americans}}
{{1969-1994 All-America Team}}
{{NFL NumberOne Draft Picks}}
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{{1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers}}
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{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Selmon, Lee Roy}}
[[Category:1954 births]]
[[Category:2011 deaths]]
[[Category:American football defensive ends]]
[[Category:American football defensive tackles]]
[[Category:Oklahoma Sooners football players]]
[[Category:South Florida Bulls athletic directors]]
[[Category:Tampa Bay Buccaneers players]]
[[Category:All-American college football players]]
[[Category:College Football Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:National Conference Pro Bowl players]]
[[Category:First overall NFL draft picks]]
[[Category:NFL players with retired numbers]]
[[Category:Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:People from Eufaula, Oklahoma]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Tampa, Florida]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Oklahoma]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American sportsmen]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American sportsmen]]
[[Category:NFL Defensive Player of the Year winners]]
[[Category:21st-century American sportsmen]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]