West Virginia University Football's NFL Draft Legacy: Celebrating the Top 5 NFL Careers of Mountaineer Draft Picks
By Joseph Smith
2. Chuck Howley (1958 NFL Draft, Round 1, Pick 7)
A Wheeling, West Virginia native, Chuck Howley was a three-time All-Southern Conference selection and Conference Player of the Year in 1957. He holds the distinct honor of being the only athlete in school history to letter in five sports: football, track and field, wrestling, gymnastics, and swimming.
The Chicago Bears drafted Howley in the first round in 1958. Despite playing guard and center in college, he gained fame as a linebacker in the NFL. He briefly retired after an injury during his first two seasons in Chicago, but would return to playing with the Dallas Cowboys and would finish his final 12 seasons with the team.
As a Cowboy, he earned six NFL Pro Bowl selections and five first-team NFL All-Pro selections -- he was named MVP of Super Bowl V in a losing effort, but earned a championship ring in Super Bowl VI the next year. He was a Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee.