Charles "Charley" Horton is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

halfback who played one season with the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Canad ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

(CFL). He was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) with the eleventh overall pick of the 1956 NFL Draft. He played college football at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

and attended St. Petersburg High School in

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...

Early years

Horton played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

for the St. Petersburg High School Green Devils. He was named Honorable mention All-State and played in the Florida All-Star high school football game. He also participated in

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

and was a Florida high hurdle state champion. He was inducted into the St. Petersburg High School Athletic Hall of fame in 1999.

College career

Horton played for the Vanderbilt Commodores football team from 1952 to 1955. Horton was named a third team All-American by the

International News Service The International News Service (INS) was a U.S.-based news agency (newswire) founded by newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1909.

in 1955. He was named first team All- SEC his senior year and second team All-SEC his junior year. He was the

MVP In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

of the 1955 Gator Bowl, rushing for 57 yards on 13 carries and one touchdown in Vanderbilt's 25–13 win over the

Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year coeducational university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Associat ...

. Horton scored a then-Vanderbilt record of twelve touchdowns in 1955. He played in the

Chicago College All-Star Game The Chicago Charities College All-Star Game was a preseason American football game played from 1934 to 1976 between the National Football League (NFL) champions and a team of star college seniors from the previous year. It was also known as the ...

. He also participated in track and field for the Commodores.

Professional career

Horton was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams of the NFL in the first round of the 1956 NFL Draft. He was instead required to serve two years in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

after joining the NROTC at Vanderbilt. While in the Navy he played football at

Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It includ ...

, being named the Most Valuable All-Service player in 1957. He was also named first team All-Sea Service in 1956 and 1957. Horton appeared in five games for the

of the CFL in 1958.

Officiating career

Horton officiated college football games after his playing days. He was an official in 17 bowl games, including the 1986 Orange Bowl, 1987 Fiesta Bowl and 1992 Rose Bowl.

References

External links

Just Sports Stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Horton, Charles Living people Players of American football from St. Petersburg, Florida American football halfbacks Canadian football running backs American players of Canadian football Vanderbilt Commodores football players Montreal Alouettes players Players of Canadian football from St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg High School alumni 1935 births