Ernest "Ernie" Green (born October 15, 1938) is a former American football halfback and

fullback Fullback or Full back may refer to: Sports * A position in various kinds of football, including: ** Full-back (association football), in association football (soccer), a defender playing in a wide position ** Fullback (gridiron football), in Americ ...

for the Cleveland Browns in the National Football League.

Early years

Born and raised in Columbus, Georgia, Green is a 1958 graduate of Spencer High School. He was a star running back on the school's football team,

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

class president and a member of the

National Honor Society The National Honor Society (NHS) is a nationwide organization for high school students in the United States and outlying territories, which consists of many chapters in high schools. Selection is based on four criteria: scholarship (academic achi ...

. He was honored as the first Greenwave football player to have his jersey number retired on January 20, 2018.

College

Green attended the University of Louisville from 1958 to 1961, rushing for more than 1,500 yards in his

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

career with the Cardinals and twice leading the team in that department, Earning him all American honors. He also excelled in baseball, spurning contract offers in order to remain on the

gridiron Gridiron may refer to: Sports and games * Gridiron, a term for the field marked with yard-lines on which American and Canadian codes of football are played ** Gridiron football, umbrella term used to refer to the several codes of football which ...

Green Bay Packers

In 1962 the reigning world champion

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

drafted Green in the 14th round of the

1962 NFL Draft The 1962 National Football League draft was held on December 4, 1961 at the Sheraton Hotel in Chicago, Illinois. The Washington Redskins used the first overall pick of the draft to select running back Ernie Davis, then subsequently traded him ...

, but during training camp they traded him to the Cleveland Browns where he would make a name for himself as one of the league's top running backs.

Cleveland Browns

After seeing only limited action as a rookie in 1962, Green was installed in the Cleveland backfield the following year alongside legendary Hall of Famer

Jim Brown James Nathaniel Brown (born February 17, 1936) is a former American football player, sports analyst and actor. He played as a fullback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL) from 1957 through 1965. Considered to be one ...

. He finished his first full season of action with 526 rushing yards, and also caught 28 passes out of the backfield. Even more importantly, he also helped open holes for Brown to gain a then-NFL record 1,863 yards. In 1964, the two helped the Browns capture their fourth NFL championship, capping the year with a stunning 27-0 shutout of the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from its founding in 1953 to 1984. The team now plays in Indianapolis, as the Indianapolis Colts. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breed ...

at the

1964 NFL Championship Game The 1964 NFL Championship Game was the 32nd annual championship game, held on December 27 at Cleveland Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. With an attendance of 79,544, it was the first NFL title game to be televised by CBS. The game marked the last c ...

. Following Brown's retirement in July 1966, Green was switched from halfback to fullback and teamed with another future Hall of Famer, Leroy Kelly, to continue to give Cleveland one of the most dangerous backfield combinations in the NFL. He was selected to the Pro Bowl in each of the next two seasons, and was twice named an NFL All-Pro. In August 1968, Green injured his knee during a preseason contest in Los Angeles and missed the next two months. On his return, he saw only limited action due to lingering problems with the knee. Just after the end of the season, he underwent surgery to repair torn cartilage in the troublesome knee but was then advised to retire. He followed that advice and accepted the Browns' offer to coach their running backs. In his seven-year NFL career, he gained 3,204 yards and caught 179 passes out of the backfield.

Retirement and business interests

Green was Assistant Vice-President for Student Affairs at

Case Western Reserve University Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Reser ...

from 1970 to 1974. He was Executive Director and Vice-President of IMG's Team Sports Division from 1974 to 1981. He left IMG to establish EG Industries (EGI) which originally manufactured components for the automotive industry in suburban Dayton, Ohio.Press release issued by Eaton Corporation announcing Green's election to its Board of Directors.
Retrieved December 21, 2018 Currently based in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

, EGI branched out into parts for medical, consumer, energy and industrial devices. He has served on the board of directors of various enterprises including

Eaton Corporation Eaton Corporation plc is an American-Irish multinational power management company with 2021 sales of $19.63 billion, founded in the United States with global headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, and a secondary administrative center in Beachwood, ...

, Dayton Power & Light and the Duriron Company.

Breast cancer

Green was diagnosed with breast cancer in July 2005 after a small malignant lump was found in his chest. After obtaining a second opinion, he was treated with mastectomy in September 2005 by Dr. Robert Schenk, breast surgeon at University Hospitals of Cleveland's

Case Medical Center University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center (UH Cleveland Medical Center) is a large not-for-profit academic medical complex in Cleveland, Ohio, Cleveland, Ohio, United States. University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center is the main affiliat ...

. This was followed by eight chemotherapy sessions ending in March 2006. He then became a breast cancer activist, educating other men about the disease and how it can affect not only women but men as well. His two older sisters were diagnosed with breast cancer, and one of them succumbed to the disease.Battle with breast cancer

References

External links

NFL.com profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Green, Ernie 1938 births Living people Players of American football from Columbus, Georgia American football fullbacks Louisville Cardinals football players Cleveland Browns players Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players