Marion Motley

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Motley grew up in Canton, Ohio. He played football through high school and at Nevada from 1940 to 1942, before enlisting in the military during World War II. While training in the U.S. Navy in 1944, he played for a service team coached by Paul Brown. Following the war, he then went back to work in Canton. Paul Brown invited Motley to try out for the Cleveland Browns, a team he was coaching in the newly formed AAFC pro football league. Motley made the Browns in 1946, and became a cornerstone of Cleveland's success in the late 1940s. The team won four AAFC championships before the league dissolved, and the Browns were absorbed by the more established NFL. Motley was the AAFC's leading rusher in 1948, and the NFL leader in 1950, when the Browns won another championship. Motley and fellow black teammate Bill Willis contended with racism throughout their careers. Although the color barrier was broken in all major American sports by 1950, the men endured shouted insults on the field and racial discrimination off of it. "They found out that while they were calling us niggers and alligator bait, I was running for touchdowns and Willis was knocking the shit out of them", Motley once said. "So they stopped calling us names and started trying to catch up with us." Focused exclusively on winning, Brown did not tolerate racism within the team. Slowed by knee injuries, Motley left the Browns after the 1953 season. He attempted a comeback in 1955 as a fullback/linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers, playing in 10 games that season. He then pursued a coaching career, but was turned away by the Browns and other teams he approached. He attributed his trouble finding a job in football to racial discrimination, questioning whether teams were ready to hire a black coach. Motley was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1968.

In Their Own Story

The defining moment of Marion Motley's statistical dominance occurred in October 1950 against the Pittsburgh Steelers during his first NFL season. In a single game, Motley rushed for 188 yards on just 11 carries, averaging an incredible 17.1 yards per rush. This performance set an NFL record that stood for more than 52 years until Michael Vick eclipsed it in December 2002 with 173 yards on 10 carries against the Minnesota Vikings. During that same game, Motley also recorded a 69-yard rushing touchdown and a 33-yard receiving touchdown. Despite averaging fewer than 12 carries per game for the season, he still led the entire NFL in rushing with 810 yards as the Browns won their first NFL championship. Earlier in his career at Great Lakes Naval Training Station in 1945, Motley also delivered a legendary performance against Notre Dame, leading his service team to a 39–7 victory in what was the final military game of World War II. Even though he was eligible for discharge before the match, he stayed on to play, utilizing Paul Brown's experimentation with the delayed handoff, later known as the draw play.

Reader's Guide

Marion Motley was a pioneering fullback and linebacker for the Cleveland Browns, known for his powerful running and blocking. He helped the Browns win four AAFC championships and one NFL championship. His career rushing average of 5.7 yards per carry is a record for running backs that still stands. Motley, along with Bill Willis, broke professional football's color barrier in 1946. He faced racism throughout his career but persevered, becoming a Hall of Famer in 1968.

Did You Know?

• Motley's career average of 5.7 yards per carry is often cited as a record for fullbacks or pre-modern era players.
• He was one of the first two African-Americans to play professional football in the modern post-1933 era, alongside Bill Willis.
• Motley led the AAFC in rushing in 1948 and the NFL in rushing in 1950.
• He attempted a comeback in 1955 as a fullback/linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers, playing in 10 games.