Lem Barney
Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox NFL biography
Lemuel Jackson Barney (born September 8, 1945) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback and return specialist for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL) from 1967 to 1977, playing occasionally as a punter as well. He played college football for the Jackson State Tigers from 1964 to 1966. He was selected by the Lions in the 1967 NFL/AFL draft and played. He was selected as the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 1967, played in seven Pro Bowls, and was selected as a first-team All-NFL player in 1968 and 1969. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1992. He has also been inducted into the Detroit Lions Hall of Fame, the Jackson State Sports Hall of Fame, the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame, and the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame.
Early lifeEdit
Barney was born in Gulfport, Mississippi, in 1945. He attended the 33rd Avenue High School in Gulfport.<ref name=PFR/> He played at the quarterback position for his high school football team.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
College careerEdit
Barney attended Jackson State University, a historically black university in Jackson, Mississippi. His son Lem Barney III and grandson Lem Barney IV also followed in his footsteps and graduated from Jackson State. He played college football for the Jackson State Tigers football team from 1964 to 1966 under head coach Rod Paige. He had 26 career interceptions at Jackson State, including nine in 1965 and 11 in 1966. He also had punt averages of 41.7 and 42.5 in those two seasons. Barney was an All-Southwestern Athletic Conference selection three straight years. He was also selected as an All-American by Ebony magazine and the Pittsburgh Courier.<ref name=DFP1>Template:Cite news</ref>
Professional careerEdit
Barney was selected by the Detroit Lions in the second round, 34th overall pick, of the 1967 NFL draft.<ref name=PFR>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> As a rookie in 1967, Barney appeared in all 14 games as a starting cornerback and led the NFL with 10 interceptions, 232 interception return yards and three interceptions returned for touchdowns.<ref name=PFR/> After an injury to Pat Studstill, Barney also took over as the Lions' punter, punting 47 times for an average of 37.4 yards in 1967.<ref name=PFR/> On September 17, 1967, in the first quarter of his first NFL game, Barney intercepted the first pass thrown in his direction by Bart Starr and returned it 24 yards for a touchdown.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=HOF/> In the final game of his rookie season, Barney intercepted three passes within ten minutes and returned one 71 yards for a touchdown.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> At the end of the 1967 season, he was selected by the Associated Press as the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.<ref name=DFP2>Template:Cite news</ref>
After the 1967 season, Barney played in the 1968 Pro Bowl,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and in the off-season, he was married and also served six months of active duty in the Navy.<ref name=DFP2/>
Barney went on to be selected to seven Pro Bowls and was selected as a first-team All-NFL player in 1968 and 1969.<ref name=PFR/> During his 11 years in the NFL, Barney had 56 interceptions, 1,011 interception return yards, and seven interceptions returned for touchdowns. He also returned 143 punts for 1,312 yards and three touchdowns as well as 50 kickoff returns for 1,274 yards, including a 98-yard return for touchdown.<ref name=PFR/>
In March 1978, as part of a wiretap investigation into international drug smuggling, Barney's voice was heard allegedly discussing cocaine and amphetamines.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Although investigators stated that Barney was not the focus of the investigation,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the controversy received extensive press attention through the spring of 1978, as Barney was called to testify before a New York grand jury.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In August 1978, the Lions placed Barney on the injured waiver list.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Barney's efforts to sign with another team were unsuccessful,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and he did not play during the 1978 season.<ref name=PFR/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was officially released by the Lions in February 1979.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Awards and honorsEdit
After retiring as a player, Barney received numerous honors, including the following:
- In 1980, he was inducted into the Detroit Lions Hall of Fame.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- In 1983, he was inducted into the Jackson State Sports Hall of Fame.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- In 1985, he was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- In 1986, he was inducted into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame.<ref name=MS>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- In 1992, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.<ref name=HOF>Template:Cite news</ref> Jim David, Barney's position coach with the Lions, gave the induction speech for Barney.
- In 1997, the Detroit Free Press selected Barney as the best cornerback in NFL history.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- In 1999, he was ranked 97th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- In 2004, the Lions retired jersey #20 in tribute to three Lions greats who wore the number: Barney, Billy Sims and Barry Sanders.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
NFL career statisticsEdit
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| NFL record | |
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
Regular seasonEdit
| Year | Team | Games | Interceptions | Fumbles | Returning | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | ||
| 1967 | DET | 14 | 14 | 10 | 232 | 23.2 | 71 | 3Template:EfnTemplate:Efn | 2 | 0 | -5 | -5.0 | 0 | 9 | 101 | 11.2 | 25 | 0 |
| 1968 | DET | 14 | 14 | 7 | 82 | 11.7 | 62 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 38 | 749 | 19.7 | 98 | 1 |
| 1969 | DET | 13 | 13 | 8 | 126 | 15.8 | 32 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 25 | 12.5 | 0 | 16 | 345 | 21.6 | 74 | 1Template:Efn |
| 1970 | DET | 13 | 13 | 7 | 168 | 24.0 | 49 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 27 | 355 | 13.1 | 74 | 1Template:Efn |
| 1971 | DET | 9 | 7 | 3 | 78 | 26.0 | 28 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 23 | 344 | 15.0 | 48 | 0 |
| 1972 | DET | 14 | 14 | 3 | 88 | 29.3 | 64 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 20 | 20.0 | 0 | 16 | 125 | 7.8 | 26 | 0 |
| 1973 | DET | 14 | 14 | 4 | 130 | 32.5 | 38 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 28 | 259 | 9.3 | 42 | 0 |
| 1974 | DET | 13 | 12 | 4 | 61 | 15.3 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 5 | 37 | 7.4 | 11 | 0 |
| 1975 | DET | 10 | 10 | 5 | 23 | 4.6 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 74 | 74.0 | 0 | 8 | 80 | 10.0 | 30 | 0 |
| 1976 | DET | 14 | 14 | 2 | 62 | 31.0 | 26 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 23 | 191 | 8.3 | 30 | 0 |
| 1977 | DET | 12 | 11 | 3 | 27 | 9.0 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 49 | 24.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 140 | 136 | 56 | 1,077 | 19.2 | 71 | 7 | 25 | 17 | 163 | 9.6 | 0 | 193 | 2,586 | 13.4 | 98 | 3 | |
PostseasonEdit
| Year | Team | Games | Punt returns | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | Template:Abbr | ||
| 1970 | DET | 1 | 1 | 5 | 20 | 4.0 | 8 | 0 |
| Career | 1 | 1 | 5 | 20 | 4.0 | 8 | 0 | |
EntertainerEdit
Barney is an accomplished singer who began singing with choirs in his youth and college.<ref name=Sing>Template:Cite news</ref> He befriended Motown recording artist Marvin Gaye, when Gaye unsuccessfully tried out for the Lions in 1970. Barney and teammate Mel Farr sang background vocals on Gaye's classic 1971 song "What's Going On".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2015, Barney was invited to sing the national anthem at the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony.<ref name=Sing/>
Barney also had a brief acting career, beginning with a self-portrayal in the 1968 comedy, Paper Lion. In 1973, he was one of the stars of the blaxploitation biker film, The Black Six.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Personal lifeEdit
Barney and his wife, Martha, had a daughter, LaTrece, and a son, Lem III.<ref name=Profile/> After retiring from the NFL, Barney worked for many years, starting in 1979, in public affairs for Michigan Consolidated Gas Company.<ref name=Profile>Template:Cite news</ref> He also worked in the 1980s as a football broadcaster on BET and on pre-season games for the Detroit Lions.<ref name=Profile/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In March 1993, after his car crashed into a guardrail on a Detroit freeway, Barney was arrested and charged with driving under the influence and possession of cocaine and marijuana.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was found not guilty of the drug charges following a jury trial in 1994.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In 2006, Barney published an autobiography titled, "The Supernatural: Lem Barney".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
He held a public relations post at the Detroit Medical Center starting in 2006. After being fired from that position, he filed an age discrimination lawsuit in 2013.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Also in 2013, Barney publicly declared that, in light of revelations about brain injuries resulting from football, he would not play football if he had the chance to live his life over again and predicted that the game of football would be gone in another 20 years.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
His nephew Milton Barney also played in the NFL.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
NotesEdit
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
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