EMMETT DELANEY, shown during his high school days at Jefferson. File / Star Beacon
Ahead of his time
Jefferson’s Emmett Delaney was special in many ways, on and off the playing field
KARL PEARSON Star Beacon
Tom David, another 1956 Jefferson graduate who is an auto salesman in the community now, agrees.
“Emmett was a fantastic player,” he said. “He was our short-yardage guy. He got the tough yards for us. He did all the running between the two and five holes for us. They called him the Freshman Phenom that year.
“Emmett was also a great blocker. He was also an excellent linebacker. And he really was a great teammate. He fit into our team like a hand into a glove.”
Ron Means, the quarterback in Delaney’s sophomore year, said Delaney was a performer upon whom all his coaches and teammates could rely.
“Emmett played well in every game,” he said. “They called him the Falcon Express because he was so fast and so powerful. He was a very good blocker, too.”
Larry Carlson, who went on to become a fine coach and the athletic director at Jefferson, was also Delaney’s teammate. He remembers Delaney’s physical strength and his strength of character.
“He was just so strong,” Carlson said. “He had huge thighs and calves. He was as strong as an ox.
“But Emmett never tried to show you how strong he was. He was a very quiet guy. He was also very popular. He was class president his junior year.”
Butcher came to depend on Delaney’s leadership skills, especially as an example to the other Falcons.
“He was a guy who never said too much, but just went about his business,” the coach said. “He was a bull of a runner and a very hard hitter at linebacker. Emmett was an excellent player.”
Even his opponents respected Delaney. Just ask Edgewood’s Dale Corlew, who will accompany him into the Hall of Fame on Monday.
“He was an excellent player,” Delaney said. “He was a very tough player for Jefferson.”
Coming to town
According to school system records, Delaney was born Nov. 12, 1938 in Chicago. He was the son of August and Alean Delaney, a laborer.
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