Ray Guy, Raiders Legend and Pro Football Hall of Fame Punter, Dead at 72

By Brian Jones

Ray Guy, the Pro Football Hall of Fame punter who spent his entire career with the Raiders, died on Thursday, his alma mater Southern Mississippi announced. He was 72 years old. Southern Mississippi said Guy died following a lengthy illness. He has been receiving care in a Hattiesburg-area hospice, according to the Associated Press. 

Guy began his NFL career in 1973 as a member of the Oakland Raiders. The team would eventually be called the Los Angeles Raiders with the move to LA, and Guy is considered a legendary figure of the franchise for what he did in his 14-year career. Guy was named to the Pro Bowl seven times, selected to the All-Pro Team eight times and helped the team win three Super Bowls. Guy is also a member of the 1970s All-Decade Team, the 75th Anniversary All-Time Team and the 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. He retired from the NFL following the 1986 season and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2014, which is the same year he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. 

"Fittingly, much was written when Ray Guy was enshrined in Canton about how his election as the first true punter created a "full roster" of players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Too often overlooked, however, was the man behind his powerful right leg," Hall of Fame president Jim Porter said in a statement. "Ray was a warm, humble Southern gentleman who represented the game, the Raiders organization and the Hall of Fame with dignity and class at all times."   

Guy was selected by the Raiders in the first round, making him the first punter to be selected in the first round of the draft. Additionally, Guy is the second pure kicker and first pure punter to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The late John Madden was Guy's coach when they were with the Raiders and knew he had a special player. 

"The first time I laid eyes on him is when we first brought him to practice. And he started to punt, and he punted the longest, highest footballs that I had ever seen," Madden said during his presentation of Guy for enshrinement in 2014, per NFL.com. "And I said, 'OK, that's enough.' You know, I didn't want to tire his leg out or have him get injured. And he said 'coach, I'm just warming up.' And I thought 'holy moly, just warming up?' And I knew right then, at that moment, that he was going to be special."

Overall, Guy is in seven Hall of Fames  — the Mississippi and Georgia Sports Halls of Fame, the Georgia High School Football Hall of Fame, the National High School Sports Hall of Fame, the College Football Hall of Fame, the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He has a college football award named after him called the Ray Guy Award and many consider him the greatest punter of all time.

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