Gene Hickerson
Hickerson (left) with Robert Jackson in 1979
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| No. 66 | |||||||||
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| Position: | Offensive guard | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Date of birth: | February 15, 1935 | ||||||||
| Place of birth: | Trenton, Tennessee | ||||||||
| Date of death: | October 20, 2008 (aged 73) | ||||||||
| Place of death: | Cleveland, Ohio | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| College: | Ole Miss | ||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 1957 / Round: 7 / Pick: 78 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||
| Games played: | 202 |
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| Seasons: | 15 |
| Fumble recoveries: | 7 |
| Player stats at NFL.com | |
Robert Gene Hickerson (February 15, 1935 – October 20, 2008) was an American Football offensive guard who played for the Cleveland Browns of th National Football League (NFL) in a fifteen-year career from 1958 to 1960 and 1962 to 1973. Hickerson was a six-time Pro Bowler from 1965 to 1970. He was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on August 4, 2007.
Hickerson was born in Trenton, Tennessee located in Gibson County, but played fullback at Trezevant High School in neighboring Carroll County. Hickerson became a tackle at Ole Miss. He was considered one of the best offensive linemen in Southeastern Conference history at the end of his collegiate career.
Gene was drafted in the seventh round of the 1957 NFL Draft by the Browns. He was promptly shifted to the guard position on the offensive line in 1958 to better utilize his speed. He was used as a "messenger" guard by Coach Paul Brown, or a guard that delivered the plays in the huddle, while blocking for Hall of Famers Jim Brown, Bobby Mitchell, and Leroy Kelly. But after three seasons in the league, he broke his leg in 1961 and fractured the leg again later in the season while watching a game from the sidelines.
After missing two games in 1962, he recovered from the injury and never missed another game in his professional tenure. Hickerson only earned accolades after Jim Brown had retired and he was blocking for Leroy Kelly, but he earned first-team all-NFL honors five straight seasons from 1966 to 1970 and was voted to six consecutive Pro Bowls from 1966 to 1971. During his career, Hickerson's Browns never experienced a losing season and was a starter in four NFL title games, including a 1964 NFL Championship win over the Baltimore Colts 27–0. During Gene's 10 pro seasons, the Browns featured a 1,000-yard rusher every season but one in the era where the NFL season consisted of 14 games. They also had the NFL's leading rusher seven seasons of those ten. He was elected to the Browns' legends team and the NFL 1960s All-Decade Team. In 2003, he was named to the Professional Football Researchers Association Hall of Very Good in the association's inaugural HOVG class.
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