Larry Elkins
Encyclopedia
Lawrence Clayton Elkins (born July 28, 1943) is a former American football
player. He was a two-time All-American flanker
at Baylor
and later for the AFL
's Houston Oilers.
and turned down a $25,000 baseball offer to enroll at Baylor. One of the best receivers in Baylor history, Elkins caught seventy passes in 1963 to lead the nation. Elkins also played safety for the defense and returned kicks. In 1962, he had a ninety-two-yard punt return against TCU
. For his career, he caught 144 passes for 2,094 yards with a school-record nineteen touchdowns. He still shares Baylor's single-game record for receptions with twelve, which he caught against Texas
in 1963. He ranks number three in all-time career receptions and career receiving yards.
Elkins was a consensus All-American his last two years (1963
, 1964
)—Baylor's first-ever two-time consensus pick. He played in the 1965 East-West Shrine Game
, Coaches All-America Game, and Hula Bowl
. He was MVP of the Hula Bowl.
Elkins was inducted into the Baylor Athletic Hall of Fame in 1976 and into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1994.
by the Green Bay Packers
and in the first round of the 1965 AFL Draft by the Houston Oilers. He played for Houston from 1965 to 1968.
But Elkins' pro career never really got off the ground. He suffered a knee injury in his rookie season with the Oilers and then broke his collarbone in a 1969 preseason game after earning a starting job with the Pittsburgh Steelers
. "Rather unlucky, I suppose," he told the Baylor Line in 2001.
and in Africa
. Elkins described the years of 1982 to 1989 as "various midlife crises endeavors, including stints with the artistic peoples in the entertainment business." He spent ten months renovating parts of Robert Duvall
's horse farm in Virginia
and took the actor all over Texas
to research accents for his 1983 movie Tender Mercies
. When Duvall won the Oscar for the movie that year, Elkins was there as his special guest. Elkins said he also rubbed shoulders with Gene Hackman
, Robert DeNiro, Meryl Streep
, and Robert Redford
during those years.
After that, Elkins spent more than a dozen years in Saudi Arabia
, where he was a consultant for the country's Ministry of Water, which managed twenty-six desalination
plants and several pipelines and pumping stations along the Red Sea
and Persian Gulf
.
Now Elkins has retired and moved back to his hometown of Brownwood, where he lives in a little bungalow on a hilltop overlooking Lake Brownwood.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player. He was a two-time All-American flanker
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
at Baylor
Baylor University
Baylor University is a private, Christian university located in Waco, Texas. Founded in 1845, Baylor is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.-History:...
and later for the AFL
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
's Houston Oilers.
College career
Elkins was an all-around athletic star at Brownwood High SchoolBrownwood High School
Brownwood High School is a 3A high school located in Brownwood, Texas . It is part of the Brownwood Independent School District located in central Brown County...
and turned down a $25,000 baseball offer to enroll at Baylor. One of the best receivers in Baylor history, Elkins caught seventy passes in 1963 to lead the nation. Elkins also played safety for the defense and returned kicks. In 1962, he had a ninety-two-yard punt return against TCU
Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University is a private, coeducational university located in Fort Worth, Texas, United States and founded in 1873. TCU is affiliated with, but not governed by, the Disciples of Christ...
. For his career, he caught 144 passes for 2,094 yards with a school-record nineteen touchdowns. He still shares Baylor's single-game record for receptions with twelve, which he caught against Texas
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
in 1963. He ranks number three in all-time career receptions and career receiving yards.
Elkins was a consensus All-American his last two years (1963
1963 College Football All-America Team
The 1963 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers...
, 1964
1964 College Football All-America Team
The 1964 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers...
)—Baylor's first-ever two-time consensus pick. He played in the 1965 East-West Shrine Game
East-West Shrine Game
The East–West Shrine Game is an annual post-season college football all-star game played each January since 1925. The game is sponsored by the fraternal group Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and the net proceeds are earmarked to some of the Shrine's charitable works, most notably the Shriners...
, Coaches All-America Game, and Hula Bowl
Hula Bowl
The Hula Bowl was an independently administered post-season invitational college football game held each year in Hawaii from 1947 to 2008. The game was last played at Aloha Stadium in the Hālawa district of Honolulu, Hawaii. At one point the longest-running sporting event in Hawaii, it had been...
. He was MVP of the Hula Bowl.
Elkins was inducted into the Baylor Athletic Hall of Fame in 1976 and into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1994.
Professional career
He was drafted in the first round of the 1965 NFL Draft1965 NFL Draft
The 1965 National Football League Draft took place on November 28, 1964. The first player selected was Tucker Frederickson, back from Auburn, by the New York Giants. The draft was marked by the failure of the St...
by the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
and in the first round of the 1965 AFL Draft by the Houston Oilers. He played for Houston from 1965 to 1968.
But Elkins' pro career never really got off the ground. He suffered a knee injury in his rookie season with the Oilers and then broke his collarbone in a 1969 preseason game after earning a starting job with the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
. "Rather unlucky, I suppose," he told the Baylor Line in 2001.
After football
After leaving football, Elkins became something of a globe-trotter. From 1971 to 1978, he worked for Brown and Root Inc. in the safety, health, and claims department, both in the United States and in Europe. From 1979-82, he worked with off-shore drilling companies in the Gulf of MexicoGulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
and in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. Elkins described the years of 1982 to 1989 as "various midlife crises endeavors, including stints with the artistic peoples in the entertainment business." He spent ten months renovating parts of Robert Duvall
Robert Duvall
Robert Selden Duvall is an American actor and director. He has won an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards and a BAFTA over the course of his career....
's horse farm in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and took the actor all over Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
to research accents for his 1983 movie Tender Mercies
Tender Mercies
Tender Mercies is a 1983 American drama film directed by Bruce Beresford. The screenplay by Horton Foote focuses on Mac Sledge, a recovering alcoholic country music singer who seeks to turn his life around through his relationship with a young widow and her son in rural Texas...
. When Duvall won the Oscar for the movie that year, Elkins was there as his special guest. Elkins said he also rubbed shoulders with Gene Hackman
Gene Hackman
Eugene Allen "Gene" Hackman is an American actor and novelist.Nominated for five Academy Awards, winning two, Hackman has also won three Golden Globes and two BAFTAs in a career that spanned five decades. He first came to fame in 1967 with his performance as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde...
, Robert DeNiro, Meryl Streep
Meryl Streep
Mary Louise "Meryl" Streep is an American actress who has worked in theatre, television and film.Streep made her professional stage debut in 1971's The Playboy of Seville, before her screen debut in the television movie The Deadliest Season in 1977. In that same year, she made her film debut with...
, and Robert Redford
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
during those years.
After that, Elkins spent more than a dozen years in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, where he was a consultant for the country's Ministry of Water, which managed twenty-six desalination
Desalination
Desalination, desalinization, or desalinisation refers to any of several processes that remove some amount of salt and other minerals from saline water...
plants and several pipelines and pumping stations along the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
and Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
.
Now Elkins has retired and moved back to his hometown of Brownwood, where he lives in a little bungalow on a hilltop overlooking Lake Brownwood.