Robert Yale Lary

Robert Yale Lary

Detroit Lions Player (1952 – 1953, 1956 – 1964)

Yale Lary was born in Ft. Worth, Texas and he attended North Side High School where as a multi-sport athlete he earned nine varsity letters in four different sports. He attended Texas A & M University where he played both football and baseball earning all-conference honors in football and helping the Aggies to the 1951 College World Series in baseball. He was selected in the third round of the 1952 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions where he spent his entire career. He played for two years before serving two years in the U.S. Army missing the 1954 and 1955 seasons. He picked up his career again in 1956 and spent the remainder of his career with the Lions. In all he was a part of three NFL Championship teams with the Lions, was a five-time All-Pro being selected to nine Pro Bowls. Yale Lary was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979, the NFL 1950’s All-Decade Team and was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 1988. He passed away on May 11, 2017 at 86 years of age.