Sam Claphan

Sam Claphan was born in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, and was a high school All-American at Stilwell High School in 1974. He was on Oklahoma's 1974 and 1975 national title teams and started on the line from 1975 to 1978. At 6-foot-7 and 295 pounds, he was the biggest player on the team. Cleveland drafted him in the second round, 47th overall, in 1979, but a preseason injury kept him off the roster. San Diego picked him up, and he played for the Chargers through 1987, starting at tackle and protecting Dan Fouts' blind side. Wikipedia says he played longer in the NFL than any other OU lineman. A Cherokee, he was inducted into the American Indian Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994. He died of a heart attack on November 26, 2001. The Daily Oklahoman wrote on January 13, 1980 (NewsBank page 33): "The Browns must have been high on this 6-6, 271-pound tackle to make him a second-round pick, but a back injury in Cleveland's final pre-season game grounded Claphan for the year."