63. Larry Station
Football, Track & Field / Omaha / Born: 1963
QUICK FACTS:
Played for: Omaha Central High, Iowa Hawkeyes and Pittsburgh Steelers
Best athlete from Nebraska played with or against: Central teammate Pernell Gatson, an all-state quarterback and state championship wrestler. "He had speed, agility and he was a really hard worker,'' Station said.
Best moment as an athlete: Playing on Iowa's 1985 Big Ten Conference championship team that was ranked No. 1 for more than a month and finished the season in the Rose Bowl.
Dan McCarney minces no words in expressing his admiration for Larry Station's talents as a football player.
"I've been around a long time,'' McCarney said, "and I still ain't seen anyone better than Larry Station.''
The Iowa State coach was an assistant at Iowa when Station was a linebacking terror for the Hawkeyes from 1982 through 1985. The Omaha Central graduate led the Hawkeyes in tackles in each of his four seasons and set the school record with 435 career tackles. He twice earned All-America honors, was named Academic All-America twice and All-Big Ten Conference three times.
Not a bad resume for a guy who had an early dislike for contact.
"When I was 10 and playing for the Boys Club, I was afraid to get hit,'' Station said. "That actually pushed me to tennis.''
On the court, Station earned state championships as a 10- and 12-year-old. At age 14, Station was ranked third among Nebraska juniors, but his interest had started to gravitate toward football and track, the two sports in which he starred at Omaha Central.
Station earned All-Nebraska honors twice in football and won the discus (1982) and the shot put (1981, 1982) at the state track meet. His winning discus throw in 1982 was 202 feet, 1 inch.
After his record-setting Iowa career, Station played one season with the Pittsburgh Steelers before a back injury forced his retirement. He returned to school, receiving a MBA from Washington University in St. Louis, and now manages real estate properties in Omaha.
"It was a great ride,'' Station said, referring to his career. "To go from being afraid to get hit to being the guy doing all the hitting, that was a miracle turnaround.''
In 2009, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
-- Steven Pivovar
QUICK FACTS:
Played for: Omaha Central High, Iowa Hawkeyes and Pittsburgh Steelers
Best athlete from Nebraska played with or against: Central teammate Pernell Gatson, an all-state quarterback and state championship wrestler. "He had speed, agility and he was a really hard worker,'' Station said.
Best moment as an athlete: Playing on Iowa's 1985 Big Ten Conference championship team that was ranked No. 1 for more than a month and finished the season in the Rose Bowl.
