ROYALTON -- Pro football hall of famer Jim Langer received a warm homecoming this (Wednesday) afternoon at Royalton High School.

Langer, a Royalton graduate, was honored as part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Hometown Hall of Famer program, which celebrates the hometown roots of the NFL's greatest players. Langer unveiled a plaque that will be on display in the high school before speaking to the student body.

"It's really a treat to come back," Langer says. "[I] see a lot of the small town central Minnesota families -- the last names are familiar to me -- and it's fun to come and talk to our young people."

Langer was undrafted out of South Dakota State University before becoming an All-Pro center for the Super Bowl-winning Miami Dolphins teams of the 1970s, including the 1972 team -- the only team in NFL history to go undefeated. He finished his career with the Minnesota Vikings and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987.

Langer says he hopes his story will serve as a source of motivation for students walking the halls in the years to come.

"I woke up every day going to practice and thinking it might be my last day," Langer says. "[You] just do the best you can and what I found was -- in most cases -- if it's an honest effort, you'll be OK."

"The biggest fear I have is young people just tuning things out and not making an effort -- don't do anything unless you're doing it well."

Langer shared football stories, signed autographs and took pictures with the crowd after the presentation.

 

Photo by Isaac Schweer, WJON
Photo by Isaac Schweer, WJON
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