Scott Howley, son of former NFL player Chuck Howley, poses with his father's bust during his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, Saturday, Aug. 5, 2023. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

Among the immortalizing halls of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Wheeling native, Warwood High and WVU alum, and Super Bowl champion Chuck Howley was made member No. 365 on Saturday.

Nine football legends were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio this weekend – Ronde Barber, Joe Klecko, Darrelle Revis, Ken Riley, Joe Thoams, Zach Thomas, Demarcus Ware and Howley – as the main event of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s “Enshrinement Week.”

Howley’s son Scott was presented with his father’s gold jacket on Friday, and Howley was officially inducted on Saturday, with Scott giving the induction speech and former teammate Bob Lilly helping unveil Howley’s Hall of Fame bust.

Howley was selected as a seniors choice back in February, the honor coming 50 years after he last played pro football in 1973.

Howley played 15 seasons for the Bears and Cowboys, winning Super Bowl VI with Dallas, and being named Super Bowl V MVP in a losing effort, the only player in NFL history to receive Super Bowl MVP honors while playing for the losing side. Howley intercepted two passes in Super Bowl V, and intercepted a pass and recovered a fumble in Super Bowl VI.

Six pro bowls, five All-NFL first-team selections, and 25 career interceptions highlight Howley’s career.

Howley himself, 87, could not be at the festivities Saturday. Scott has said that although his father is in good shape physically at his age, Howley lives with late-stage dementia and has trouble communicating.

Though he couldn’t be present at Canton, Scott made sure his father felt the appreciation of the crowd, leading onlookers at the enshrinement ceremony to exclaim “Hello, Chuck” in unison during his speech.

Though it had been 50 years since Howley last played in the NFL, enthusiasm for his induction had not waned. This was no more evident then at his alma mater, where WVU head football coach Neal Brown took a moment during the Mountaineers’ Fan Day to recognize Howley and his induction into the hall, calling the former five-sport lettermen at WVU “one of the best linebackers to ever play in the NFL.”

Howley lettered in football, track, wrestling, gymnastics, and swimming at West Virginia University, and was a three-time All-Southern Conference selection and the conference player of the year in 1957 for the football team.

“While he was at West Virginia University, dad was the only athlete in school history to letter in five varsity sports,” Scott Howley said. “And I think that record still holds today. His greatest accomplishments were on the gridiron where he excelled as center for Coach Art “Pappy” Lewis.”

Howley was inducted into the WVU Sports Hall of Fame in 1991.

Howley was selected in the first round of the 1958 draft by the Chicago Bears, where he played for two seasons before suffering a knee injury that threatened his career. After sitting out the 1960 season, Howley made his comeback with the Dallas Cowboys.

“At the time, dad believed his football career was overdue due to a knee injury,” Scott Howley said. “But his belief and his potential allowed him to make a remarkable comeback.”

The Cowboys’ gamble on Howley paid off, the linebacker playing at the heart of what came to be known as “The Doomsday Defense,” and helping Dallas to a Super Bowl victory. He was inducted into the Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor in 1977.

“Their willingness to take a chance on him enabled dad to reach new heights and fully realize his talent,” Scott Howley said. “In fact, Coach Landry once remarked, ‘I don’t know that I’ve seen anybody better at linebacker than Howley.’ And we’d also like to thank Jerry Jones, and the entire Jones family for continuing dad’s legacy at The Star in Frisco and at AT&T Stadium.”

Howley was born and raised in Wheeling, attending Warwood High School where he was an all-conference and all-state performer. Scott Howley thanked his father’s head coach at Warwood, Jim Foti, as well as WVU, “for providing [Howley] with an environment to hone his skills.”

The induction had been a long time coming for Howley, who the website notinthehalloffame.com previously had ranked as the third-greatest player ever to not be in the Hall of Fame. Now, though it took some time, one of Wheeling’s most accomplished athletes can forever reside among his peers in Canton.