National Football League

Selmon shows signs of improvement

Published Sep. 3, 2011 1:00 a.m. ET

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Hall of Fame defensive end Lee Roy Selmon was on the minds of teams he worked with Saturday, a day after he was hospitalized in Florida after suffering a stroke. His brother said he was showing small signs of improvement.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers confirmed Saturday that he suffered a stroke. They issued a statement saying that the organization was thinking about him.

The Glazer family, which owns the team, said: ''From the very start, Lee Roy Selmon has been there for his team and his community. Now, he and the entire Selmon family should know that our family and the entire Buccaneer organization is thinking of and praying for him.''

The 57-year-old Selmon, also a star lineman at the University of Oklahoma, once served as athletic director for the University of South Florida, and its football players wore his old number on their helmets for their victory at Notre Dame.

Meanwhile, brother Dewey Selmon told the Tampa Tribune (http://bit.ly/qxazsw) on Saturday that he's showing signs of improvement.

''We all have great hope,'' said Dewey Selmon, also a former Oklahoma and Tampa Bay player. ''He's a fighter. Keep the prayers going.''

The brothers played on the Oklahoma teams that won the 1974 and 1975 national championships. Lee Roy Selmon earned All-America honors in 1975 and won the Lombardi and Outland trophies as the outstanding college lineman that year.

As a Buccaneer, he was a Pro Bowl selection six years in a row and was NFL defensive player of the year in 1979 when the team made it to the NFC championship game. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1995.

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