Los Angeles Chargers Hall of Fame

The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL) based in the Los Angeles Area. The club began play in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League (AFL), and spent its first season in Los Angeles before moving to San Diego in 1961.^[1] They returned to Los Angeles in 2017. The Chargers created their Hall of Fame in 1976.^[2] Eligible candidates for the Hall of Fame must have been retired for at least four seasons.^[3] Selections are made by a five-member committee chaired by Dean Spanos, Chargers vice-chairman. As of 1992, other committee members included Bob Breitbard, founder of the San Diego Hall of Champions; Ron Fowler, president of the Greater San Diego Sports Association; Jane Rappoport, president of the Charger Backers; and Bill Johnston, the team's director of public relations.^[4]

The initial four members—former players Emil Karas, Frank Buncom, Bob Laraba, and Jacque MacKinnon—were inducted posthumously in 1976.^[5] From 1986 through 1992, there were no new inductions.^[6] The Los Angeles Times wrote in 1992, "The Chargers have not done a good job in recent years of recognizing their former players."^[7] Dan Fouts and Charlie Joiner were inducted in 1993. "It embarrasses me to go into the Hall of Fame before Don Coryell, because if it wasn't for Don Coryell, I wouldn't be in the Hall of Fame for the Chargers," said Fouts of his former head coach.^[8]^[9] Coryell was inducted the following year.^[10] The Chargers allowed the 2012 inductee to be determined by fans, who selected punter Darren Bennett.^[4]^[11]

The members of the Hall of Fame are honored at the Chargers Walk of Fame at the entrance to their practice facility in El Segundo, California.^[12]^[13] They were previously recognized in San Diego at the Chargers Ring of Honor, viewable above the visiting team's sideline of Qualcomm Stadium on the press level.^[14]^[15] It was founded in 2000 as part of the team's season-long celebration of its 40th anniversary.^[14] Before its introduction that season, the Chargers and the Oakland Raiders were the only NFL teams without a Ring of Honor.^[16] In 2013, the Chargers also inducted their 1963 AFL Championship team into their Ring of Honor; 15 members of that team were already in the team's Hall of Fame.^[17]

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Inducted	Year officially inducted
Name	Name of inductee
Position	Player position or other role of inductee
Years	Years with the Chargers
No.	Jersey number with Chargers (players only)
*	Member of Pro Football Hall of Fame
^	Number retired by the Chargers

Inducted	Name	Position	Years	No.	Ref
1976	Emil Karas	LB	1960–1966	56	^[18]
	Frank Buncom	LB	1962–1968	55	^[18]
	Bob Laraba	LB	1960–1961	53	^[18]
	Jacque MacKinnon	TE	1961–1969	38	^[18]
1977	Lance Alworth*	WR	1962–1970	19^	^[18]
1978	Ron Mix*	OT	1960–1969	74	^[18]
1979	Paul Lowe	RB	1960–1968	23	^[18]
1980	Barron Hilton	Majority owner	1960–1966	–	^[18]
1980	Keith Lincoln	RB	1961–1968	22	^[18]
1981	Ernie Ladd	DT	1961–1965	77	^[18]
1981	Walt Sweeney	G	1963–1973	78	^[18]
1983	John Hadl	QB	1962–1972	21	^[18]
1984	Chuck Allen	LB	1961–1969	50	^[18]
1985	Gary Garrison	WR	1966–1976	27	^[18]
1985	Sid Gillman*	Head coach	1961–1969, 1971	–	^[18]
1986	Earl Faison	DE	1961–1966	86	^[18]
1993	Dan Fouts*	QB	1973–1987	14^	^[19]
1993	Charlie Joiner*	WR	1976–1986	18^	^[18]
1994	Don Coryell*	Head coach	1978–1986	–	^[18]
1995	Speedy Duncan	CB	1964–1970	45	^[18]
	Russ Washington	OT	1968–1982	70	^[18]
	Kellen Winslow*	TE	1979–1987	80^	^[18]
1996	George Pernicano	Minority owner	1961–present	–	^[18]
1997	Rolf Benirschke	K	1978–1987	6	^[18]
1998	Gill Byrd	CB	1983–1992	22	^[20]
1999	Gary "Big Hands" Johnson	DT	1975–1984	79	^[21]
2000	Doug Wilkerson	G	1971–1984	63	^[18]
2001	Wes Chandler	WR	1981–1987	89	^[18]
2002	Stan Humphries	QB	1992–1997	12	^[18]
2002	Bobby Ross	Head coach	1992–1996	–	^[18]
2003	Louie Kelcher	DT	1975–1983	74	^[18]
2004	Don Macek	C	1976–1989	62	^[18]
2004	Ed White	G	1978–1985	67	^[18]
2008	Fred Dean*	DE	1975–1981	71	^[18]
2011	Junior Seau*	LB	1990–2002	55^	^[22]^[23]
2012	Darren Bennett	P	1995–2003	2	^[24]
2014	Leslie O'Neal	DE	1986–1995	91	^[25]
2015	LaDainian Tomlinson*	RB	2001–2009	21^	^[26]
2018	Bobby Beathard*	General manager	1990–2000	–	^[27]
2022	Jamal Williams	NT	1998–2009	76	^[28]
2023	Antonio Gates*	TE	2003–2018	85	^[29]
2025	Rodney Harrison	S	1994–2002	37	^[30]

Los Angeles Chargers Hall of Fame

Key

Hall of Fame inductees

See also

References

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