Sports betting has come full circle for Paul Hornung.
Hornung, the Hall of Fame Packers running back who was suspended from the NFL for the entire 1963 season for gambling, has lived long enough to see sports betting celebrated. Today in Indiana, which has just legalized sports betting, Hornung is placing the ceremonial first bet at a new sports book.
Commissioner Pete Rozelle initially suspended Hornung indefinitely in 1963, and as part of his deal to get back to the NFL, he agreed not only not to be involved with anyone betting on football, but also to stop traveling to Las Vegas and not attend the Kentucky Derby, which he had always done since his childhood in Louisville.
Now the NFL is getting ready to put a team in Las Vegas, gambling has become an accepted part of football fandom, and Hornung can place a bet legally in a state where until this month it had been illegal.