Rice, Smith let the tears flow

More: Charting Rice and Smith

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Jerry Rice(notes) and Emmitt Smith may have been automatic picks, but neither was prepared for the rush of emotions that went with his selection Saturday to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

As Rice and Smith remembered their fathers – Rice's long since passed and Smith's sitting just a few feet away – both were overcome by the moment and wept openly. They barely controlled their emotions, having to be bailed out by the 300 or so people in attendance with a round of applause.

"My parents, my father, they instilled in me," Rice said before he was overcome. After a lengthy pause, all Rice could say was, "My gosh, excuse me."

For his part, Smith broke down twice during his appearance on NFL Network, particularly as he talked about an exchange with his father as they waited for an announcement that was inevitable.

"My father said, 'Son, I'm proud of you,' " Smith said, looking at his father Emmitt Smith Jr., a man who has driven a city bus in Pensacola, Fla., for 30 years and only now is thinking about retiring. "He said, 'I had the dreams of doing what you're doing. But my mother got sick and I never went to college.' "

Smith, who spent 13 of his 15 NFL seasons with the Dallas Cowboys, composed himself after a long, tearful pause to recall what his father said.

"You're living my dream."

Smith's father proudly looked back at his son, who ran for more yards (18,355) than any other running back in NFL history after setting out early in his career to do so. The elder Smith, 65, gave up a chance to play college football to care for his mother, who was stricken with a tumor that eventually left her a quadriplegic.

"It wasn't meant for me to go to college, to have that career," said the elder Smith, a standout high school running back who has logged some serious stats of his own. By his count, he has driven more than a million miles on his job and has zero accidents. "I've followed football all my life, ever since I was eight years old. You hear about Hall of Fame players and see them get inducted. To see my offspring get to this level is an amazing, emotional experience."

Rice, who owns a myriad of NFL receiving records, and Smith were among seven men elected to the 2010 Hall of Fame class. Selected with them were former Denver Broncos running back Floyd Little, Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator and former Detroit Lions cornerback Dick LeBeau, former Washington Redskins offensive lineman Russ Grimm, former New Orleans Saints and 49ers linebacker Rickey Jackson and former Minnesota Vikings and Seattle Seahawks defensive tackle John Randle.

While Rice and Smith were obvious selections – their presentation speeches could have been timed by stopwatch – neither of them was prepared for what was to come as they took the stage. Rice talked about how the work ethic that drove him to run the steep hills of the San Francisco Peninsula helped him survive 20 years in the NFL.

"It's just hard work and this game, it's everything to me. I love this game," said Rice, who played for the Oakland Raiders and Seahawks after leaving the 49ers following 2000.

Afterward, Rice talked about the hard look his father Joe Rice, who died in 2005, would give him when he was a child.

"The way he would discipline us, he would stare at us as the way to tell it was time to straighten up. I do that with my children now," Rice said. "He and my mother taught me about hard work and to respect other people. … As I sat up there, I started thinking about him, that he won't be there the day I go in, and about [late 49ers coach] Bill Walsh."

That respect, combined with an overwhelming desire to succeed, made Rice a workaholic. That work ethic combined with his talent made Rice arguably the greatest player in NFL history.

"I never took a game for granted. I never took a practice for granted. When people came to see the 49ers play, I wanted them to see something special," Rice said.

Former San Francisco quarterback Steve Young recalled how, three or four days after the 49ers had won the Super Bowl following the 1994 season, he saw Rice running wind sprints on the fields behind the 49ers training complex in Santa Clara, Calif. Young also talked about how Rice tried to outwork his fellow receivers year after year.

"He had a personal vendetta to run those guys into the ground," Young said.

"I felt like if I didn't set the example, they wouldn't give their all," Rice said.

The beauty of Saturday was that the examples set for both Rice and Smith were what got them to this point. Even if the moment left them a little overwhelmed.