Our young people look up to us. Let us not let them down. Our young people need us. Saving them will make heroes of us all.

Sayers' final game was in the 1972 preseason where he fumbled twice in three carries; he retired a few days later. 7 yards per return. He gained 1374 yards from scrimmage and had 2272 all-purpose yards (also a record later broken by Tim Brown who played two more games than Sayers).

He was a first-round pick in the 1965 NFL Draft and played his entire pro career for the NFL's Chicago Bears. He played college football for the University of Kansas and was twice recognized as an All-American.