SAN DIEGO — Hank Stram and Marcus Allen are the closest things to shoo-ins in today's Pro Football Hall of Fame election, but Stram, with the caution of a coach, said there is no such thing as a sure thing.
"I really have no clue," he said. "I was around a lot of people this week, and everybody said the same thing, that it is a done deal. But I've lived too long to take anything for granted."
Stram, who turned 79 Jan. 3, coached the Kansas City Chiefs in two Super Bowls, the first in 1967, a 35-10 loss to the Green Bay Packers, and the next Super Bowl IV in 1970, a 23-7 victory over the Minnesota Vikings.
"If I were to get into the Hall of Fame," Stram said, "it would match those Super Bowls."
Allen, USC's Heisman trophy-winning running back in 1981 and longtime star with the Raiders, is also expected to be among four or five granted the honor by a panel of 38 voters.
