Carl Eller was born in Winston-Salem in 1942. He attended Atkins High School and the University of Minnesota.
At the University of Minnesota, Carl played football on the defensive line. In his sophomore year, his team won the Rose Bowl game. Carl was voted All-American in his junior and senior years. The Carl Eller Award is presented to the University of Minnesota’s Defensive Player of the Year, in his honor.
Carl was drafted in the first round of the NFL draft by the Minnesota Vikings, and he played with them from 1964 to 1978. He was part of the unit known as the “Purple People Eaters,” so called because of his being a part of the Viking front four, and the Vikings’ colors of purple, gold and white. He was traded to the Seattle Seahawks and played his last season with the Seahawks in 1979.
He amassed many honors as a Viking and a Seahawk, and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2004.
Photo courtesy of Forsyth County Public Library Photograph Collection.
