Mack Lee Hill (August 17, 1940 – December 14, 1965) was an American college and professional football player. He played running back at Southern University and for the American Football League's Kansas City Chiefs for two seasons (1964–65), before dying while undergoing knee surgery, days after a game against the Buffalo Bills.
He made the Chiefs' roster in 1964 as a rookie free agent out of Southern and wound up as the team's second-leading rusher that season with 567 yards and four touchdowns on 105 carries. He played in the AFL All-Star Game after his rookie campaign. He gained 627 yards, second-most on the team, in 1965, even though he did not complete the season, dying after the 12th game. He was nicknamed "The Truck." His number 36 is retired.
Through Hill's inspiration, the Chiefs created the Mack Lee Hill Award, which is given each season to the team's most outstanding rookie.
He had a son, Marzell Hill.
Famous quotes containing the words lee and/or hill:
“When that kid looks into your eyes and you know it’s yours, you know what it means to be alive.”
—Anonymous Father. Quoted in When Men are Pregnant, by Jerrold Lee Shapiro, ch. 15 (1987)
“I know there are women, like my best friends, who would have gotten out of there the minute their boyfriend gave them a gun to hide, but I didn’t. I gotta admit the truth: It turned me on.”
—Nicholas Pileggi, U.S. screenwriter, and Martin Scorsese. Karen Hill (Lorraine Bracco)