There is only one Lee Roy Selmon

There is only one Lee Roy Selmon, and as that is something everyone in the Tampa Bay area knows quite well, his memory will live on for fans, friends, and family alike.

Lee Roy Selmon wore jersey no.63, and in a strange twist of fate that he was such an immortal player, it is the only jersey number for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that has only been worn by one player.  Since Lee Roy was the Bucs first ever player selected, and the club retired his jersey officially on opening day 1986 after he retired, no Bucs player ever has, or ever will, wear no. 63again. It is forever Lee Roy’s.

In fact, Lee Roy Selmon is the ONLY Buccaneers player who has his jersey officially retired. No, you haven’t seen any 47’s or 99’s since they left in 2003, and you haven’t caught anyone donning a #55 in the last couple years either; but no one has retired those jerseys.

At least not yet; it’s entirely possible if Derrick Brooks, John Lynch or Warren Sapp were enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, they too may have their jersey numbers cast aside so no one else can ever wear them again.  Then again HOF admission is not a requirement, Selmon did not go to Canton in Bust form until some 10 years after his retirement.

And to stop everyone from going immediately to the comment section without passing GO or collecting 200 dollars, Mike Alstott may not have to watch anyone trot onto Raymond James or an other NFL venue with his #40 on, but like Sapp/Brooks/Lynch, his Jersey; Neither Creamsicle or Pewter, is officially retired either.

Yes we all remember that awesome night at the RayJay when the visiting Seattle Seahawks were kind enough to play football while so many Bucs fans were tuned into 620 WDAE to catch the game 7 Rays vs Red Sox battle for World Series admission. But that was not a ‘Jersey retirement ceremony’. The Glazers were simply presenting Alstott with his jersey as a gift for his ‘farewell evening’, giving one of the most popular Bucs ever his day in the ‘sun’, getting his name called out one last time over the stadium loudspeaker.

One need only check the Bucs media guide for confirmation; Only Lee Roy Selmon’s #63 is officially retired, and while surely there will be others to join him one day, for now, as deserving and expected, Lee Roy Selmon is a One of a Kind Buccaneer.