Celebrating a legacy: Eddie Moss to speak at Poplar Bluff's MLK event

Hometown football hero Eddie B. Moss is honored to be the keynote speaker for Poplar Bluff’s Martin Luther King Jr. celebration this year. It will begin at 11 a.m. Monday at the historic Wheatley School, 921 Garfield St.

Moss described speaking at the event honoring Dr. King as “a great honor.”

Reflecting on his life, Moss said, he lived during a lot of the time Dr. King was leading the marches for the right to vote, desegregation, labor rights and other civil rights.

King’s desegregation efforts made it possible for Moss and his family to attend the local public school system.

While education was important to many families in the Wheatley community, Moss said, “In my family education was stressed. We didn’t have the funds for college. Sports were our way of getting into college and getting ahead.”

Moss played football for Poplar Bluff High School, graduating in 1967. He was named all-conference as a linebacker and running back his senior year on a team that finished with a 9-0 record.

After high school, he played two seasons for Centerville Community College before transferring to Southeast Missouri State University, where he led the team in rushing his junior and senior years.

He was a running back in the National Football League for the St. Louis Cardinals and the Washington Redskins. The St. Louis Cardinals won two NFC East division titles during his stay in St. Louis. He played two years for the Washington Redskins before retiring in 1978.

He spent 27 years with United Parcel Service.

Moss was named to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.

But, Eddie Moss was not the only star athlete in his family. His brothers also were star athletes.

According to an article written by former DAR Sports Editor Brian Rosener, four members of the Moss family have been inducted into the Poplar Bluff Sports Hall of Fame — Hosie, Leroy, Eddie and Mike — and while it’s been nearly a half-century since they were Mules, their presence is still felt.

Leroy Moss, a star athlete at Poplar Bluff High School who went on to play football in college and professionally, died when he was 70. Inducted into the Poplar Bluff Sports Hall of Fame in 1990, Leroy Moss was a member of the 1966 undefeated Mules football team and a three-sport athlete in high school. He was a JUCO All-American football player at Centerville (Iowa), played two seasons on the University of Missouri football team and was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals. He signed with Edmonton of the Canadian Football League and was named to the All-Rookie Team in 1974 and helped win a Grey Cup the following year.

Eddie’s football jersey is on the Pro Wall of Fame outside the senior high gym while Hosie, Leroy and Mike are still featured in the football record book.

Eddie Moss was a two-time All-SEMO Conference player at three positions who helped the Mules win the 1965 and ’66 football teams win the conference title. He went on to earn MIAA honors both years he played at Southeast Missouri State University and was drafted by the Buffalo Bills. He went on to play five seasons and 35 games in the NFL with St. Louis and Washington. He currently resides in St. Louis.

Leroy Moss was a JUCO All-American at Centerville (Iowa) and played at the University of Missouri when the Tigers reached two bowl games. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals but signed with Edmonton in the Canadian Football League where he played 41 games over three seasons. He was named to the All-Rookie Team in 1974 and helped Edmonton win the Grey Cup the following year.

Hosie Moss was an all-state running back for the Mules who set records for touchdowns in a game and season that still stand and the single-game rushing record of 284 that has been topped only twice. A two-time All-SEMO selection in football, he also earned nine varsity letters. He died suddenly in the fall of 1970 while playing football at Fort Scott Junior College. Both his football and basketball jerseys were retired by Poplar Bluff.

Mike Moss set single-season and career rushing records and was a two-time All-SEMO running back who led the conference in scoring twice and was named to the all-state team. He played freshmen football at Mizzou.

Eddie Moss comes home two or three times a year. He keeps busy in the summer playing in benefit golf tournaments for such organizations as Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and charity events benefiting battered women and children battling cancer. He is active in Greater Grace Church in Ferguson, Missouri.

The King Center’s official theme is Mission Possible: Protecting Freedom, Justice, and Democracy in the Spirit of Nonviolence365. This theme honors Dr. King’s unwavering dedication to justice and equality through nonviolent action.

Wheatley Public School in Poplar Bluff ended segregation in 1958. The school was built in 1928 to serve African-American students. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. It is part of the Garfield Historic District, which was listed on the National Register in 2017.