Football
Jim Benton was a record setting Arkansas, Southwest Conference, NCAA and National Football League pass receiver. Benton earned first team All-SWC honors in 1936 and 1937 and was a first team All-American in 1937. During his Razorback career from 1934-1937, Benton caught 83 passes for 1,303 yards and 12 touchdowns, which remained an Arkansas record for 33 years. In 1936, his 35 pass receptions helped the Razorbacks win their first official SWC Championship. In 1937, Benton’s 48 catches for 814 yards and 7 touchdowns was a SWC and NCAA record. His 48 receptions remained a SWC record for 27 years. Benton also played basketball and helped the Razorbacks win the SWC Championship in 1936. In 1938, Benton began his pro football career with the Cleveland Rams, winning two NFL Championships, in 1943 with the Chicago Bears and in 1945 with the Cleveland Rams. He played 6 seasons for the Cleveland Rams, 2 seasons for the Los Angeles Rams, and 1 season for the Chicago Bears. His most notable game was on Thanksgiving Day in 1945 in a divisional championship game against the Detroit Lions when he had 10 receptions for 303 yards which remained the NFL single game receiving record for 40 years. Benton was consensus All-NFL first team in 1945 and 1946. When Benton retired in 1947, he was the second leading receiver in NFL history with 288 receptions for 4,801 yards and 45 touchdowns. Benton led the NFL in every major receiving category at least once. Benton was named to the Razorback All-Century Team, the Rams All-Time team, the NFL 1940’s All-Decade Team, the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, and University of Arkansas Sports Hall of Honor.
