BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University will retire the No. 71 worn by all-American and NFL standout Larry Hand as part of homecoming festivities on Sept. 30, ASU director of athletics Charlie Cobb announced on Thursday. Hand becomes the fourth player to have his football number retired at Appalachian, joining John Settle (No. 23), Dexter Coakley (No. 32) and Dino Hackett (No. 38). Hand was a two-time all-American and three-time all-Carolinas Conference honoree as a tackle at Appalachian from 1960-64. Hand was far from a top prospect coming out of Butler H.S. in Butler, N.J. In fact, he worked as a mason for two years before Appalachian head coach Jim Duncan brought him to Boone, despite the fact that the 6-4, 225-pounder only played junior varsity high school football. However, after missing his freshman season due to injury, Hand made an immediate impact on the Mountaineers and put together the first of three-straight all-conference campaigns in 1962. In '63, he garnered all-America accolades for the first time, earning second-team NAIA honors. His breakout performance came in a 20-6 win over Lenoir-Rhyne, in which he led a Mountaineer defense that forced five fumbles and held the Bears to minus-22 yards rushing. Following Appalachian's first victory over LRC in nine years, Duncan called Hand "the best pro line prospect to come out of the Carolinas Conference." Professional teams agreed, as Hand was drafted as a future selection by both the Detroit Lions (10th round - NFL) and New York Jets (21st round - AFL) prior to his senior season in 1964 (future selections could be used on players that had a year of college eligibility remaining but their class had graduated). In '64, Hand showed why the professional teams jumped at the chance to draft him in the offseason, as he put together a monster season that culminated in first-team NAIA all-America plaudits and second-team recognition by the Associated Press. He was also awarded the 1964 Kirkland Blocking Award, established in 1957 by Catawba College in memory of Gordon A. Kirkland. He signed with the Lions in 1965 and went on to play 13 seasons in Detroit. His 13 years of service are tied for the third-most in Lions history and his 164 games played are tied for the 11th-highest total in franchise history. In his 13 professional seasons, Hand registered five interceptions as a defensive lineman, returning three for touchdowns. He was the Lions' defensive MVP in 1972 and is still tied for second in Lions history with two INT returns for touchdowns in 1967. Defensive statistics such as tackles, tackles for loss and sacks were not kept by the Lions until 1973 (and didn't become an official NFL statistic in 1983). However, it is known that he led Detroit in sacks in two of the five seasons that he played when those records were kept, with 11 in 1973 and seven in 1975 (both 14-game seasons). Hand is currently employed by Wachovia Securities and resides in the Winston-Salem area with his wife, Darlene. They will both be on hand when Hand's No. 71 is retired during the Mountaineers' homecoming matchup with Elon. Tickets for the 3:30 p.m. contest are still available and can be purchased by calling the ASU athletics ticket office at (828) 262-2079 or clicking here. Current Appalachian offensive lineman Pat Mills will be able to continue wearing No. 71 for the remainder of his ASU career.