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Roger Craig was attending the funeral of former San Francisco 49ers teammate Dwight Clark last June when two men he didn’t know came over and tapped him on the shoulder.

They introduced themselves as members of the advisory board of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Craig, who has been waiting for a couple of decades to hear that he’s been inducted into the Hall, couldn’t believe what they said.

"They said ‘Roger, I know the Hall of Fame hasn’t been too nice to you, but you’re going to go in this year or next year,’" Craig said. "That’s what they told me."

That doesn’t mean Craig is a lock to get in. Far from it. It takes endorsements from a lot more than two men to get that done. Chances are, they were just being nice to him as he grieved an old friend.

But Craig definitely is much more encouraged about his Hall of Fame prospects than ever before, and it’s not just because of that little conversation he had last summer.

He has an "angel" on his side now.

Leisa Knudsen, who attended Davenport Central with Craig 40 years ago, has made it her mission in life to get an old friend his due.