d a two-year contract March 12, one of

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STANFORD, Calif. -- The Denver Broncos retired John Elways No. 7 jersey four months after he announced his playing career was over in 1999. The following year, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. And the Pro Football Hall of Fame welcomed the quarterback in his first year of eligibility. The one honour Elway never thought would come will take place Thursday night. Thirty years after he graduated from the university, Stanford will finally retire Elways iconic No. 7 jersey at halftime of its game against second-ranked Oregon. Hell join Jim Plunkett (No. 16) and Ernie Nevers (No. 1) as the only players whose jerseys have been enshrined by the program. "Realizing the history, it wasnt something that happened a whole lot at Stanford. And thats why it was a great surprise and thrill to learn when coach David Shaw called me a few months ago and told me that they were going to retire the number," Elway said by phone this week. "I think that makes it so much more special now than if theyd done it earlier." Stanford always has been selective with bestowing such an honour. Nevers jersey was retired in 1970, some 45 years after he led Stanford to a Rose Bowl victory over Notre Dame. Nearly 21 years after he became Stanfords only Heisman Trophy winner, Plunketts jersey was retired by the school in November 1991. Nobody at Stanford really knows why it took so long for Elways jersey to be retired. The Cardinal quarterback was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1983 NFL draft and one of the most celebrated athletes in school history. Shaw said he started asking the question when he was a wide receiver at Stanford in the early 1990s and asked again after he was promoted from offensive co-ordinator to head coach in January 2011. In the past year, after Bernard Muir took over as athletic director, those conversations escalated. "I remember thinking about when I was here. I came in, one of my friends, (quarterback) Mark Butterfield, was wearing No. 7. I said, Why the hell are you wearing No. 7?" Shaw said. "Mark had a great senior year and was great and I just kept thinking, Nobody should be wearing No. 7. "And I came back as a coach, Toby (Gerhart), great player, Why is he wearing No. 7? The last couple years I kept going around and I talked to some of our historian people, I talked to Bernard and I said, We have to do this. He was completely on board. And everybody I talked to said, Yeah, why havent we done that? There was no malicious intent. I think it was just one of those things." Shaw said he has spoken to Muir about developing a standard for future numbers to be retired. Muir declined to discuss what the process might entail. Wide receiver Ty Montgomery and defensive end Aziz Shittu both wear No. 7 currently. Whenever they graduate or if they decide to switch numbers next season, nobody at Stanford will ever wear No. 7 again. The irony is that Elway, now the executive vice-president of the Broncos, never intended to wear that number. He wore No. 11 in high school and, in a story he has told many times over the years, a defensive back at Stanford already had taken that number there. Elway said he chose No. 7 over No. 12, which were the only numbers available, "because few athletes wore the number." Now quarterbacks at every level, including Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, wear that number in Elways honour. Elway threw for 9,349 yards and 77 touchdowns while completing 62 per cent of his passes at Stanford. He held nearly every major passing record -- most of them since shattered by Andrew Luck -- when he left school. Elway still owns the single-game record with six touchdown passes in a 54-13 win against Oregon State on Nov. 1, 1980. Elway was the Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year in 1980 and 1982, when he also was a consensus All-American. After the Cardinal lost at rival California on the infamous lateral play in his final collegiate game, Elway finished second to Herschel Walker in the 1982 Heisman Trophy voting. "We had the highs and lows when I was at Stanford," said Elway, who led the Broncos to five Super Bowl appearances and two titles during his NFL career. Stanford footballs recent renaissance, which includes three straight BCS bowl appearances, surely helped bring more attention to Elways cause -- and it could help others soon. Stanford greats such as Bobby Garrett, Frankie Albert, John Brodie, Gerhart and Luck are among the top candidates to have their jerseys retired. Shaw said he already has spoken with Gerhart about entering the schools hall of fame, though he wouldnt commit to a similar jersey retirement. He has not allowed any player to wear Lucks No. 12 since the quarterback graduated after the 2011 season. "I dont know what their plans are," Elway said. 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"The priority is that Colin Kaepernick is a San Francisco 49er for however long we can have him be a San Francisco 49er," Harbaugh told reporters at Mondays NFL meetings in Orlando, Fla. "So its definitely a high priority. Hes an amazing individual, an amazing player." In his first season with San Francisco last year, the 33-year-oold Osgood had 12 special teams tackles by the 49ers count, a fumble recovery, his first career blocked punt against the Seahawks in Week 14, and a touchdown.dddddddddddd He recovered a muffed punt in the end zone in a win at Tennessee on Oct. 20 for his first fumble recovery for a touchdown. An 11-year NFL veteran, Osgood played in 14 regular-season games for the 49ers and also had one catch for 17 yards playing a limited role in the deep 49ers receiving corps. He appeared in all three playoff games for the Niners, who lost in the NFC championship game to eventual Super Bowl champion and division rival Seattle. 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