First, tell me what you did after your time in Pittsburgh? What did you do afterwards?
After Pittsburgh I ended up in in the Army for two years.
Near the end of that season in Pittsburgh as I was leaving practice, the equipment manager called me into the general manger’s office and told me they were letting me go. I drove home to Connellsville – it was about a 40 minute drive. When I got in the house my mother told me I had gotten a call and that Denver wanted me – that I should go back to the Steelers and pick up the plane ticket to go there.
I started driving there when it started to rain and another car swerved towards me and I got into an accident. A friend ended up having to take me home. When I got there I had gotten another call from the Eagles who wanted me to go play there.
So, I had to decide whether to fly to Denver or drive five hours to Philadelphia. I ended up choosing Philadelphia.
What happened after that?
I ended up finishing the season there and when I went home I got a letter in the mail. It said “Greetings…” and I thought, “What the heck is this?” I read it and it said “You have been inducted into the United States Army”.
Well, I did my two years and went back to Philadelphia. I made it to the final 53 and thought I was fine – I thought I made the team. I was on my way to a meeting when they pulled me over and told me to meet with the GM and bring my playbook. They cut me to get the roster to 52 so they could go and sign a wide receiver they liked.
When I spoke to the GM he asked if I wanted to play in Canada. They had a new coach there – Jim Trimble – who had coached in Canada and knew folks there who would have interest in me. I said “Yeah, I’d play in Canada.” The next day I was on my way to Canada and have lived here now for the last 50 years!
Did you enjoy the CFL? You had a lot of success there.
It wasn’t bad yeah. It was a different game of course. I played for Montreal and Hamilton and it was fun. I got the chance to play against my brother Bo when he played for Ottawa which was fun. He was a running back.
You guys face each other a lot?
We did – I tackled him a few times. One time he came my way and I got him. He was younger than me – I told him he shouldn’t come this way – that he was going nowhere and would just get himself hurt! Well, three plays later he ran around my end for a 55 yard touchdown! He went on to play for the Browns for seven years before he hurt his knee.
As a local guy, were you surprised to be drafted by the Steelers in ’61?
In a way yeah. I had a few calls. Fran Fogerty was the GM then and he actually came to my house. He told me they didn’t like to lose draft picks – he wanted to be sure I’d sign. I was also drafted by the AFL Chargers. In college I was a blocking back and they wanted me to block for Abner Haynes – their big running back at the time. But I wanted to play linebacker – I wanted to hit people, not be hit! So I went to play for the Steelers.
Did anyone take you under their wing in Pittsburgh? How so?
Two guys – Big Daddy Lipscomb and Johnny Sample. I hung out with them and became their chauffeur – I’d drive them to practice and back.
Those two just helped me learn what to look for when I watched film – especially Johnny since he was a defensive back.
I got my first start when the starting linebacker Mike Henry got hurt. That was against Cleveland and Jim Brown!
How did you do?
I did ok. I had a few of what you call bounce tackles. Where you bounce off of him but you slow him down for other guys to get there!
Mike Henry was also a big help to me. He was from California so we called him “Hollywood”. Which was funny because after I left the Steelers, a few years later he went back to California and ended up playing Tarzan in the movies!
Any good memories of your time there that stand out to you?
One I remember was when we were rookies, the vets took all of the rookies bowling. Right beside the lanes was a bunch of booze, and they made us drink every time we messed up! We all got loaded.
I imagine Bobby Layne spearheaded this?
Exactly right! He was the guy that spearheaded it. He and his buddy Ernie Stautner. And he wasn’t shy about partaking either. It was a good time.
Any other good memories?
The rookie show. Me and another guy did a skit where we pretended we were drunk and playing ball. But we got booed off stage! It was all in fun of course.
Really the only guy that made any real noise there was Bobby Layne! He was something else.
Things were different then for rookies. We couldn’t do things then that rookies today can do. They have much more freedom today. Back then we didn’t say much. If a vet told us what to do we did it. But now when some rookies make twice as much as the vets, it’s hard for a vet to get in their face and tell them what to do. In the old days we stayed in our place more.
How was Buddy Parker and the rest of the guys there to play for and with?
I had no problems with Buddy. Guys seemed to like him. We had good players like John Henry Johnson. John was a nice guy.
Big Daddy and Johnny – I lived a couple of blocks from them and we went everywhere. Big Daddy had a Cadillac and one day he threw me the keys and told me I was his chauffeur now. I said “Ok” and drove him everywhere he wanted to go. It worked out for me too – I got transportation to places and to hang out with him.
What was that like?
We went to clubs and bars and had no problems getting in anywhere we wanted. Everyone knew him and doors just opened for him. We just walked right in. When everyone knows you you get very good treatment!
He was such a big guy. 290 pounds but could move so quickly – he’d run down running backs even at his size.
You watch the NFL today?
Sometimes. I loved watching Tom Brady play. If you gave him one-and-a-half seconds you were in trouble. You could see it – nothing bothered him.
And I’m still a Steelers fan. The way they play sometimes it’s like they don’t want to play though – they lose too many games they should win. But I still like watching them play.
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