First off, how did playing in Western PA influence you as a quarterback?
It had a big impact. I grew up in McKees Rocks. It was a working-class, tough town that loved Friday night football. I was an only child – my dad died young. My mother was wonderful – she let me do what I wanted and play the game I loved. I had a lot of support from the city and have great memories from growing up. I was lucky to have the chance to play in front of so many people and college coaches and to sign with Penn State.
Who were your biggest mentors as a player?
Another Western, PA guy. I went to his camp – Joe Namath. When you see people in close proximity do well, when you see their success, you feel like you can try and emulate that. We had those types of people around us – Tommy Clements grew up down the street.
What was the biggest adjustment for you from high school to college and then to the NFL?
The biggest thing is on the practice field. Especially with Joe Paterno – you played like you practiced. If you weren’t a starter you were live – and they had an awfully good defense. As a Freshman I faced those guys a lot in practice. I thought we played a good brand of football at Sto-Rox even though we were a smaller school than many of the teams we played. But the elevated level of play when you got to college – the drills, scrimmages….and the next year you see those players not only in the NFL, but doing well there. It can get you down sometimes when you throw an interception or make a bad play, but it gets you ready.
At the NFL level, I was drafted by Tampa Bay and they had the Selmon brothers there. Dewey Selmon was one of the greatest defensive linemen to play the game. They had Randy Crowder there too – a former Penn State guy who unfortunately got injured, or he could have been a great NFL player.
Did Randy take it easy on you?
There was never a guy nicer than Randy! Sadly, he passed away a few years ago. A knee injury ended his career – it was cut short or he would have been incredible. He was a nicer guy than he was a great player, and that’s saying a lot.
Do you watch football still – still a fan?
I still go to games. I’m a season ticket holder and really enjoy it. I really like seeing the guys I played with when we go to games – our class was very close.
What is different about today’s young quarterbacks from your experience?
I was lucky – a short while ago Coach Campbell invited a lot of the lettermen back – they want us involved with the team. I got to go to practices and you see a lot more in practices than you do going to games. You can hone in on players and watch them. I’m just amazed at the physical features of guys today. They are such great athletes and have so much velocity on their throws.
But, it still requires a lot of thinking – it’s not all physical. But you can see now how these guys can run and get away from defenses that are just so much faster now. It takes a great athlete to play the position now.
As a guy who’s played at every level – what do you think coaches and teams get wrong when working with quarterbacks?
That’s a tough question. I think NIL has impacted things at the college level in terms of development. Coaches now have to decide if they want a quarterback who can start that year or someone they want to develop. I’m not sue how that works – it’s so odd to me. These are tough decisions for coaches.
Coaches want to move up the ranks too, like quarterbacks. It’s a win-now business. A lot really ends up depending on the quarterbacks and what they want. Do they want to play in the NFL or do they want a good college experience? I never thought past my next practice in college – I just wanted to do well. Things are different now – now kids have their own trainers and coaches and even nutritionists.
What helped you most?
The big thing that worked for me was that we had assistant coaches who were patient. We had good players around us and that afforded them the ability to not have to rush us. That’s what really hurts a quarterback. I played some my Freshman year but never when the team had to rely on me to win.
What has changed the most about the position in your opinion, since you played?
I think it’s changed in some ways but it still comes back to talent and leadership and inner valor. Teammates and coaches can see through things – they know who they can trust behind center. Especially in tough times – that’s when a quarterback can really prove themself or lose a team. It helps to have small successes even in practices to boost confidence and trust – success breeds success.
Did you play against the Steelers at all? What was that like?
I did when I was with Green Bay – I played in the second half and I think threw an interception to Harvey Clayton. It was fun playing at Three Rivers – it was great getting in that game and having my family there watching me play in my hometown.
I also played against the Maulers when I was with Philadelphia Stars in the USFL. That’s when they had Cliff Stoudt and Mike Rozier. They had a good team – the USFL had good players then. I remember when the league ended the Stars had 20 players go on to play in the NFL.
Do you like where he league is headed now?
I enjoy watching the game – it’s a billion dollar industry! I don’t think I’m equipped to tel them what they are doing wrong! It’s still a brutal game though. I was a former NFLPA rep so I still see a lot of reports from the league. I feel for the guys who have had problems later in life from playing. The death rates and health issues are higher than the normal population. I do want the NFL to look at that more deeply. It’s a tough thing to see.