Quotes from former Steelers we’ve interviewed about Ernie Stautner that played with him in the 50’s:
Dick Lasse: “Ernie Stautner was the toughest lineman in the league. He had a tremendous desire and work ethic. Everyone looked up to him with respect. He had the best forearm. He could deal a blow to an offensive lineman…”
Dick Modzeleweski: “Ernie Stautner was another guy that just got pounded in Pittsburgh. He would have been an All-Pro every year on another ball club. I remember watching film in New York on the Steelers after we played them and we were watching a guy that no one could bring down. The head coach was yelling at us why we couldn’t tackle him. We said “Coach, that’s Ernie Stautner.” he just said “Oh, ok.” That’s how much respect we had for him.”
Frank Varriochione: “Ernie Stautner and I hit it off real good. We became buddies and hung around together. We were all adults so we didn’t mentor each other much. We knew we had to play and practice. The game wasn’t that much different than it was in college then.”
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