Super Bowl LX

 

I was right about both games during the Conference Championships and now we turn our eyes towards Super Bowl LX. One last game in what has been a wild and entertaining season. Here’s how I think the season will end:

Seatle Seahawks vs. New England Patriots

Sunday 6:30PM on NBC

This Sunday we will get a matchup of two 14-3 teams. Both teams have been tested and have earned their way into the championship game. Both teams have proven that they can score and both can play defense. The Seahawks defense was tops when it came to keeping their opponents out of the endzone, but they will face a Patriots offense which is in the top five when it comes to explosive plays. Going the other way, the Patriots’ defensive line is one of the best, especially against the run but they will come up against an offense that at times can impose its will on any defense. I think this game comes down to two questions. Which Sam Darnold shows up on Sunday? And which defense will prove to be the stingiest, especially during what will likely be a tight fourth quarter? Defense wins championships and I think the Seahawks D outplays their counterpart from across the field:

Seahawks 24 Patriots 17

Joe Gilliam: The First Black Starting QB in the NFL

They made history. Jalen Hurts of the Eagles and Patrick Mahomes of the Chiefs were the two starting quarterbacks in Super Bowl LVII making it the first time that both starting QBs were black. This was something I heard quite a few times leading up to the game and every time I heard an analyst mention that fact I thought of one name: Joe Gilliam.

In 1972 the Pittsburgh Steelers used the 273rd pick to draft Joe Gilliam who, during his college career at Tennessee State, passed for 5,213 yards and 50 touchdowns. While under center he helped his team win two Black College National Championships and his performances earned him induction into the Black College Football Hall of Fame. His on the field play and off the field popularity would earn him the nickname “Jefferson Street Joe,” given to him by one of the school’s coaches (in reference to one of the roads near campus, according to ESPN.com).

Even with his success in college the odds were against Gilliam playing quarterback in the NFL. Back then black college quarterbacks were generally converted to wide receiver however the Steelers, and head coach Chuck Knoll, decided to keep Gilliam at the quarterback position where he served as backup to Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw.

When the players went on strike in July of 1974 Bradshaw walked the picket line while Gilliam, and many other players around the league, chose to report for preseason training camp. Bradshaw’s absence opened the door for Coach Knoll to start Gilliam and Jefferson Street Joe took full advantage as the Steelers finished the preseason as the only unbeaten team with six wins. His success earned Gilliam the right to start on opening day against the Baltimore Colts. While I’m sure this was controversial, it does not seem as if it was done as a political statement. According to several sources, (including an article on CBSSports.com), Chuck Knoll believed that Gilliam was the best choice and he was not the only one who believed this (more on that later).

There had been other black quarterbacks who started professional football games like Marlin Briscoe who started for the Denver Broncos in 1968 but that was in the AFL before the merger which wasn’t official until 1970. Joe Gilliam was the first black to start at quarterback in the NFL but being first brought with it a certain amount of backlash. Based on the hate mail Gilliam received, it seems NFL fans were not ready to see a black man under center. Still, he would lead the team to a 4-1-1 record before being replaced by Bradshaw who would finish the season by leading the team to a win in Super Bowl IX. Unfortunately, after being benched Gilliam’s life took a turn for the worse, marked by substance abuse and homelessness (according to ESPN.com). He would eventually have to pawn his two Super Bowl rings (both from his time with the Steelers) in order to make ends meet (according to ESPN.com).

I first heard of Joe Gilliam from my uncle who played quarterback for a semi-pro team in Gary Indiana. He spoke of how Joe Gilliam was a better quarterback than Terry Bradshaw, something Bradshaw himself has publicly stated (as reported by CBSSports.com). This led to my first understanding of how blacks were seen in football and in sports: athletic but not smart enough. Knowing this I celebrated when Doug Williams led the Redskins to victory in Super Bowl XXII. I was also proud to see Hurts and Mahomes in this year’s Super Bowl, although I wish the score had gone the other way.

It seems weird to say that in my lifetime the idea of a black quarterback was in general something that was rejected by the league and by fans. I’m glad to see this kind of thinking go out the window as we debate whether or not a black quarterback might one day be crowned the GOAT.

For more on Joe Gilliam see his listing on the Black College Hall of Fame website: https://www.blackcollegefootballhof.org/inductees/joe-gilliam

For the ESPN.com cited in this post:Gilliam had 'given his life to God'  https://www.espn.com/nfl/news/2000/1229/982102.html

For the CBSSports.com article cited in this post: Remember When: Joe Gilliam takes Terry Bradshaw's starting QB job https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/remember-when-joe-gilliam-takes-terry-bradshaws-starting-qb-job/

Paul Salata, The Founder of Mr. Irrelevant

On the road to Super Bowl LVII the Eagles faced the San Francisco 49ers with one of the season’s biggest surprises at QB. Brock Purdy, their third string quarterback, took the field late in the season and delivered in every game until he suffered an injury in the NFC Championship. I’m not sure what is in store for Purdy in the future but his success this season got me thinking about past Mr. Irrelevants and their success (or lack thereof) on the football field. In checking the names of past players I came across a very important name that I did not know: Paul Salata, the person who came up with the idea of celebrating Mr. Irrelevant.

For those who don’t know, Mr. Irrelevant is the nickname given to the very last person picked in the NFL draft each year. Paul Salata came up with the idea in order to recognize the hard work that even the last player selected had to do in order to reach that point in their career. Mr. Salata pitched the idea to the NFL and in 1976 Kelvin Kirk, a wide receiver drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers, became the first official Mr. Irrelevant. I’ll have more on Kelvin Kirk in a later post but for now let's just say that Kirk thought that someone was playing a joke on him. But this was not a joke. Mr. Salata invited Kirk out to California for a celebration and which would become an annual rite of passage for every Mr. Irrelevant since that time.

According to his obituary in the NY Times, Paul Salata was the second son of two Serbian immigrants (Chetko and Melania Salata). He played football and baseball at USC, playing on the team that won the 1948 College World Series. He also played one year of minor league baseball. While at USC he played wide receiver before joining the Army Air Corps where he served during World War II. During his college career Salata caught a touchdown in the 1945 Rose Bowl in which USC beat Tennessee by a score of 25-0 according to ESPN.com.

Mr. Salata’s NFL career was short, playing 23 games for three teams: The San Francisco 49ers, The Baltimore Colts and the Pittsburgh Steelers. He also made appearances in a few movies, including an uncredited role in The Ten Commandments. In addition to his NFL career Salata played two seasons in the Canadian Football League where he was an All Star in the 1952 season according to ESPN.com. After completing his football and acting careers, Salata went into construction work and, after creating the honor, would get to announce the name of Mr. Irrelevant in person at the draft until 2013. After turning this job over to his daughter, Paul Salata lived until October 16, 2021 when he died of natural causes at the age of 94.

Paul Salata’s legacy continues today with the annual celebration of Mr. Irrelevant and the awarding of the Lowsman Trophy which is similar to the Heisman Trophy except that it depicts a player fumbling the football. The weeklong celebration includes a banquet in which Mr. Irrelevant joins the club of those who preceded him. The group that runs the Mr. Irrelevant celebrations also does fundraising and has donated over $1 million to charities according to their website. I believe this is a fitting tribute both to the hard work of the players who otherwise would be mostly forgotten and to the son of two immigrants who thought it important to recognize these men.

For more on Irrelevant Week see their website: https://mrirrelevant.org/

For Paul Salat’s obituary in the NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/24/sports/football/paul-salata-dead.html

Also mentioned in this post ESPN.com https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/32412948/paul-salata-creator-mr-irrelevant-award-dies-94

Super Bowl LIII

I went .500 with last weekend's picks, though my loss shouldn't count. I'm still baffled as to how, with seven pairs of eyes, the refs missed both pass interference and head to head contact on the same play. That call (and the fact that the Saints kicked two field goals when they should have scored at least one touchdown) left me with a 20-17 record and left us with a matchup of #2 seeds in the Super Bowl.

New England Patriots vs Los Angeles Rams
6:30pm on CBS

I think this will be a tight game much like last year but without as many touchdowns. These are two evenly matched teams with balanced offensive attacks and just enough defense to shut down big plays. How well each team can sustain drives is going to be key. To sustain a drive the offensive lines will have to be at their best. Keep an eye on the battles along the line of scrimmage. Can either defense slow down the other teams running game? Will either QB see any real and consistent pressure? Last year the play of the game was a strip sack that lead to a turnover in the 4th quarter. This year the defenses need to find ways to get off the field. Once again a late turnover might be the difference. I think the Patriots win at the line of scrimmage and I believe they make the late game stop when needed.
Patriots 29 Rams 27

Second Time Around, Enjoying the Eagles' Win

I was called a front-runner as I searched for someone with whom I could celebrate the Super Bowl win. I grew up watching the Bears, having suffered a number of ups and downs. I still remember the season where the head coach kept changing quarterbacks like a baseball manager making changes on the mound. Then there was the season where so many Bears' QB's got injured that legendary running back Walter Payton had to run the offense out of the shotgun. After years of frustration the Bears won the Super Bowl. Unfortunately at the start of that season I moved to Atlanta to go to school.

There were very few Bears' fans in Atlanta in 1986 so I was alone in celebrating that win. I missed the parades and the interviews with crying and excited fans. I missed the build up during the '85 season, the excitement and the doubts as a defense that struggled early in the season became one of the best ever. I missed all the fun and excitement in Chicago as the Lombardi trophy took its place in Halas Hall. It hurt to miss out. I felt like I was not a part of things: a fan with no real connection. Having a (jealous) classmate call me a front-runner only added to the pain.

I still have an allegiance to the Bears but having lived in Philadelphia for 30 years I have grown quite fond of midnight green (kelly green as well). No, 30 years is not as long a time as some of the Eagles' fans in the area have suffered, but after not celebrating a win for 32 years I am ready for the festivities. I look forward to being in town for my second time around celebrating a Super Bowl win. This time I get to celebrate with millions of fans. I won't be alone and I don't expect to be called a front-runner. This time around I am going to drink it all in, truly enjoying the celebration.

E-A-G-L-E-S Eagles!