Another Super Bowl is upon us. While Green Bay and Pittsburgh have won a few championships in their day, the impact they have had on African Americans and their place in the NFL should not go unnoticed.
For the Green Bay Packers it started obviously with the man who put success of the organization on the map, Vince Lombardi. While the Packers were not the first team to integrate roommates, Lombardi literally insisted that knowing just the plays was not enough. Knowing the player is also important, hence the notion of players learning about backgrounds and cultures as well.
Lombardi was a staunch Kennedy Democrat and well aware of the Civil Rights Movement and its impact, as well as his players and their feelings. When one of his black players was reportedly considering marrying a white woman, the player asked Lombardi about the marriage before his future wife. Lombardi wholeheartedly supported it, and the rest was history.
This was Green Bay, Wisconsin, where those things just didn’t go on very often. Not because of an overabundance of racial hatred, but because of a lack of black people.
As for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Art Rooney, the one-time owner, took care of his own … Steelers, that is. Race was never a problem on the surface. As a matter of fact, the Steelers went as far as to start a black quarterback in “Jefferson Street” Joe Gilliam of Tennessee State University when Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw was struggling in his first couple of seasons. Then-head coach Chuck Knoll had no problem running the best player at the time on the field, color withstanding. Unfortunately for Gilliam, drugs and alcohol sacked him more than opposing linemen, giving Bradshaw the chance to win his job back.
Tomlin and the Rooney Rule
The real item with this game is Steeler Head Coach Mike Tomlin. Yes, even in 2011 it comes up, and that is the discussion of black head coaches in the NFL. Tomlin may not have ever been afforded the opportunity to lead his team to its second Super Bowl in four years had it not been for current Steeler owner Dan Rooney, son of Art.
Rooney fought with other owners to find a way to give minorities a chance to coach in the league. The thought was: how could they coach if no one ever interviewed them? Bring on what is now called the Rooney Rule, designed to give minorities a chance to go through the interview process. In the past, the “good old boy” network did not afford that chance.
Tomlin was a 36-year-old assistant coach, the defensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings. He had never played in the NFL and knew very few mover and shakers with the TV networks. Some wondered if Rooney would follow to the letter the rule he brought to the forefront . Some like Matt Millen and the Detroit Lions just bypassed the rule and hired their guy without interviewing a single minority and paid the fine.
Tomlin had his stuff together and was promptly hired. If you look at the resumes of Bill Cowher and Chuck Knoll, the two coaches who preceded Tomlin, they are strikingly similar with the exception that Tomlin is black and not part of the network. Along with Tony Dungy, he has proved that color does not win games, talent does. Thanks, Mr. Rooney.
Faulk to the Hall
On Saturday morning a group of football writers will convene to discuss this year’s nominees for induction to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. While I could certainly wage a good case for Deion Sanders or Charles Haley, the sure lock has to be Marshall Faulk. While the numbers certainly speak for themselves, the intangibles of having the football IQ of Albert Einstein and being one of the toughest teammates one could ever have put Faulk in a class of his own.
Back on KMOX
The Cardinals have returned to the airwaves of 1120 KMOX radio, and so have I. Yes, after a 10-year stint with the mighty KMOX, I ventured into the uncharted waters of sports talk radio of KASP, KFNS and KTRS with the Cardinals. I am happy to be back where it all started for me . I will have a schedule that will be posted here on a weekly basis. One thing I can promise: I will show up looking to have a good time, and so should you.
