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RIP Franco Harris.......

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  • .....has passed away at 72. I know we all hate the Steelers, but Franco Harris was one great football player. What a tragedy on the 50th anniversary of the Immaculate Reception.........wow....just wow.

    👍 ❤

  • Ironic and sad... One of the few Steeler legends I had total respect for..My only regret is that he wasn't a Brown He would've fit in well with the Cleveland mentality.. RIP Franco!

    Nickers...."There are no old running QB's in the NFL "~Sam Rutigliano~
    sydS 1 Reply
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  • Immaculate Injection?

  • nickersN nickers

    Ironic and sad... One of the few Steeler legends I had total respect for..My only regret is that he wasn't a Brown He would've fit in well with the Cleveland mentality.. RIP Franco!

    @nickers said:

    Ironic and sad... One of the few Steeler legends I had total respect for..My only regret is that he wasn't a Brown He would've fit in well with the Cleveland mentality.. RIP Franco!

    him and rocky (great story of him getting his legs shot up in vietnam only to come back and play) i guess they are going to retire francos # this weekend

    👍
  • sydS syd

    @nickers said:

    Ironic and sad... One of the few Steeler legends I had total respect for..My only regret is that he wasn't a Brown He would've fit in well with the Cleveland mentality.. RIP Franco!

    him and rocky (great story of him getting his legs shot up in vietnam only to come back and play) i guess they are going to retire francos # this weekend

    @syd said:

    him and rocky (great story of him getting his legs shot up in vietnam only to come back and play) i guess they are going to retire francos # this weekend

    They were both badasses... I believe there was a made for TV movie about Rocky Bleier made in the 80's I vaguely remember watching... Talk about a real Iron man... My stepfather was in Nam... I have mad respect for our Military veterans...

    Nickers...."There are no old running QB's in the NFL "~Sam Rutigliano~
    sydS 1 Reply

  • I remember the verbal sparring between Harris and the greatest #32 that ever lived. 

    JB threatened to make a comeback amid Harris threatening to break his rushing record.

    nickersN 1 Reply
    👍
  • nickersN nickers

    @syd said:

    him and rocky (great story of him getting his legs shot up in vietnam only to come back and play) i guess they are going to retire francos # this weekend

    They were both badasses... I believe there was a made for TV movie about Rocky Bleier made in the 80's I vaguely remember watching... Talk about a real Iron man... My stepfather was in Nam... I have mad respect for our Military veterans...

    @nickers said:

    They were both badasses... I believe there was a made for TV movie about Rocky Bleier made in the 80's I vaguely remember watching... Talk about a real Iron man... My stepfather was in Nam... I have mad respect for our Military veterans...

    when i get a chance i'll look it up I kinda remember watching it  but that was so long ago

    Merry Christmas to all are vets

    👍

  • Franco days were a little before my time but the old highlights suggest that he was a pain in our behind for many years.


    I was in Vegas maybe 12-15 years ago and Franco rolled up on a Roulette table I was playing at in middle of the Casino at Mandalay Bay and had a pretty good crowd with him.  The guy next to me was excited and poked me and said “hey Franco is right across the table”.  I replied “I know I’m a Browns fan- I don’t care.”  I ruined this guys day by the look on his face whether he was Steeler fan or football fan.   I Said it loud enough and Franco smiled.  I lost quickly and left the table and gave him a Go Browns. 

    Whenever I fly into Pittsburgh I make sure to throw something Browns on his statue at the airport and I take a photo. 
     

    Rest in Peace Franco

  • F FY56

    I remember the verbal sparring between Harris and the greatest #32 that ever lived. 

    JB threatened to make a comeback amid Harris threatening to break his rushing record.

    @fy56 said:

    I remember the verbal sparring between Harris and the greatest #32 that ever lived. 

    JB threatened to make a comeback amid Harris threatening to break his rushing record.

    If anyone could make a comeback JB could certainly do it... I remember something about Brown attempting a comeback with the Raiders in the 70's but Art owned the rights to his contract I believe...

    Nickers...."There are no old running QB's in the NFL "~Sam Rutigliano~
    F OrionO FlugelF 3 Replies
  • nickersN nickers

    @fy56 said:

    I remember the verbal sparring between Harris and the greatest #32 that ever lived. 

    JB threatened to make a comeback amid Harris threatening to break his rushing record.

    If anyone could make a comeback JB could certainly do it... I remember something about Brown attempting a comeback with the Raiders in the 70's but Art owned the rights to his contract I believe...

    @nickers said:

    If anyone could make a comeback JB could certainly do it... I remember something about Brown attempting a comeback with the Raiders in the 70's but Art owned the rights to his contract I believe...

    Yes, he considered the comeback only because Franco was threatening to break his record. Sadly he didn't want anything to do with playing for the Browns.

    Franco fell short anyway.

    👍
  • nickersN nickers

    @fy56 said:

    I remember the verbal sparring between Harris and the greatest #32 that ever lived. 

    JB threatened to make a comeback amid Harris threatening to break his rushing record.

    If anyone could make a comeback JB could certainly do it... I remember something about Brown attempting a comeback with the Raiders in the 70's but Art owned the rights to his contract I believe...

    @nickers said:

    if anyone could make a comeback JB could certainly do it...

    Jim ended up saying he could beat Franco in a footrace, which they had, and when Franco started pulling ahead Jim grabbed his hamstring and ran/limped the rest of the way.

    RIP Franco.  I hated ya, in a football arch rival kinda' way.  Way too young.  God Bless.

    BEING A BROWNS FAN IS A TEST TO SEE HOW MUCH YOU CAN TAKE
    FlugelF 1 Reply
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  • Yes RIP Franco way too early 72 same age as me.  Still a classy guy with Rocky back then.

    And he rarely if ever talked about the  " Imaculate Deception "   in which the ball did bounce up in his hands  -but-  no camera shot actually caught the catch.  Oh well the Raiders got screwed on that one .

    RIP Franco.

    GO BUCKEYES, BROWNS, INDIANS, CAVS, YSU, NAVY and yes I like ND!

  • Gotta really hate the timing of this one.. earned this Pitt/Raiders weekend

    Franco, I can still remember watching tv games when he played at Penn St. (Oh Nelly!)

    Oddly.. When Jim Miller, on nfl radio goes rambling on about his Chicago Bears.. I flipped over to Mad dog Russo yesterday, on my way home from work to hear Franco's last interview before this weekend..

    7 am.. I'm headed back to work, to find Franco passed over night..

    RIP HOF'er Franco Harris ? 

    Browns & Buffett: Got to go fishin, Down to rock bottom again, with just a few Friends
  • OrionO Orion

    @nickers said:

    if anyone could make a comeback JB could certainly do it...

    Jim ended up saying he could beat Franco in a footrace, which they had, and when Franco started pulling ahead Jim grabbed his hamstring and ran/limped the rest of the way.

    RIP Franco.  I hated ya, in a football arch rival kinda' way.  Way too young.  God Bless.

    @orion said:

    Jim ended up saying he could beat Franco in a footrace, which they had, and when Franco started pulling ahead Jim grabbed his hamstring and ran/limped the rest of the way.

    RIP Franco.  I hated ya, in a football arch rival kinda' way.  Way too young.  God Bless.

    This is like the dad who used to be a star RB that wants to remind people he's still faster than his son that is currently the star RB in high school.  Only this version we add 10-15 years to each guy; and I'm pulling a hamstring just thinking about it.  Jim was also featured in Sports Illustrated when he reached his early 50s considering a  return to the NFL.  Amazingly, his physique didn't look much different than it did when he was doing bedroom gymnastics with Raquel Welch  about 15 years earlier.

    I could have saved them both the trouble.  Franco was Lydell Mitchell's blocking back at Penn State once upon a time.  Rumor had it, even if just a rumor, he was running 4.8 forties on a team that had an elite strength and conditioning program. In 71, Lydell Mitchell ran for 1567 yards, a PSU record that stood for more than 30 years. In the 3 years Harris played - he totaled 2002 yards.  Both guys were drafted in 1972; and Harris had the much better NFL career as a feature Back.  He never looked slow to me as a kid. I never saw DBs catching him from behind once he got an opening from the 5 OL up front (all rumored to be bench pressing over 500 lbs when that was unheard of).  Best part about this guy?  He was exactly like Jim Brown after he scored.  He didn't rub it to the opponent or act like Terrell Owens screaming "LOOK AT ME" to the sold out crowds.  He never appeared to be an "I before team"  kind of guy as his experience at Penn State exemplified. When asked about his reputation of running out of bounds he said something along the lines of "they can always tackle me before I get there."

    Like you alluded to above - the ONLY reason we didn't like him was because he was great player for a division rival that we we despised. 

    I welcome the only Defensive Coordinator to earn a Superbowl Ring in New Orleans while understanding Revenge of the Nerds is a sequel. "Come get some!"
    👍 ❤
  • nickersN nickers

    @fy56 said:

    I remember the verbal sparring between Harris and the greatest #32 that ever lived. 

    JB threatened to make a comeback amid Harris threatening to break his rushing record.

    If anyone could make a comeback JB could certainly do it... I remember something about Brown attempting a comeback with the Raiders in the 70's but Art owned the rights to his contract I believe...

    @nickers said:

    If anyone could make a comeback JB could certainly do it... I remember something about Brown attempting a comeback with the Raiders in the 70's but Art owned the rights to his contract I believe...

    Looks like you beat me to the JB come back stuff.  One thing people may not know about Jim Brown was that he was an unbelievable lacrosse player at Syracuse.  In a school that is usually elite - he's often said to be the best face-off guy they ever had on top of all the other things he did well in that sport.

    I welcome the only Defensive Coordinator to earn a Superbowl Ring in New Orleans while understanding Revenge of the Nerds is a sequel. "Come get some!"
    ❤

  • I was at the Browns-Steelers game (one of the best ones) in 1972. Browns went up 20-3. Steelers took the lead on a Franco TD run, probably 70 yards...for a big back he was fast. 

    Cockroft won it with a last second FG 26-24. Great memories when they played in the mud & hated each other.

    Karlis Missed
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  • I'm watching the game on NFL network and saw Terry Bradshaw speak before the game. You could see the hurt in his eyes. Poor guy.

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  • They won scoring 13.  The same number of points scored in that Immaculate Reception game in 72...courtesy of Franco.

  • Hate the Steelers but I always respected this guy.

    WSS 

    www.westsidesteve.com www.myspace.com/westsidestevemusic www.cdbaby.com/artist/westsidestevesimmons

  • @ghoolie-always-ghoolie said:

    Franco's legs were fine. He kept them healthy by running out of bounds.

    Fuck him. In 40 years I never once thought about him, reminisced about him wrote to him, researched him, called him, or tried to see him. There is absolutely no aspect of my life that Franco Harris touched. Furthermore, tens of thousands of Americans died today and not one mention of them.

    If not for the media telling us about Harris, we wouldn't know otherwise.

    When Franco played I booed him, called him cocksucker, and wished the Browns would break his legs.

    So now the cocksucker is dead and what? I am supposed to weep?

    Here it comes.....Ghoolie, have respect.

    I didn't respect this asshole when he was alive, and I don't give a fuck that he is dead.

    Is his wife still giving blowjobs? I could be up for that.

    As far as I can tell, there is no aspect of my life that any pro athlete has touched.

    How about JB? Has he touched your life in any way?

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