Females and football? The legendary Franco Harris once had his doubts.
The passing of the Hall of Fame running back of the Pittsburgh Steelers was revealed early this morning by his son, Bok, according to The Associated Press, and the news shocked Wheeling resident Gene Fahey, his wife Candy, and his wife’s daughter, Sissy George. The three attended a dinner in Franco’s honor this past week at the Pittsburgh Marriott near the Pittsburgh International Airport.
Harris ran for more than 12,000 yards and won four Super Bowls with the Steelers during the dynasty years in the 1970s. His death comes two days before the 50th anniversary of the ‘Immaculate Reception’, an improbable catch against the Oakland Raiders in 1972. Harris was to have his No. 32 retired by the Steelers, too, this weekend during halftime of Pittsburgh’s home game against the Raiders on Christmas Eve.
Fahey, regional vice-president, and general manager of Altmeyer Funeral Homes & Crematory in West Virginia and Ohio, had the opportunity to speak with Harris at length and one topic was the Hall of Famer’s support of the Pittsburgh Passion, an all-female football team that plays home games in the Imperial community of the Pittsburgh area.
“It was a special dinner for Franco this past Saturday evening, and we were lucky enough to be assigned seats at Franco’s table,” Fahey explained. “It was in honor of the Steelers retiring his No. 32, and it is also the anniversary of the ‘Immaculate Reception.’ He and his wife, Dana attended, of course, and our conversations are something I’ll never, ever forget.
“So many people were coming up to him because, well, he’s Franco Harris, a legend of the Pittsburgh Steelers,” he said. “And he was always so great with my wife’s daughter, Sissy, who has been a member of the Passion now for a couple of seasons, and I know all of the ladies with the team are devastated. He was so important to their success, and he’s always been a wonderful man to all of them.”
Harris told Fahey, though, that he had his doubts when the concept was initially introduced.
“During the dinner, he told the story about how he got involved with the Pittsburgh Passion,” Fahey recalled. “He admitted that he was a little skeptical about getting involved with a female football team at first, but he did find out where they were playing one of their games, and he went. But he stood behind a fence and he wore a ballcap so no one would recognize him, but he was impressed.
“He thought the ladies were incredible and he recognized that the ladies were incredible athletes, and that’s when he decided to get involved,” he said. “That’s how he ended up becoming one of the three owners of the Pittsburgh Passion and he’s been involved for the last 20 years. He said it made him feel a commitment to women and sport, and he told us he loved that the females had the opportunity to play the game at a very high level and that he was a part of it.”
With Sadness, Steeler Nation Celebrates
The Pittsburgh Steelers announced in early September the storied organization would retire No. 32 in honor of Harris, and the numeral would be only the third in the 89-year history of the NFL franchise.
The Rooney’s retired Ernie Stautner No. 70 in 1964, and Joe Green’s No. 75 in 2014.
“I am thrilled we are going to honor Franco with this recognition by retiring his No. 32 jersey,” Steelers president Art Rooney II said in a statement at the time. “This is the 50th anniversary of one of the most memorable plays in NFL history; one that changed the course of our success with his ‘Immaculate Reception’ in 1972. My grandfather was once quoted as saying: ‘Before Franco got here, we didn’t win much; Since he got here, we don’t lose.’ I think that sums it up pretty good.
“Franco’s impact on the franchise would be hard to overstate,” Rooney continued. “That is why I think it is fitting and appropriate that we recognize Franco’s remarkable career by retiring his Number 32 at our game on December 24.”
Harris, who told Fahey he remembered his trip to Wheeling to sign autographs at Boury’s and Elby’s during his playing days, couldn’t believe it.
“He told me that he was really shocked when the Rooneys called him to tell him they were going to retire his number. He told me the thought never crossed his mind. Never,” Fahey said. “He said it was the greatest honor to be one of three players in their history to have their number retired by the team.
“We talked about Terry Bradshaw and how he was all business on the field, and we talked about “Mean” Joe Green and that Coca-Cola commercial,” he said. “I told him how cool it is to see so many people getting their pictures taken with the statue of him and the catch at the Pittsburgh International Airport, and he said, ‘It still blows my mind that people remember that,’ but that’s just an example of how unassuming as you could possibly be while sitting there a legend as he is and forever will be.”
For many reasons, the Rooneys bestowed the greatest running back in Steelers history with its top honor, but it will be the “Immaculate Reception’ that will receive most of the attention this Christmas Eve.
“I did ask him about ‘The Catch’ and I asked him how much he thought about it,” Fahey reported. “He said, ‘What’s unbelievable is that I have no recollection whatsoever until I hit the end zone.’ He said when he’s tried to think about it, every time he comes up with nothing. He said, ‘I’m sure it was all instinctual, but I just remember hitting the end zone and wondering what in the world just happened.’
“The one thing I didn’t ask him is if he really caught the ball because that’s been a point of contention since, especially with Oakland fans,” he said. “We’re just very saddened by his passing, not just because we had the chance to spend time with him recently, but because of what he stood for and what he did for the Pittsburgh Passion.”
