Sport Slices

The sports world is mourning the loss of two of its greatest athletes.

The entire country of Argentina will miss Diego Maradona. Even though he stood at five feet, five inches, give or take, he was truly a giant in the soccer world. He led the Argetines to a World Cup victory. He helped sell the game throughout the world. I have seen several videos, recently, of Diego showing off some of his magical skills. For soccer, he was the entire package.

Unfortunately, he was engulfed with his fame and fortune. He became a drug addict, and spent several years in rehabilitation. He was 60 years old at the time of his death.

Paul Hornung died November 13^th. He was 84 years old. He also experienced great heights and depths in his lifetime. Born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky, he left high school as a highly prized athlete. He could put the ball in the basket, but his game was football.

He began his career at Notre Dame in 1954 as a backup fullback. The following year he played halfback, and safety on defense. He played basketball in the off-season, but was asked to quit because it affected his grades.

He rose to stardome the following year. The Irish remained quite dreadful, finishing at 2-8. On offense, Hornung led the team as their quaterback. He compiled the best statistics in rushing, passing, scoring, punting, and kickoff and punt returns. On the other side of the ball, he made more tackles and had more interceptions than any of his teammates.

He won the Heisman Trophy as the most outstanding college football player in the nation. It remains the only time that a player has won the award, after finishing the season playing for a losing team.

He graduated in business in 1957 and was the first overall draft pick, headed to the Green Bay Packers. His finest season was in 1961, and he was selected as the Most Valuable Player.

He even did a stint in the American Army that year. He was allowed to play on weekends. But when it came to an important game against the New York Giants, Coach Lombardi contacted President John F. Kennedy to “smooth the road” so that Hornung could play the game.

Following that season, he was a special guest at a celebrity sports dinner in Ottawa, Ontario. It was an upscale affair, at the Chateau Laurier. My friend, Bellevillian Allan Stitt, also attended that dinner. He had been chosen as the representative of the Ottawa Montangards, the main junior hockey franchise in the capital at that time. To his good fortune, “Stitter” sat beside Hornung.

“I remember him as being a very charismatic person. He had an impressive smile, and wavy blond hair. He certainly drew a crowd, as expected. A very friendly guy”.

In the early 1960s, he was a teammate of Jim Taylor. They were known as “Thunder and Lightning” by the way they moved the ball on offense.

In April, 1963, Hornung ran into a large STOP sign. He had been living an extravagant life style, perhaps beyond his means. Players were not compensated in those days as they are today. He thought he could finance things with a few well-placed bets. He was suspended from football, along with Alex Karras, a Detroit Lion, for “betting on games and associating with undesirable persons”. He was also told that he could not visit Las Vegas!

He was reinstated the following March, with the promise that he would stay away from Vegas, and that he would not attend the Kentucky Derby.

                                                       Signing Copies of "Golden Boy"

Hornung retired from football in 1966, and spent many years in the broadcast booth, at a variety of levels. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1986.