Bittersweet anniversary: Franco Harris’ shocking death mutes ‘Immaculate Reception’ 50-year celebration
Steelers running back Franco Harris (32) eludes a tackle by the Oakland Raiders鈥� Jimmy Warren as he runs 42 yards for a touchdown after catching a deflected pass forever known as the 鈥淚mmaculate Reception.鈥� The play took place at Three Rivers Stadium on Dec. 23, 1972. (Photo by Harry Cabluck / AP)
Franco Harris (right) poses with George Von Benko in July. Harris died suddenly on Wednesday just days before the 50th anniversary of his iconic play that was dubbed the 鈥淚mmaculate Reception.鈥� He was 72. (Submitted photo)
Submitted photo
Franco Harris poses with a new 鈥淚mmaculate Reception鈥� tee shirt celebrating the 50th anniversary of the iconic play. Harris died on Wednesday at the age of 72.
Steeler Nation was set for a big celebration.
December 23 is the 50th anniversary of The Immaculate Reception and the NFL had scheduled the Las Vegas Raiders to play the Steelers in Pittsburgh on Christmas Eve and the central figure in the play that was voted the greatest in NFL history, Franco Harris, was going to have his number 32 retired by the Steelers.
A pall was cast over Steeler Nation and the NFL when two days before the 50th anniversary of The Immaculate Reception, Hall-of-Famer Franco Harris passed away at the age of 72.
I had interviewed Harris on Tuesday afternoon December 20th at 1:33 in the afternoon and was absolutely devastated with the news of his death. Harris had been a whirlwind leading up to the weekend festivities, conducting interviews and speaking engagements. He spoke with great pride about having his number retired.
鈥淚t is quite an honor with the jersey retirement,鈥� Harris stated. 鈥淚 knew the 50th anniversary was coming up and I was getting ready for that and the excitement of that and then just add the jersey retirement to that. It鈥檚 just incredible, what an honor.鈥�
The Immaculate Reception took place in the AFC divisional playoff game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Oakland Raiders at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh.
NFL Films has chosen it as the greatest play of all time, as well as the most controversial. The play was also selected as the Greatest Play in NFL History in the NFL Network鈥檚 100 series. Harris has maintained not a day went by that he was not reminded about the play.
鈥淭hat is still true,鈥� Harris explained in our recent interview. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 mind it at all, it just brings back a lot of good memories of my teammates and the things we accomplished in the 鈥�70s. I got to enjoy this with a lot of Steelers fans and it just makes for good discussion and good memories.鈥�
That play served as a catalyst for the Steelers, who shed four decades of futility with their first playoff win ever, and went on to win four Super Bowls by the end of the 1970s.
鈥淚 would say so,鈥� Harris said. 鈥淚 mean 1972 was an incredible year. We went 11-3, with the Immaculate Reception game we had our first playoff victory ever for the Pittsburgh Steelers and now we were going to the AFC championship game. One game away from the Super Bowl and how exciting is that? My rookie year and you are one game away from the Super Bowl and we played the undefeated Miami Dolphins and they beat us, but it really set the groundwork in that division and, you know what, we are a pretty good football team and now our goal is the Super Bowl. And that was a great focus for us and we went ahead and just did incredible things in the 鈥�70s.鈥�
Longtime Steelers PR director Joe Gordon served in that capacity for 29 years from 1969 to 1998 and this year was one of 20 recipients of the Pro Football Hall of Fame鈥檚 inaugural 鈥淎wards of Excellence.鈥� Gordon commented on the lasting legacy of the Immaculate Reception.
鈥淚t鈥檚 totally incredible that it鈥檚 50 years ago and it鈥檚 still such a topical issue,鈥� Gordon stated.
The Immaculate Reception occurred at 3:41 in the afternoon on December 23, 1972 and lasted about 20 seconds.
The Steelers trailed 7-6 with 22 seconds remaining in the game and were facing fourth and 10 from their own 40-yard line with no timeouts. The play the Steelers ran 50 years ago was 66 Circle Option. The primary receiver was supposed to be rookie Barry Pearson, playing in his first game. Pittsburgh quarterback Terry Bradshaw was flushed out of the pocket and threw a pass attempt to John 鈥淔renchy鈥� Fuqua at the Raiders 35 yard-line. Fuqua and Oakland defensive back Jack Tatum collided with Fuqua, sending the ball flying back toward midfield in the direction of Harris, who caught he ball just inches above the Three Rivers Stadium turf near the Oakland 45 before he outraced several stunned Raider defenders to score.
The rule then 鈥� which was removed in 1978 鈥� was that if one offensive receiver was the first player to tip a pass, it couldn鈥檛 legally be touched next and caught by another offensive player. Tatum, who died in 2010, always said he never touched the ball. Former Raiders defensive back George Atkinson, who calls the play the Immaculate Deception, seconds that. 鈥淛ack Tatum hit (Fuqua) from behind into the ball,鈥� he told NFL Films. The controversy rages to this day.
鈥淒uring that play when Bradshaw was scrambling,鈥� Harris recalled. 鈥淚 told myself to release to be an outlet pass and when he threw the ball, in my mind entered 鈥榞o to the ball Franco, go to the ball鈥� which Joe Paterno at Penn State always used to tell me. I started taking steps to the ball and then I remembered nothing else. I had a complete blank which still quite baffles me. I don鈥檛 remember anything, but I do remember right when Bradshaw threw the ball to go to the ball. I watched the film and I see what happened and I said, wow, I鈥檓 glad that popped into my mind to go to the ball.鈥�
Fuqua has never revealed it the ball deflected off of him or not.
鈥淔renchy will never tell,鈥� Harris offered. 鈥淎s Frenchy says we will keep it Immaculate.鈥�
Back in the day the press would leave the press box early with about three or four minutes to go in the game because they didn鈥檛 want to get jammed up in the elevators and not be able to get to the locker room when it opened. I went down to the field and was standing in the end zone when the play happened and Harris was running right at me.
鈥淭he Chief,鈥� the late Art Rooney, missed the play because he was on an elevator on his way down to console his team after what he thought was a tough loss.
鈥淭he story about 鈥楾he Chief,鈥� he was always used to losing,鈥� Harris explained. 鈥淭he games would be tight, but they would always lose them and here we were winning the whole game until the last minute and the Raiders go ahead. Once again Mr. Rooney is thinking well the same old same old, we were close, but once again losing.
鈥淗e got on the elevator a loser and when he got to the bottom and off the elevator he was a winner, and as you know we went on to do some wonderful things in the rest of the 70s.鈥�
鈥淚t was incredible the way it lit the town on fire,鈥� Gordon recalled. 鈥淲e had a good season, 11-3 in the regular season, and got the town all worked up. From the time we started winning, we beat Kansas City and Minnesota and both of those teams were NFL powerhouses at the time. We sold from the beginning of the season until the end of the season 20,000 season tickets.鈥�
鈥淚t was interesting to hear that the Immaculate Reception Game was not sold out,鈥� Harris said. 鈥淭he Steelers never really sold out any games. I had lunch with Art Rooney II and it was interesting to hear that after The Immaculate Reception Game they鈥檝e been sold out ever since.鈥�
Gordon helped dispel one of the urban legends surrounding the Immaculate Reception. In the immediate aftermath of the play, 鈥淭here was a phone in the dugout 鈥� and our stadium operations manager Jim Boston called me directly and said, 鈥�(Referee Fred) Swearingen wants to talk to (Art) McNally.鈥� He was the NFL supervisor of officials, who happened to be at the game,鈥� said Gordon.
鈥淪o I handed the phone to McNally and I heard him say, 鈥榃hat did you see?鈥� He listened for a bit and then said, 鈥榃ell, call it then.鈥� The whole conversation lasted 10 to 15 seconds. That was a bunch of BS about them asking about security. The Raiders claimed that if Swearingen ruled it incomplete that there would have been a riot, which is totally false, it wouldn鈥檛 have happened that way.鈥�
The play鈥檚 name is a pun derived from the Immaculate Conception, a dogma in the Catholic Church. The phrase was first used on air by Myron Cope, a Pittsburgh sportscaster who was reporting on the Steelers鈥� victory. A Pittsburgh woman, Sharon Levosky, called Cope and suggested the name, which was coined by her friend Michael Ord. Cope used the term on television and the phrase stuck.
鈥淚t was a stroke of genius,鈥� Gordon laughed. 鈥淭he way Myron got that information, he was on the phone in the Steelers鈥� equipment room which was right next to the locker room and he got that call and Ord coined the Immaculate Reception and Myron ran with it and it鈥檚 just totally incredible the whole situation for it to last for 50 years is just beyond belief.鈥�
I鈥檓 still reeling from the death of Franco Harris, which has put a damper on this great celebration. I will leave it to Harris to tell the story of his love affair with the City of Pittsburgh and Steeler fans.
鈥淚 did not want to come to Pittsburgh,鈥� Harris stated. 鈥淭hat was the big thing, that was last on my list. When I got the call, 鈥楥ongratulations, you鈥檙e drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers,鈥� it was like, 鈥楴o, I can鈥檛 believe this!
鈥淏ut, wow, did it work out OK!鈥�
Indeed it did work out OK. Harris wound up spending his life in Pittsburgh after a Hall of Fame football career and became an icon in the Steel City. RIP Franco, you will be missed.
George Von Benko鈥檚 鈥淢emory Lane鈥� column appears in the Sunday editions of the 缅北禁地. He also hosts a sports talk show on WMBS-AM radio from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.