The Brian D. O'Leary Show - Remembering the great Franco Harris - December 21, 2022

The Brian D. O’Leary Show December 21, 2022 Bill Schonely “… wherever you may be…” The Final Goodbye for “The Schonz” https://youtu.be/wna_mCmHQeI Franco Harris Steelers Hall of Fame RB Franco Harris, author of 'The Immaculate Reception,' dies at 72 Starting with the 1980 season, Harris became the career rushing leader among active players. The 1984 Seattle Seahawks did have the “Original” Curt Warner on the roster, but the 3rd pick of the 1983 NFL Draft out of Penn State was injured in the opening game versus the Cleveland Browns, ending his season. Franco Harris—coming off a season in 1983 where he rushed for 1,007 yards—was released by the Steelers during training camp before the 1984 season, over an ostensible pay dispute. After the 1983 season, Harris was only 363 yards away from breaking Jim Brown’s career rushing record. Harris joined the Seahawks in September, but only ended up playing in 8 games and ended up with 170 yards rushing on the season. He never played in the NFL again. After taping this episode, John Ziegler tweeted that Franco had been at work on a podcast of his own about the Penn State-Paterno-Sandusky case. Here is the link: Upon Further Review NFL All-Time Leading Rushers Harris is now 15th all-time. Jim Brown is 11th! + indicates Pro Football Hall of Fame Highlighted players mentioned in podcast Rank Player Yds Years 1 Emmitt Smith+ 18,355 1990-2004 2 Walter Payton+ 16,726 1975-1987 3 Frank Gore 16,000 2005-2020 4 Barry Sanders+ 15,269 1989-1998 5 Adrian Peterson 14,918 2007-2021 6 Curtis Martin+ 14,101 1995-2005 7 LaDainian Tomlinson+ 13,684 2001-2011 8 Jerome Bettis+ 13,662 1993-2005 9 Eric Dickerson+ 13,259 1983-1993 10 Tony Dorsett+ 12,739 1977-1988 11 Jim Brown+ 12,312 1957-1965 12 Marshall Faulk+ 12,279 1994-2005 13 Edgerrin James+ 12,246 1999-2009 14 Marcus Allen+ 12,243 1982-1997 15 Franco Harris+ 12,120 1972-1984 16 Thurman Thomas+ 12,074 1988-2000 17 Fred Taylor 11,695 1998-2010 18 Steven Jackson 11,438 2004-2015 19 John Riggins+ 11,352 1971-1985 20 Corey Dillon 11,241 1997-2006 Joe Paterno Wikipedia article about JoePa (Warning: some information, especially about the end of his career is dubious.) The Immaculate Reception How the Immaculate Reception shaped Steelers history Wikipedia on the Immaculate Reception Harris caught a deflected pass, leading to a 13-7 Steelers victory over their rival Oakl…