Recalling Meeting An NFL Player Who Had Little Role In "The Express"

The year was 1988 and I was a part-time sports writer for The Press of Atlantic City.

Now this story is not to brag, although I am proud of my encounter and the experience I had. The story, in retrospect, was pitifully short, but the experience was one of a lifetime and something aspiring sports writers should read.

I was sent to cover the inaugural Ernie Davis Award, sponsored by the Leukemia Society of America and host casino Harrah’s Atlantic City in December, 1988. The recipient was Oakland Raiders quarterback Jim Plunkett.

The award is still given out today and past recipients include Miami Dolphin great Nick Buoniconti.

The award was established to honor football players, and subsequently citizens, who display Davis’ “dedication to mankind, love of humanity and athletic prowess.”

I “boned up” (researched) the assignment by reading Plunkett’s book, “The Jim Plunkett Story: The Saga of a Man who Came Back.” I read the 200-page large print book in one day. It was an easy read.

In the book, Plunkett mentioned two Stanford teammates—Randy Vataha, who played for the New England Patriots and Jack Schultz, who played in the now-defunct WFL.

I got to the event with a friend of mine, and spotted Plunkett almost right away. I had a tape recorder and got a sound bite from Plunkett, enough of a quote to distinguish my story from an Associated Press wire story.

I then found Vataha and Schultz. I talked to Vataha a little, but to Schultz for almost 20 minutes.

I went inside a room and spotted a 5'9" skinny, but well muscled balding black man. I figured he was an NFL player, so I introduced myself.

“Hi,” he said, as I shook his hand, “I am Floyd Little.”

Floyd Little went to Syracuse University, as did Davis and the great Jim Brown. I knew little of the connection between these three men at the time, but continued on with my talk with Little, who had retired in the late 1970s after a fine nine-year career as the featured running back with the Denver Broncos.

A brief aside, but it will make what I will tell you next give it value. I recently told another Bleacher Report reporter that I had met former Major League Umpire Eric Gregg twice.

“Man, I would have loved to talk baseball with Gregg,” the reporter said.

I did not tell him, but the two meetings were chance meetings, just as a fan, not as a reporter. Many sports fans have brushes with well known sports figures, but each of the two interactions lasted no more than 15-30 seconds. There was no baseball talk.

But on that night, many years ago, I talked football with Floyd Little for a half hour or more.

“Did you play with “The Orange Crush” team?,” I asked.

“No,” said Little. “I retired a year before that.”

For the record, Little retired after the 1976 season. The 1977 Denver Orange Crush defense played the 1978 Super Bowl and lost to the Dallas Cowboys, 27-10.

I remembered when Little played. He was a great back, but not quite Hall of Fame material. But I am here to tell you, he was one of the nicest men I have ever met.

It was not until recently when I found out his role in the Ernie Davis story.

Just a bit more about the Ernie Davis award and my experience that night:

I remember I sat at a table with Penn State star and Baltimore Colts legend Lenny Moore. I also lost a favorite leather jacket a friend had given me that night. My friend and I had a great time, I went back to the office or filed from home.

It turned out to be about an eight-inch story, but I got a byline and the quote got into the paper.

As some of you know, my 23-year career with the paper ended this past August. But this was one of the highlights of my career.

I would suggest that any aspiring journalist go work part time for a local daily newspaper, or move to a metropolitan area and get a job at a local paper and be willing to start small, work another job at the same time and stay available for all stories assigned. You never know who you will meet.

Atlantic City has casinos, so it attracts some big events. I met Mike Tyson once, but that is another story for another day.

The Ernie Davis story was made into a movie in 2008, called “The Express.”

Jim Brown was the first Syracuse running back to proudly wear the number 44, before making a Hall of Fame career with the Cleveland Browns. Davis was the next 44, getting drafted by the Washington Redskins in 1962, but traded to the Browns for what Cleveland hoped would be a dream backfield.

Davis never played for the Browns. After being acquired and sitting out the 1962 season, the all-American back died of leukemia 16 months after winning the 1961 Heisman Trophy.

Before Davis died, Syracuse coach Ben Schwartzwalder took his star back to meet another stud high school running back, just as Brown had visited Davis and his family in about 1959.

Watching the movie and showing the back of the player, number 77, I knew who it was before Dennis Quaid said it.

“Floyd Little,” I said.

It was Brown who got Davis to come to Syracuse and Davis who persuaded Little to attend Syracuse and be the third great number 44 at Syracuse.

I watched a clip of Floyd Little at the premier of the movie on About.com and he said that it was Davis who got him to go to Syracuse as West Point recruiters were hot on his tail to play for Army (in the movie it was a Notre Dame recruiter).

The photo shown with this story is a Google photo of Jim Brown and Little promoting the movie.

And even though I got fired from the paper on Aug. 18, I knew that night in 1988, meeting Little, was all worth it after watching "The Express."

Young writers: Take the chance. Meet a pro. Speak to him like just another man.

You will never forget who you met that day.