WHITE DEER — A former White Deer standout came home to deliver an early Christmas present to the high school.
Carl McAdams, who played in Super Bowl III when the New York Jets beat the Baltimore Colts 16-7, delivered a commemorative gold football as part of the NFL’s High School Honor Roll program.
The program, which celebrates high schools and communities that have contributed to Super Bowl history, is designed to link past Super Bowls with this year’s game.
High schools across the nation, and around the world, will receive a commemorative Wilson golden football for every player or head coach who graduated from the school and was on an active Super Bowl roster.
“I think it’s a wonderful deal that the NFL put the high schools involved in this because that’s where all the players get started,” McAdams said. “I just think it’s a wonderful deal for the NFL. I think it’s going to influence younger people to come back and start playing football. It’s slowed down a little bit, and I hope this speeds it back up.”
McAdams said White Deer was a big part of his learning experience, despite never winning a state championship on varsity.
“My freshman year, they won the state championship and I was not a contributor,” McAdams said. “I was 123 pounds. At the end of our freshman season, they put five of us on the traveling squad and I got to travel with them. All those guys were big strong studs, and they are still my heroes. We never won another conference championship when I was in high school. I got a scholarship to OU and had good fortune there. Then I got fortunate enough to go to a team that would eventually win a Super Bowl.”
McAdams said his most memorable moment from the Super Bowl involved someone on the other team.
“When I was growing up, just like these kids here in White Deer, my hero was Johnny Unitas,” McAdams said.
“I was on the football field and we were ahead. I was playing defensive tackle at the time and it was late in the third quarter,” McAdams said.
“Over the loud speaker I heard Johnny Unitas was entering the field and I just wilted. My hero is coming, and I hope he don’t beat us. He did take them down and scored a touchdown, but we held on.”
The Jets got the improbable victory over the Colts in that Super Bowl, and McAdams said it was a treat no one expected.
“That was a big relief,” McAdams said. “In Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II, the NFL blew the AFL away and said the AFL didn’t belong and couldn’t play with the NFL. When we were getting on the plane to fly to Miami from New York, even the New York papers headlines said ‘Jets are leaving for Miami for Super Bowl III, why are they even going.’”
One player famously did expect a New York Jets victory. Joe Namath made one of the most famous predictions in Super Bowl history when he guaranteed victory for his Jets over the heavily favored and then-undefeated Baltimore Colts.
McAdams had a bit of insight into that prediction.
“I know you’ve heard of the guaranteed win,” McAdams said. “The night before, Weeb Ewbank had a team meeting and he showed us the film of the Colts playing the Browns in the NFL championship game and the Colts beat them 31-0. Our tight end Pete Lammons stood up after the film and was leaving and said, ‘Coach Weeb, you’re going to have to quit showing us crap like this.’ He said, ‘Why?’ ‘Well look at them — they are all overconfident.’
“Weeb laughed and said, ‘We’ve got a right to be a little over confident, we’ve got a good plan, and I think everything is going to work, but we don’t want to say nothing because these guys are good football players and we don’t want to get them upset. So don’t say nothing.’
“The next morning’s headlines were ‘Namath Guarantees Win.’ Weeb Ewbank calls Namath into the office and said, ‘I just got through telling you don’t say nothing.’ Namath said, ‘Coach I’m sorry. I just couldn’t take it no longer.’ He was at a supper club and all the news media and everyone was telling him how bad the Colts were going to beat him up and he couldn’t take it no longer.”
Carl McAdams, who played in Super Bowl III when the New York Jets beat the Baltimore Colts 16-7, delivered a commemorative gold football as part of the NFL’s High School Honor Roll program.
The program, which celebrates high schools and communities that have contributed to Super Bowl history, is designed to link past Super Bowls with this year’s game.
High schools across the nation, and around the world, will receive a commemorative Wilson golden football for every player or head coach who graduated from the school and was on an active Super Bowl roster.
“I think it’s a wonderful deal that the NFL put the high schools involved in this because that’s where all the players get started,” McAdams said. “I just think it’s a wonderful deal for the NFL. I think it’s going to influence younger people to come back and start playing football. It’s slowed down a little bit, and I hope this speeds it back up.”
McAdams said White Deer was a big part of his learning experience, despite never winning a state championship on varsity.
“My freshman year, they won the state championship and I was not a contributor,” McAdams said. “I was 123 pounds. At the end of our freshman season, they put five of us on the traveling squad and I got to travel with them. All those guys were big strong studs, and they are still my heroes. We never won another conference championship when I was in high school. I got a scholarship to OU and had good fortune there. Then I got fortunate enough to go to a team that would eventually win a Super Bowl.”
McAdams said his most memorable moment from the Super Bowl involved someone on the other team.
“When I was growing up, just like these kids here in White Deer, my hero was Johnny Unitas,” McAdams said.
“I was on the football field and we were ahead. I was playing defensive tackle at the time and it was late in the third quarter,” McAdams said.
“Over the loud speaker I heard Johnny Unitas was entering the field and I just wilted. My hero is coming, and I hope he don’t beat us. He did take them down and scored a touchdown, but we held on.”
The Jets got the improbable victory over the Colts in that Super Bowl, and McAdams said it was a treat no one expected.
“That was a big relief,” McAdams said. “In Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II, the NFL blew the AFL away and said the AFL didn’t belong and couldn’t play with the NFL. When we were getting on the plane to fly to Miami from New York, even the New York papers headlines said ‘Jets are leaving for Miami for Super Bowl III, why are they even going.’”
One player famously did expect a New York Jets victory. Joe Namath made one of the most famous predictions in Super Bowl history when he guaranteed victory for his Jets over the heavily favored and then-undefeated Baltimore Colts.
McAdams had a bit of insight into that prediction.
“I know you’ve heard of the guaranteed win,” McAdams said. “The night before, Weeb Ewbank had a team meeting and he showed us the film of the Colts playing the Browns in the NFL championship game and the Colts beat them 31-0. Our tight end Pete Lammons stood up after the film and was leaving and said, ‘Coach Weeb, you’re going to have to quit showing us crap like this.’ He said, ‘Why?’ ‘Well look at them — they are all overconfident.’
“Weeb laughed and said, ‘We’ve got a right to be a little over confident, we’ve got a good plan, and I think everything is going to work, but we don’t want to say nothing because these guys are good football players and we don’t want to get them upset. So don’t say nothing.’
“The next morning’s headlines were ‘Namath Guarantees Win.’ Weeb Ewbank calls Namath into the office and said, ‘I just got through telling you don’t say nothing.’ Namath said, ‘Coach I’m sorry. I just couldn’t take it no longer.’ He was at a supper club and all the news media and everyone was telling him how bad the Colts were going to beat him up and he couldn’t take it no longer.”
Hello, my name is Jack Sparrow. I'm a 50 year old self-employed Pirate from the Caribbean.
No comments:
Post a Comment