Football 44 Legends
Floyd Little’s opening remarks:
“I’m so glad to be back, it’s always a pleasure to come home. I’ll tell you, when they started to make the decision to retire number 44; I had some mixed feelings about it because every time I watch a Syracuse game they talk about 44 and Jim Brown and every time Jim Brown’s name is mentioned, mine is mentioned. I kind of like that. Also I have a grandson that’s nine months old so in 17 years and three months he’ll be at Syracuse as a freshman. He has no choice as to where he goes or what sport he plays. So I want Blaze Kennedy Jones to wear 44 so somewhere down the road I’m going to have to ask Daryl (Gross) to bring that number down. I enjoy coming back to Syracuse but I don’t make it back much because I live all the way out in Seattle. This is great to have this opportunity, I just enjoy coming back. This is where I started my life, everything I’ve acquired came from. We have a tradition and legacy here that’s great to be apart of. We have a new chancellor who has really embraced the program. We have an athletic director who’s been there before and knows what it takes to get there. I’m so confident Syracuse is going to be where it needs to be. We have a coach that I’ve known for many years as a Denver Broncos coach. He’s experienced two Super Bowls, two more than me. He also worked with Texas who is one of the top programs in the country. I am so confident that this program is going to launch in the next few years that all of us are going to be proud to say we were all supportive. I have great hopes, one is that my grandson will wear 44 and we’ll see the games we’re accustomed to seeing when we’re victorious at the end of the day.”
Little on what went through his mind when given number 44:
“Ernie Davis met with me in and the coaches in Connecticut on a snowy day and they said that Ernie had just signed with Cleveland and just signed a contract with Pepsi. Ernie said Syracuse treated him well. He said that one of the good things about Syracuse is that they don’t let you throw the ball because the coach believes that three things can happen and two of them are bad. So he’s going to let you carry the football and I think the community really embraces you and you get a chance to graduate and that’s the most important thing. He said I wore the number and Jim Brown wore the number and it wasn’t so bad for us. He said what I hear about you as a player is that you will do well so that’s how I was told that I would wear the number. It was a number I enjoyed; all my secret codes have 44 in them."
Little on what Ben Schwartzwalder would think about retiring number 44:
“I think Ben started the 44 legacy. It’s something he used as a recruiting tool. He would offer it to guys who had great skills and talent. I don’t think Ben would’ve retired it. It’s very competitive at the top of college football. Greg Robinson has got his hands full. We have a facility unlike anybody else so we should be able to acquire some pretty good players.”
Little on whether the ceremonies will get the Orange fired up for Saturday’s game:
“I talked to the team before the Rutgers game and I was ready to play myself. I didn’t realize I was so excitable. I looked over at Greg Robinson and his fists were clenched and his jaws were locked and I looked at the coaching staff and I was ready to play. I think the retirement of the number that centers around the legacy and tradition and Syracuse fans, who I think are some of the greatest in football. They’ve seen so many great players over the years, you know Tim Green, Rob Moore, Donovan McNabb, Donovan Darius Don MacPherson, and on the basketball side you have 44 worn by Billy Owens and Derrick Coleman, it was something. All this fan fare around is going to synergize and get this back to what it’s all about, it’s about a tradition; it’s a legacy we’ve had for years. Retiring that number and hanging it in the rafters if you will and at some point in time when Blaze Kennedy Jones shows up, they’ll bring it back. There’s something different about these guys today, there’s a different focus. They looked like they were ready to play. I think they’re going to give it their all. I think they’re going to play like it’s their last time to play.”
Little on Ernie Davis:
“Ernie was one of the greatest human beings I met at that time in my life. When he came to my house in Connecticut, he was so impressive. This was a guy that had a kindness and confidence that you don’t normally see. He and I had a chance to visit in the bathroom of a restaurant talking about Syracuse and life in general. We talked about opportunity, success and college and education and he focused on that more than anything else. He was a pretty darn good football player too. First African American to win the Heisman and he kind of bumped me on the shoulder and said maybe you’ll be the second.”
Little on Jim Brown:
“Jim is a different guy. He was a man of few words. He said I hear you’re a very good football player, you should do very well. Jim for many years didn’t associate with the university as he does today so I never saw Jim a lot as a player but I do now that I live by him in LA."
More from Little on number 44:
“I had an interview with Rob Konrad and he said he had no idea of the significance of that number when I signed. He said we had an autograph signing here and sat between McNabb and Marvin Harrison and my line is twice as long as theirs for an autograph and I hadn’t even played.”
"I'd like to say it's nice to be here. It's truly an honor to be here in the presence of such greats as the Floyd Little's and the Jim Brown's and the Rob Konrad's. 44 was a number that everybody knows why we're here. It had so much significance to it. For myself, it's a number I've worn all my life, so it means even more to me to come to Syracuse and put that number on my back and try to live up to the legend. I said to myself, if I could do half of what they did, then I'd be satisfied. I'm not sure if I was able to do that. It was great. It was truly an honor and I'm so glad to be here and so excited to get this whole weekend started. I'd just like to say thank you to the guys, like Floyd and Jim. This has been put to me in so many different ways about the number being retired and not being retired. I heard it from one person and they put it the best. They talked about the Michael Jordan's, the great athletes around the world that have worn numbers that have been retired and when you put it like that, you have to retire 44, because you have guys like Jim Brown and Ernie Davis and Floyd Little that have worn the number. The significance of that number is big here. I was just glad that you gave it out to me before you retired it. I'd just like to say thank you for having me here."
Owens on his famous play at Syracuse that kept the 1987 Syracuse football team undefeated:
"I did a little radio show today and I got that same question put to me. He asked me - when I think about Syracuse and Syracuse football, what are some thoughts? My very first is that play right there. There's no way I thought I'd get that ball to get in that endzone when Donnie had the ball in his hands. But, that play was big for our season. I was just so glad I was able to take that ball across the endzone with that 44 on my back. It just makes it that more bigger. That play, like I said, I didn't think I'd get that ball from Donnie. I just knew Donnie was going to take that thing in himself. He probably had four or five guys assigned to him on that play, which opened me up to get into the endzone, so...and it was easy to get in there."
"I did a little radio show today and I got that same question put to me. He asked me - when I think about Syracuse and Syracuse football, what are some thoughts? My very first is that play right there. There's no way I thought I'd get that ball to get in that endzone when Donnie had the ball in his hands. But, that play was big for our season. I was just so glad I was able to take that ball across the endzone with that 44 on my back. It just makes it that more bigger. That play, like I said, I didn't think I'd get that ball from Donnie. I just knew Donnie was going to take that thing in himself. He probably had four or five guys assigned to him on that play, which opened me up to get into the endzone, so...and it was easy to get in there."
Owens on wearing No. 44:
“I’ve been a running back all my life until I stopped playing football and I believe I was six years old when I wore No. 32. After that, it’s been 44. I was pretty ignorant to the whole 44 thing until I got to Syracuse and being recuited and all, but once I got here and got to talking to them, I found out all about it and it was a number I wanted anyway. If they would have worn No. 32 or 37, 44 would have to be my number. 44 has meant a lot to me. I’ve worn it all my life.”
Owens on meeting Jim Brown for the first time and whether or not there was a bond there because they both wore No. 44:
“When I first met Jim, he was here for a function. It was my freshman year and I wasn’t even playing ball at the time. He saw me as a young man. He told me to hang in there because I wasn’t playing at the time. He said I must have been something special if they were going to give that number to me. I haven’t seen Jim since those days, same as Floyd. But, it was a special conversation. We talked about a few things, about football and about life. Yeah, I met Jim probably about my freshman year. You can just imagine, a young 18-year-old meeting Jim Brown … “
“It wasn’t so much my coaches or my teammates, but the pressure was tried to put on me by the alumni. They talked about the 44. I used to tell them, if you want to see the Jim Brown’s and the Floyd Little’s, you better get the films out. I won’t be able to do the things they did, but I’m going to try and help this football team.”
Owens on wearing No. 44:
“It was just a number I took a liking to and that I wore on my back since I started playing the game and I wanted to keep it if I could. Once I got here, they told me all about it and I was just so glad they thought enough of me to ask me to wear it.”
Owens on the pressure to wear No. 44:
“There is no doubt the expectations are high with that number on your back. I didn’t allow the pressure to get to me. I’m not that type of guy. I’ve never been that way. I let them say what they’d say and I just went out and did the best I could. I think while I was here I put the number on my back and I wore it proud. I did the best I could with it.”
Jim Brown’s opening statement:
“It’s good to be back home. It’s great to see so many of you here. Daryl has brought this concept and I kind of agree with it 100 percent. Floyd wants his grandson to wear No. 44, but actually I’m very happy to be at this event because I was the first 44 and of course, Ernie Davis and Floyd Little and all the other gentlemen who have all worn the number, so I’m going to open it up to you all so you can ask the pointed questions. I know you all have some.”
Brown on the fraternity of No. 44 at Syracuse:
“I think it was a unique idea. I think we were the first school that did this and then fortunately we had some outstanding athletes that surpassed everything that I did. I was the first one, but their records went way beyond me. They had an opportunity to create diversity and to have a tremendous impact both as a part of a university and also as a citizen. Floyd here is a very outstanding businessman, an outstanding humanitarian. Ernie was loved by everybody. Rob is a great young man, so that’s kind of how I look at it.”
Brown on Ernie Davis:
“Well, I think we should always be honest and put things in a historical perspective. You have to remember. Ernie was about 23-years-old when he passed away. He was the individual that came up after me. He was quite different because I was highly controversial, always fighting up here. Ernie was loved by everybody. What he did was he was able to cross all barriers. Everybody loved him. Racially, everybody loved him. I loved him. I couldn’t find anything wrong with him. I’m a revolutionary, but he was still a revolutionary because he wanted freedom, equality and justice just like me. What was the question?”
More from Brown on Ernie Davis:
“What I was driving at is there is a reality to Ernie’s life that goes beyond Ernie. When Ernie was drafted and traded to Cleveland, he was traded for Bobby Mitchell. Bobby Mitchell was one of the greatest ball strikers of all time and one of my favorite runners and actually was a better fit for me with the Browns because he was totally different. Ernie and I would have been like two clones. He was 6-2 or 6-3, 230 – I was about the same thing, same kind of speed, quickness etc. etc. Except he was younger - so that was the reality of the trade. It was a great trade in one way, and maybe not in another way. Because, we can’t give Ernie all the credit and take it away from Bobby. Now, Bobby had to go to Washington who at that time in their history had not had a black player. He had to integrate that team. He had to sing Dixie and all the kinds of things they did down there…we used to laugh about it. He did a tremendous job of it. So, you had two men in my mind. You had Ernie Davis and you had Bobby Mitchell and I had the greatest respect for both of them. Because I know when people always talk about Ernie what they do is they say he was a nice guy, he was a great athlete, he was a nice guy, he was a great athlete, but in real life there are things that we have to bring up that are on the side - things that contribute to a whole atmosphere. So, he was a guy who broke all the barriers, etc. etc., but whether or not it would have been a great backfield is up for grabs, because Bobby went to Washington and became All-Pro in the first year, came back to Cleveland and beat us by a last-minute touchdown. So, the greatness of Ernie was there, but the circumstances were not just like everybody talks about – they make it sort of syrupy – and it shouldn’t be syrupy because he was a tough guy, he was an honest guy. He wanted freedom, equality, justice and all those things. But, every time we write about him, we just write as if he was a sort of a nice guy, a great athlete.”
Brown on being the first No. 44 at Syracuse:
“What has a great meaning to me is this press conference right now and an athletic director that wants to bring us up to date. You don’t always hit with No. 44, it’s not an automatic number. Everybody that might be designated No. 44 might not reach the greatness. It can be a burden to some individuals. So, here we are going into a new era, which can be a great era, because we did what we did. We were pioneers and as you know we were definite pioneers coming from the 1960’s, the 70’s and 80’s. That was an era where you had to be a great football player, but you also had to endure the injustices in our society. So here we are calling attention to the fact that we are going to recognize 44, but we are going to put it aside and we are going to put it up forever. But, we will always have that memory. Now the young people - whatever we start now is for a new generation. I think it will be great for the university, because you have a new chancellor and she is different. She is aggressive. She believes in diversity. She brings hope that maybe wasn’t here before. She brings a spirit that wasn’t here before, necessarily. Larry, who is my dear friend, he feels very good and very strong because that was very successful. We have the individuals – the Syracuse 8 – who came back and were welcomed – given a standing ovation. So, we are a provocative and a forward-moving university now.”
Brown on his decision to retire on top:
“That’s a great question because people have the audacity to come up to me and say do I regret leaving too soon and it’s just the opposite. You always want to leave on time. You always want to leave your legacy intact. When you talk about education…why should a man that has gotten his education, hang on to football for 20 years? Go from an All-American, an all-star to a third-stringer? Emphasizing the fact that football is the only thing that’s important in his or her life. Well, football is very important in my life – but, athletics is very important in my life – I like lacrosse as much as I like football. Roy Simmons Sr. was a great man. We had a wonderful time playing lacrosse. We didn’t get paid or anything, but we loved it. And we still have that feeling within us. So, I always tell people, when I retired from professional football, first of all, I wasn’t 30 years old, I was 29. They get that wrong. My last two years we played for the championship. In ’64, we beat the Baltimore Colts, 27-0, alright? That particular game, I didn’t play one defensive play. So, I use that as an emphasis that sometimes you give the offense all the credit and you had a defense that shut down the great Baltimore Colts. I was MVP of the league when I retired. Unfortunately, so many of our great athletes stayed around too long. A warrior never wants sympathy.”
Brown on playing four sports at Syracuse:
“I love sports. I never played for money. I never negotiated when I was a pro. I love all sports, except baseball I didn’t like too much. But, what you have is a situation now where everything is specialized. You have systems. You have a guy who comes in for one play on third down, a guy who comes in for one play on second down – this whole thing where everything is computerized and now you’re dealing with technology and football is tackling, catching passes, running the football and so forth. And a lot of great athletes, like Chuck Bednarik, played both ways, so basically I think what you’re getting now is a watered-down version of sports, but great entertainment. I think you’re seeing a lot of entertainment because you’ve got all these systems and all these things and the reporting of the games is outstanding – you guys so an unbelievable job of covering games, the camera shots are fantastic – but the quality of the game is not quite there. The injuries are numerous for some reason. You look at pro football players, most of them are about 50 pounds overweight. Don’t tell me you have to be 50 pounds overweight, that’s just sumo-wrestling, because they do a lot of pushing. They don’t block anymore, they just push. So, I don’t think the game, even with all the special systems they have, is a better game. I think it was a better game when you had to play 60 minutes. You could play some defense, you could play some offense. You got into your second wind and you played the game for the love of it. That’s just how it is. I don’t think you have a better game now with all these guys coming in and out, specializing. They say you don’t have time to go to school. If these guys studied one hour a night, they could pass any course. That’s a whole misconception. You can get good grades, you can go to class and you can play great football or any sport.”
Brown on what sticks out to him about Syracuse:
“Remember now, when I was wearing 44, I didn’t know it was ’44.’ They said OJ Simpson told me once when he was a little boy that he was going to break all my records. They say, ‘do you remember that?’ I say I remember a lot of little boys that come up, but he wasn’t OJ Simpson then. What I remember, to be very honest with you about Syracuse, is Roy Simmons Sr. Roy Simmons Sr. was one of the finest human beings that ever lived. He was the assistant football coach and the head lacrosse coach. The greatest man I ever knew was my high school coach, Ed Walsh, and I came into a lot of politics up here, but Roy Simmons Sr. was great. You used to say, ‘Come on, Big Jim. Get your uniform on. Let’s get out, let’s play.’ He was the one person that gave me life up here. Whenever I think of Syracuse, I think of him. Then, I played with his son, Roy Jr. He’s cut from a different cloth, you all know that? But, sometimes he and I get a chance to just relate as two human beings and we have his father in mind and that was the greatest memory I have of Syracuse. And I’ll tell you all something. I’m 69 years old now. I’m going to the other side, so I don’t have anything to worry about. But, you will find that most human beings, athletes/students have gone through all kinds of trials and tribulations, there is always some person that they will always remember. Someone that had an impact on their lives. Some teacher, some coach, some good human being and sometimes we don’t emphasize that enough. You have Terrell Owens’ situation and this kid has gotten out of control, and we’ve allowed him get out of control. Because if you’re an owner and you’ve got a player and you can’t relate to that player, sit him down and you guys can’t come up with something, then something’s wrong. So, when I relate to Roy Simmons about his father, I’m talking about a young man who was very insecure about being here because it was not a stable situation for me. I had no father. I came through a great high school. I had some great teachers, great coaches that helped me. So, the most important thing in my life was great human beings. Because I had a spirit in me, I was not going to be a second-class citizen. No one can ever change that. I had that in me. That was born in me. So, some people couldn’t stand that part of me. Then there were good people that embraced it. And that’s one of the reasons why I’m standing here tonight because I never gave up that part of it. I never felt inferior. I was battling all the time.”
Brown on the Retirement of No. 44 at Syracuse coinciding with the 44th anniversary of Ernie Davis winning the Heisman Trophy:
“They’re doing a movie about Ernie’s life and I’m going to help them with it. They’re doing a documentary on it and I think it’s quite significant because they were saying I was the first 44 and that had a significance, but then if you look at Ernie and the way people looked at him and having broken that Heisman Trophy barrier – that might be the most outstanding aspect of 44. But, then again, if you look at Floyd’s performances on the field just as a runner… You look at Jim, you look at Ernie – then you say, ‘Wait, Floyd might be better than both of those guys’, so it depends on how you want to look at it. Whoever thought of 44, created a lot of dimensions, depending on where you’re coming from, you can come up with some very significant things.”
Rob Konrad's opening remarks:
"Following Jim Brown...the story of my life. It's great to be back here in Syracuse for this event and I feel really privileged to be the last person to wear the number. It's been a great ride, simply because of the success we've had in the program. I live down near Jim in South Florida and get to spend some time with him every now and again and have spent some time talking to Floyd. To be able to be aligned with those guys in some way, shape or form and be able to talk with them about their life experiences and be a part of it is really special. It's a little awkward sometimes to be standing up here with those guys. But, at the same time, I'm very proud of the university and the number and the tradition that has evolved."
"Following Jim Brown...the story of my life. It's great to be back here in Syracuse for this event and I feel really privileged to be the last person to wear the number. It's been a great ride, simply because of the success we've had in the program. I live down near Jim in South Florida and get to spend some time with him every now and again and have spent some time talking to Floyd. To be able to be aligned with those guys in some way, shape or form and be able to talk with them about their life experiences and be a part of it is really special. It's a little awkward sometimes to be standing up here with those guys. But, at the same time, I'm very proud of the university and the number and the tradition that has evolved."
Konrad on wearing No. 44 at Syracuse:
"Coming out of high school, I always wore the No. 44. Where it really kicked in was when we were at a Fan Fest and I had Donovan McNabb and Marvin Harrison sitting next to me and my line was twice as long as theirs to sign autographs. And I kind of said, 'Whoa. This is kind of out-of-whack. There's something to this.' As time went on, I really learned what it was all about. In my first scrimmage, the first time I carried the ball, I think I carried it three yards in a cloud of dust, I got a standing ovation in the Dome. I started picking up on how important it was to the community."
Konrad on whether he interacted with the other 44's while at Syracuse:
"I didn't really get to talk to anybody right away. Jim came in, I think my freshman year. They made a big, bronze bust of him. I think it was my freshman year against Boston College and I wanted to put on a good show for Jim. So, I went out and ran for a bunch of yards and scored three touchdowns and then after the game, I read in the paper the next day that Jim said, 'this Konrad kid has a chance to be pretty good, he just needs to shed about 15 pounds.' Talk about tough love. Sure enough that next year, Coach Mac will tell you, I was 15 pounds lighter. As time went on, I started meeting more of the guys. When I got to the NFL, I got to really start to spend more time with Jim."
