The Immaculate Reception
NOTE: This is what I posted on LinkedIn, so it is more work focused. But, I also don’t have the bandwidth to write two different spins on the same concept either. Once I bleed my soul on a subject for the usual 30 minutes when I get inspired, that is usually the first and final take.
I try my best to separate LinkedIn messaging and my sports love, as I have my own sports blog for the latter. Sometimes, however, the worlds do overlap. A slightly longer version is on my website (thefillerbuster.com) due to post length regulations.
Today is the actual anniversary of the Immaculate Reception in the NFL. Arguably one of the greatest and pivotal plays of all-time, Franco Harris was the hero who caught the football before it hit the ground in a playoff game, and then galloped into the end zone to help send the Steelers to the next round. True, I was almost exactly a month old when this happened, but somehow I still became a Steelers fan while fully enclosed within an Eagles family. True, the Steelers went on to lose to the undefeated Dolphins after that game. True, Franco Harris was but just a rookie. But, also true that the trajectory of this loveably losing organization changed immediately after this play. A paradigm shift occurred. They knew they could win. They went on to win, a few years later, four out of six Super Bowls in the 70’s and are in the beginning numbers of any rankings of best teams ever. That includes all FOUR of those teams.
The world suddenly lost Franco Harris earlier this week, only days before the 50th Anniversary of the play. Odd that Pittsburgh lost both Harris and baseball legend Willie Stargell days before they were to be celebrated.
The message today though is how it relates to the work world. The stories about Franco have all come out this week, and they have been amazing to listen to.
- Franco actually mostly blocked for the better RB at Penn State, Lydell Mitchell. Chuck Noll saw something though, and still drafted him at #13 in the 1972 draft.
- Lesson: Do the dirty work when needed, and do it to the best of your ability without complaining, and you WILL be noticed.
- Franco’s cumulative rushing record in Super Bowls still stands today.
- Lesson: When you DO get to the big moment, seize it.
- Franco never was a talker, and even though he played with such all-timers such as Terry Bradshaw, Rocky Bleier, Lynn Swann, Joe Greene, John Stallworth, Jack Hamm, Jack Lambert, Mel Blount, etc., the team sort of knew who the heart and soul was.
- Lesson: There are many ways to lead. Find your style and excel at it.
- Franco never threw any teammates under the bus, never complained, and just decided to bring his wrath during runs and not before or after.
- Lesson: Be a fountain, not a drain.
- Franco stayed in Pittsburgh after his career, became a part of the community, started a business (ironically with his college RB buddy, Lydell Mitchell) to help undernourished children, attended community events and signed every single autograph, and stayed close to his past teammates as well as Pittsburgh staff and ownership.
- Lesson: Once you find your calling, embrace it to your full ability. It will love you back.
- The one thing that keeps coming up this week in all of the stories is this. He was the best teammate anyone could ever have.
- Lesson: You can stand out individually on performance while still blending perfectly into the team concept.
- Frank Sinatra even wanted to meet Franco.
- Lesson: Well, you are doing something right if Frank Sinatra wants to meet you.
My point is this. There have been a lot of running backs in the NFL over the decades, and all of them have been very skilled at carrying the ball. But, it is something totally different to carry a team, your family, your friends, your community, the youths’ dreams, a city’s identity, and a culture. You can go to your job and do the necessary work. Or, you can buy in at your job for the larger goal. Unity, team success, and class while doing it. You may or may not catch an Immaculate Reception. But, seize the moments you can and to the best of your ability and carry yourself as a better person…and amazing things can happen.
We will miss you, Franco. We will miss everything you were and how most of us want to be.