Franco Harris Obituary – Death : legendary Pittsburgh Steelers running back, dead at 72 franco harris – franco harris news – franco harris death – franco harris death cause – cause of franco harris death

Franco Harris Obituary – Death : legendary Pittsburgh Steelers running back, dead at 72 franco harris – franco harris news – franco harris death – franco harris death cause – cause of franco harris death

Franco Harris, a legendary running back for the Steelers and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, has passed away, according to CBS Pittsburgh. He was 72.

Harris’ relatives informed the station that he had passed away. The reason of death was not disclosed.

After playing for Joe Paterno at Penn State, the four-time Super Bowl victor and nine-time Pro Bowler was selected by the Steelers with the 13th overall choice in 1972.

Harris amassed over 11,000 yards of rushing throughout his lengthy NFL career while playing with the Steelers, making him the franchise’s all-time best rusher. He was also voted the Super Bowl IX MVP.

With his “Immaculate Reception” during the Divisional Round of the 1972 Playoffs at Three Rivers Stadium, Harris cemented his place in history for all time. The Associated Press notes that during the league’s 100th anniversary season in 2020, it was chosen as the best play in NFL history.

Two days prior to the play’s 50th anniversary, he passed away.

December 20, 2022, Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers)
Harris, a member of the Steelers Hall of Fame, will join Joe Greene and Ernie Stautner as the only other players in the organization’s history to have their number 32 honored by the team on Saturday.

In a memorial tweeted by the Steelers, Greene said, “Franco was the heart and spirit of our team.”

Franco Harris’ influence on the Pittsburgh Steelers, his teammates, the City of Pittsburgh, and Steelers Nation is tough to put into words, according to Steelers president Art Rooney II. “Franco made people happy on and off the field beginning with his first season, which featured the Immaculate Reception, and continuing for the following 50 years. In numerous ways, he never stopped giving back. He had such a huge impact on people, and he was so adored.

Numerous athletes, coaches, and politicians paid tribute to Harris on social media. The squad, and Franco in particular, were mentioned by President Biden in a moving memory of why they “are important to my heart.”

In a statement made public by the White House, he recalled how his first wife and baby daughter were slain and his two young kids suffered serious injuries in a vehicle accident fifty years ago this week. “I received the call while I was in Washington, where I had just been elected to the U.S. Senate, and I immediately left for Delaware.

“Until they recovered, I hardly ever left my boys’ bedsides. But I did go shopping for them one day. They were grinning for the first time since the accident when I came back. Franco was among the players who had flown out with the Steelers’ benevolent and respectable owner Art Rooney.

They made time for my boys while they were busy with their own life, signed footballs, and then they departed without receiving any attention. A modest but incredibly meaningful gesture of kindness.

“May God bless, Franco Harris—a dear friend, a decent man, and a great American,” he said in closing.

“I grew up watching Franco Harris, and had the distinction of getting to know him years later,” the former president Barack Obama wrote on Twitter. On and off the field, he was a remarkable man who will be missed.

Franco Harris was someone I grew up watching, and I later had the privilege of getting to know. On and off the field, he was a remarkable man who will be missed. All of Steeler Nation and his family are in our prayers.

Franco Harris was an icon we lost. His grace, humility, and sense of pride were the epitome of Pittsburgh. He was an ambassador as well as a champion on the field. Thank you, Franco, for establishing the bar that we all aspire to as individuals and as professionals. Dana, RIP and sympathies.

On and off the field, Franco was a true legend and an idol. He actually had no selfishness.

Harris “not only impacted the game of football, but he also affected the lives of many, many individuals in profoundly positive ways,” the Hall of Fame said in a statement released on Tuesday.

“The Pro Football Hall of Fame staff as a whole is deeply grieved today.

We have lost one of the greatest individuals you will ever meet in addition to an outstanding football player and Hall of Fame ambassador. Franco had a tremendously positive impact on a great deal of people’s lives in addition to the game of football.

Dok and his wife Dana Dokmanovich, who Harris left behind, are still alive.