Hall of Fame Pittsburgh Steelers running back Franco Harris has passed away; he was 72. Harris is perhaps most well-known for his amazing catch in the AFC Divisional Playoffs against the Oakland Raiders in 1972.
The catch was given the nickname “The Immaculate Reception.”
Watch the clip above.
From Fox News:
Harris’ death came days before the Steelers were set to retire his No. 32 jersey and celebrate the 50th anniversary of the “Immaculate Reception” at Acrisure Stadium. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin talked about Harris’ catch on Tuesday when he addressed reporters.
“I was in Section 135 that day. I was eight months old. I think it’s funny. Surprisingly, I’ve probably met 75,000 people that were there that day,” Tomlin said. “It’s just one of those beautiful things in the history of our game. It’s humbling to be in close proximity to it, to work for this organization, to understand its impact on this organization, the career it spawned in Franco [Harris], a gold-jacket career, what it did for them that season in terms of changing the trajectory of that season, what it’s done for this franchise …”
“There are many things that make it the play that it is and the most significant play in the history of our game. It’s just an honor to be in proximity to it. To know the man involved, to call Pittsburgh home, and so it’s awesome to be a part of and to witness. But at the same time, we understand that we’ve got business, we’ve got present-day business and the best way we can honor him and that is by performing. We’re going to work extremely hard to prepare ourselves leading up to it.”
WTAE first reported the shocking news about Harris. The cause of death was not immediately known.
Harris’ son Dok told the Associated Press his father died overnight.
More over at Fox News:
BREAKING NEWS: NFL legend Franco Harris dead at 72 https://t.co/SKDmIxCByT
— Fox News (@FoxNews) December 21, 2022
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