Harris was born in Fort Dix, New Jersey. His father, Cad Harris, a Black soldier, served in World War II and was stationed in Italy during the war. His mother, Gina Parenti Harris, was a native Italian and became a "war bride", who moved with her husband when he returned to the United States after the end of the war.[2][3]
Harris graduated from Rancocas Valley Regional High School in Mount Holly Township, New Jersey, in 1968.[4] He then attended Penn State University, where he played on the Nittany Lions football team. Although he was primarily a blocker for the running back during his first year at Penn State, he amassed a career total of 2,002 yards rushing with 24 touchdowns and averaged over 5 yards per carry, while also catching 28 passes for 352 yards and another touchdown. He led the team in scoring in 1970.[5]
Harris's statistics during his final three seasons at Penn State are as follows:
1969: 115 carries for 643 yards and 10 touchdowns; 12 catches for 189 yards.[6]
1970: 142 carries for 675 yards and 8 touchdowns; 6 catches for 66 yards.[6]
1971: 123 carries for 684 yards and 6 touchdowns; 10 catches for 97 yards and 1 touchdown.[6]
During his rookie season, Harris was a key player in one of professional football's most famous plays, dubbed the "Immaculate Reception" by Pittsburgh sportscaster Myron Cope.[11] In the first round of the playoffs, the Oakland Raiders were leading the Steelers 7–6 with 22 seconds to play when a Terry Bradshaw pass was deflected away from intended receiver John "Frenchy" Fuqua as defender Jack Tatum arrived to tackle him. Harris snatched the ball just before it hit the ground and ran it into the endzone, resulting in the Steelers' first playoff win.[12][13]
Harris was chosen for nine consecutive Pro Bowls (1972–1980), and was All-Pro in 1977.[14] Harris rushed for more than 1,000 yards in eight seasons, breaking a record set by Jim Brown.[15] The running back tandem of Harris and Rocky Bleier combined with a strong defense to win four Super Bowls following the 1974, 1975, 1978, and 1979 seasons. On January 12, 1975, he was the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl IX; in that game he rushed for 158 yards and a touchdown on 34 carries for a 16–6 win over the Minnesota Vikings.[16] Harris was the first African American as well as the first Italian-American to be named Super Bowl MVP.[17] Harris was a major contributor for the Steelers in all of their first four Super Bowl wins. His Super Bowl career totals of 101 carries for 354 yards are records and his four career rushing touchdowns are tied for the second-most in Super Bowl history.[18]
Harris claimed that he extended his career and thus his contribution to the team's objectives (including four Super Bowl victories) by avoiding unnecessary contact.[19]
With the retirement of O. J. Simpson after the 1979 season,[20] Harris became the career rushing leader among active players.[21] Following the 1983 season, Harris and Walter Payton were both closing in on Jim Brown's NFL rushing record, and Harris asked the Rooney family for a pay raise. Believing that Harris was on the downside of his career, they refused and Harris threatened to hold out. The Steelers released him during training camp in 1984 and he then signed with the Seattle Seahawks during the 1984 season.[22] He played just eight games with the team, gaining only 170 yards before retiring (192 yards short of Jim Brown's record).[23]
In his 13 professional seasons, Harris gained 12,120 yards (then 3rd all-time)[24] on 2,949 carries, a 4.1 yards per carry average, and scored 91 rushing touchdowns (then also 3rd).[25] He caught 307 passes for 2,287 yards, a 7.4 yards per reception average, and nine receiving touchdowns. Harris's 12,120 career rushing yards rank him amongst the all-time leaders in the NFL, while his 91 career rushing touchdowns rank him 10th all time tied with Jerome Bettis.[26]
In 1990, Harris and his former Penn State teammate Lydell Mitchell founded Super Bakery (renamed RSuper Foods in 2006), which produces nutrition-oriented food for schoolchildren.[27] Harris and Mitchell also partnered in 1996 to rescue[28] the Parks Sausage Company in Baltimore, the first African-American–owned business to go public in the U.S.[29]
In 2007, Harris was chosen by Forest City Enterprises to lead a charitable foundation they created, related to the development of a casino for downtown Pittsburgh that would be managed by Harrah's.[30][better source needed]
In 2019, Harris starred in the NFL's 100th Anniversary commercial recreating the Immaculate Reception with Terry Bradshaw.[36]
Personal life
Harris was married to Dana Dokmanovich.[37] They had one son together: Franco "Dok" Harris, who ran as a third-party candidate in the 2009 Pittsburgh mayoral election and finished in second place with 25% of the vote.[38] Franco's brother, Pete Harris, played football for Penn State and died of a heart attack on August 15, 2006, at age 49.[39]
Harris served as part of the advisory board of Penn State's Center for Food Innovation, and in the fall of 2009 was named a Conti Professor by Penn State's School of Hospitality Management.[40] He was involved in, and provided funding to, Penn Staters for Responsible Stewardship, a group aimed at ousting the members of Penn State's board of trustees.[41]
Death and tributes
"We are truly heartbroken. The reality of losing such a magnificent individual has not yet settled in. We have shared Franco with so many people throughout our lives and in so many ways. Beyond his incredible career in the NFL Franco represents what is best in humanity: kindness, charity, decency, and humility. He led by example on and off the field with the goal of making this a better world for us all. We know he has touched so many of you and we mourn with you. We will remain steadfast in living and achieving the world that he wanted to build."
—Statement from Franco Harris's family following his death[42]
Harris died in his sleep at his home in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, on December 20, 2022, at age 72,[43][37] three days before the 50th anniversary of the "Immaculate Reception".[44] Harris's death was considered sudden, as he had been active on social media just days before his death and had spoken to visitors at the Heinz History Center the day before his death including a live interview with KDKA-TV from the Heinz History Center. He was set to attend a ceremony at halftime during a Steelers game against the Las Vegas Raiders on December 24, 2022, to retire his jersey number.[45] Hours before his death, Harris recorded an interview with Steelers defensive end Cameron Heyward for his podcast in what would be his last public interview, during which he ironically commented about how he was "feeling good" and happy to have made it to the 50th anniversary of the "Immaculate Reception".[46] His cause of death was later ruled as natural causes.[47]
Immediately after his death, many gave public tributes. Terry Bradshaw, who had found out about Harris's death from his wife after seeing a text message from Mel Blount, had just seen Harris two weeks prior, filming material related to the Immaculate Reception's anniversary and was in a "state of shock". Bradshaw praised Harris, saying that "as a teammate, he was just the best."[48] Steelers president Art Rooney II, who like the rest of the Rooney family was close to Harris, said through a statement by the team that "From his rookie season, which included the Immaculate Reception, through the next 50 years, Franco brought joy to people on and off the field. He never stopped giving back in so many ways. He touched so many, and he was loved by so many."[49] In addition to Penn State itself, two Penn State alumni with connections to the Steelers—Harris's former teammate Jack Ham and current Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth—also paid their respects to Harris. Other tributes would later come out by current and former Steelers as well as other Pittsburgh celebrities such as Joe Greene,[49]Jerome Bettis, Najee Harris, Ben Roethlisberger, Hines Ward, Tony Dungy, T. J. Watt, Trai Essex, Arthur Moats, James Conner, current Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, Charlie Batch, Kurt Angle, Mark Madden, Tony Dorsett, Darrelle Revis, Billy Gardell, and Joe Manganiello; the Penguins and Pirates also paid tribute.[50] The December 27, 2022, episode of Pittsburgh Dad covering the aforementioned Steelers-Raiders game (a 13-10 Steelers win) featured a tribute to Harris from the titular character.[51]
Shortly after Harris' death, there was a street named after him in Mount Holly, New Jersey where he went to high school (Rancocas Valley Regional High School). The former Ridgeway Street is now known as Franco Harris Way.[citation needed]
In John Grisham's 2008 novel Playing For Pizza, the fullback of the Parma Panthers is nicknamed Franco as a tribute to his hero, Franco Harris, to whom he refers as the "greatest Italian football player".[62] A fictional version of Harris is depicted in the season 3 premiere episode of This Is Us.[63]
Previously named the Byron "Whizzer" White NFL Man of the Year Award, after Byron "Whizzer" White, the award was renamed in the fall of 2018 in honor of Alan Page.
Neurons that are part of the olfactory system Mitral cellCoronal section of olfactory bulb.Plan of olfactory neurons.DetailsSystemSmellLocationOlfactory bulb of mammalsIdentifiersNeuroLex IDnifext_120Anatomical terms of neuroanatomy[edit on Wikidata] Mitral cells are neurons that are part of the olfactory system. They are located in the olfactory bulb in the mammalian central nervous system. They receive information from the axons of olfactory receptor neurons, forming synapses in neuropi...
Scripting language created in 1994 This article is about the scripting language. For other uses, see PHP (disambiguation). PHPParadigmMulti-paradigm: imperative, functional, object-oriented, procedural, reflectiveDesigned byRasmus LerdorfDeveloperThe PHP Development Team, Zend Technologies, PHP FoundationFirst appeared8 June 1995; 28 years ago (1995-06-08)[1][2]Stable release8.3.6 / 11 April 2024; 14 days ago (2024-04-11)[3]...
Species of bat Humboldt big-eared brown bat Conservation status Data Deficient (IUCN 3.1)[1] Scientific classification Domain: Eukaryota Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Chiroptera Family: Vespertilionidae Genus: Histiotus Species: H. humboldti Binomial name Histiotus humboldtiHandley, 1996 The Humboldt big-eared brown bat (Histiotus humboldti) is a species of vesper bat in the family Vespertilionidae. It is found in Colombia and Venezuela. Histiotu...
Location of Etowah County in Alabama This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Etowah County, Alabama. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Etowah County, Alabama, United States. Latitude and longitude coordinates are provided for many National Register properties and districts; these locations may be seen together in an online map.[1] There are 15 properties and districts li...
Massif armoricain Carte géologique du Massif armoricain. Géographie Altitude 416 m, Mont des Avaloirs Superficie 65 000 km2 Administration Pays France Jersey Guernesey Régions BretagneNormandiePays de la LoireNouvelle-Aquitaine Départements Finistère, Côtes-d'Armor, Morbihan, Ille-et-VilaineManche, Orne, CalvadosMayenne, Loire-Atlantique, Maine-et-Loire, Sarthe, VendéeDeux-Sèvres Géologie Âge Paléozoïque Roches Roches métamorphiques et sédimentaires modifier ...
Functional programming language For other uses, see Haskell (disambiguation). HaskellParadigmPurely functionalDesigned byLennart Augustsson, Dave Barton, Brian Boutel, Warren Burton, Joseph Fasel, Kevin Hammond, Ralf Hinze, Paul Hudak, John Hughes, Thomas Johnsson, Mark Jones, Simon Peyton Jones, John Launchbury, Erik Meijer, John Peterson, Alastair Reid, Colin Runciman, Philip WadlerFirst appeared1990; 34 years ago (1990)[1]Stable releaseHaskell 2010[2...
بيركيلي شعار الاسم الرسمي (بالإنجليزية: Berkeley) الإحداثيات 37°52′13″N 122°16′05″W / 37.870277777778°N 122.26805555556°W / 37.870277777778; -122.26805555556 [1] تاريخ التأسيس 1866 سبب التسمية جورج بيركلي[2] تقسيم إداري البلد الولايات المتحدة[3][4] التقسيم...
British academic (1941–2024) For the curler, see Michael Goodfellow (curler). Michael GoodfellowMBEBorn(1941-01-08)8 January 1941Ecclefechan, ScotlandDied8 March 2024(2024-03-08) (aged 83)Scientific careerFieldsTaxonomistInstitutionsUniversity of Newcastle upon Tyne Michael Goodfellow MBE (8 January 1941 – 8 March 2024) was a British professor in microbial systematics, specialising in Actinomycetota taxonomy. He earlier served as head of the School of Biology in University of Newcast...
German politician (1897–1969) This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.Find sources: Fritz Steinhoff – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (May 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this message) Fritz SteinhoffSteinhoff in 1949Minister President of North Rhine-WestphaliaIn office20 February 1956 –...
Island off the coast of Alaska, United States KodiakNickname: Emerald Isle[1]KodiakGeographyLocationPacific OceanCoordinates57°28′N 153°26′W / 57.467°N 153.433°W / 57.467; -153.433ArchipelagoKodiak ArchipelagoTotal islands25Area3,595.09 sq mi (9,311.2 km2)Highest elevation4,469 ft (1362.2 m)Highest pointKoniag PeakAdministrationUnited StatesStateAlaskaBoroughKodiak IslandLargest settlementKodiak (pop. 5,581)De...
Гран-при Бразилии 1997 года Дата 9 марта 1997 года Место Бразилия Трасса Интерлагос Подиум Победитель Жак ВильнёвWilliams-Renault 2-е место Герхард БергерBenetton-Renault 3-е место Оливье ПанисProst-Mugen-Honda Карта трассы ЧМ 1997 года, этап № 2 из 17 Зачётная гонка № 599 Гран-при Бразилии 1997 года �...
يفتقر محتوى هذه المقالة إلى الاستشهاد بمصادر. فضلاً، ساهم في تطوير هذه المقالة من خلال إضافة مصادر موثوق بها. أي معلومات غير موثقة يمكن التشكيك بها وإزالتها. (ديسمبر 2018) تي-84 النوع دبابة قتال رئيسية بلد الأصل أوكرانيا تاريخ الاستخدام فترة الاستخدام 1999–حتى الان المستخدم�...
Berikut ini adalah daftar stasiun radio di Ibu Kota Nusantara. FM Logo Nama Frekuensi Nama Perusahaan Jaringan Pemilik RRI IKN [1] 98.3 MHz LPP Radio Republik Indonesia IKN Independen LPP Radio Republik Indonesia Lihat pula Daftar stasiun televisi di Ibu Kota Nusantara Daftar stasiun radio di Kalimantan Timur Daftar stasiun radio di Indonesia Referensi ^ Alfreds Tuter (16 Januari 2024). Cecep Jaiddin, ed. Siaran Perdana RRI IKN Mengudara Rabu 17 Januari. LPP RRI. Diakses tanggal ...
American baseball player Baseball player Steve BuecheleBuechele as manager for the Round Rock Express in 2014Third basemanBorn: (1961-09-26) September 26, 1961 (age 62)Lancaster, California, U.S.Batted: RightThrew: RightMLB debutJuly 19, 1985, for the Texas RangersLast MLB appearanceJuly 29, 1995, for the Texas RangersMLB statisticsBatting average.245Home runs137Runs batted in547 Teams Texas Rangers (1985–1991) Pittsburgh Pirates (1991–1992) Chicago Cubs...
Island in the Lake Mälaren in Stockholm, Sweden For the borough, see Kungsholmen (borough). Kungsholmen shoreline View to the Island of Kungsholmen Kungsholmen is an island in Lake Mälaren in Sweden, part of central Stockholm, Sweden. It is situated north of Riddarfjärden and considered part of the historical province Uppland. Its area is 3.9 km2 (1.5 sq mi) with a perimeter of 8.9 km (5.5 mi). The highest point is at Stadshagsplan at 47 metres (154 ft). The t...
Telecommunications device used to make a signal unintelligible to unintended recipients For other uses, see Scrambler (disambiguation). In telecommunications, a scrambler is a device that transposes or inverts signals or otherwise encodes a message at the sender's side to make the message unintelligible at a receiver not equipped with an appropriately set descrambling device. Whereas encryption usually refers to operations carried out in the digital domain, scrambling usually refers to operat...
Disambiguazione – Se stai cercando altri significati, vedi Maddalena di Hohenzollern (disambigua). Principato di BrandeburgoHohenzollern Federico I Figli Giovanni Federico Alberto Achille Federico Elisabetta Cecilia Margherita Maddalena Dorotea Nipoti Barbara Rodolfo Elisabetta Dorotea Federico, figlio naturale Federico II Figli Dorotea Margherita Alberto III Figli Giovanni Ursula Elisabetta Federico Amalia Barbara Sibilla Sigismondo Elisabetta Anastasia Giovanni I Figli Gioacchino Alberto...
U.S. Women's Hard Court Championships 1989Sport Tennis Data27 febbraio - 5 marzo Edizione24a SuperficieCemento CampioniSingolare Steffi Graf Doppio Katrina Adams / Pam Shriver 1988 1990 L'U.S. Women's Hard Court Championships 1989 è stato un torneo di tennis giocato sul cemento. È stata la 24ª edizione del torneo, che fa parte della categoria Tier IV nell'ambito del WTA Tour 1989. Si è giocato a San Antonio negli Stati Uniti, dal 27 febbraio al 5 marzo 1989. Indice 1 Campionesse 1.1 Singo...