Dan Marino: More Than a Hall of Famer
By Kevin Shields ‘79
Many football players like to dream.
Some dream of making their high school team and see their career end there. Others venture their future in college. And then there are those who look at the big picture, the thoughts of playing in the National Football League and being the best at their position.
Dan Marino can say that he lived his dream and then some.
It was August 7, 2005, Dan Marino was living a football player’s ultimate dream on a hot, humid and muggy day in Canton, Ohio, the city where he was enshrined into the Professional Football Hall of Fame.
A first ballot selection into the Hall of Fame, Marino, who shined in the sun for 17 years as the quarterback of the Miami Dolphins, never disappointed the South Florida fans by becoming the most prolific passer in NFL history.
Donned in the Hall of Fame’s yellow sport jacket, Marino was the last of four speakers to talk about their enshrinement. The other three - all quarterbacks - that were enshrined were Steve Young and the deceased Benny Friedman and Fritz Pollard.
Just like the way Marino did not disappoint his fans from grade school to the pros, he delivered a dynamic and moving induction speech.
A Central Catholic Hall of Famer, Marino mentioned growing up on Parkview Avenue in Oakland where he played his grade school football at St. Regis. He then focused on his next career stop - a place that he has never forgotten - Central Catholic.
“Central Catholic was my high school and it was a great place for an education. Where are you? I know there's a bunch of you here. A great place for an education and also it was a great place to play the game of football and many of my teammates I know are here and friends from high school. I thank you for coming to Canton,” Marino said.
After the enshrinement festivities concluded, Marino, who also starred at the University of Pittsburgh, showed that he was a Hall of Fame person. At his private party, Marino did not shun one person of about 1,000 who wanted to take a photo with him. His family is still the most hospitable people you want to be around. Also, to prove that he did not forget his Pittsburgh roots, many cases of Iron City Beer were present to please the pallets of those who wanted to celebrate the ‘Burgh way.
It is not often that one can boast about their classmate having a bust in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In this case, I can proudly say that my classmate, Dan Marino, fits into that mold.
But in the realms of this newsletter, I am proud to brag about the fact that we are both lifetime members of the Central Catholic Lettermen’s Club.
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