Franco Harris

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Franco Harris : biography

March 7, 1950 –

Harris was a key player in one of professional football’s most famous plays, dubbed "The Immaculate Reception" by Pittsburgh sportscaster Myron Cope. In a 1972 playoff game, 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 right as defender Jack Tatum arrived to tackle Fuqua. Harris snatched the ball just before it hit the ground and ran it in to win the game. The Raiders challenged the touchdown, claiming that Fuqua had handled the ball before Harris, which would invalidate the score because at that time it was against the rules for two offensive receivers to touch the ball. The Steelers maintained that the ball had touched Tatum instead. According to a recounting by the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the film of the play is inconclusive. Raiders linebacker Phil Villapiano attempted to criticize Harris’ achievement by stating that he was only in position to catch the ball because he was lazy, but replays show that Harris headed downfield when the Raiders forced Bradshaw out of the pocket, and can be clearly seen running before catching the deflected ball.

In 1999, he was ranked number 83 on The Sporting News’ list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.

In 2006, The Heinz History Center, home of the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum, installed a life-size figure of Harris in the grand concourse of Pittsburgh International Airport. The statue is a recreation of Harris’ "Immaculate Reception."

Early life

Harris was born in Fort Dix, New Jersey. His African-American father served in World War II; his mother was a "war bride" from Italy., Sports Illustrated, 11 December 1972. Harris graduated from Rancocas Valley Regional High School in Mount Holly Township, New Jersey and then attended Penn State University. While playing for Penn State’s Nittany Lions, Harris served primarily as a blocker for the All-American running back Lydell Mitchell, though he amassed 1,359 yards rushing (21st in PSU history) with 14 touchdowns and averaged over 5 yards per carry, while also catching 29 passes for 358 yards and another touchdown. He led the team in scoring in 1970.

Personal

Harris’ brother Pete Harris, a collegiate All-American football player, died on August 15, 2006, of a heart attack at the age of 49.

On July 27, 2009 Harris’ son, Franco "Dok" Harris, officially announced his candidacy for Mayor of the City of Pittsburgh. He placed second in the general election on November 3 of that year, capturing over 25% of the vote.

Franco has served as part of the advisory board at Penn State’s Center for Food Innovation, and was recently named a Conti Professor by Penn State’s School of Hospitality Management.

Harris is involved and provides funding to Penn Staters for Responsible Stewardship, a group aimed at ousting the members of Penn State’s board that fired football coach Joe Paterno. 200 flock to King of Prussia in support of Paterno, Philly.com, 25 January 2013

Post-football

Harris and Lydell Mitchell, successful college teammates at Penn State, now own Super Bakery, a company founded in 1990 to produce nutrition-oriented foods for schoolchildren. The business was renamed to RSuper Foods in 2006. RSuper foods produces the Super Donut that has been served to students at public schools in the eastern United States.http://www.rsuperfoods.com/products_superdonut.php

Harris and Mitchell also partnered in 1996 to rescuehttp://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2519&dat=19990204&id=0yxiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=tnYNAAAAIBAJ&pg=2260,271793 the Parks Sausage Company in Baltimore, the first African-American owned business to go public in the U.S.http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=AdQxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=DuIFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1336,6186319&dq=raymond-haysbert&hl=en

Harris is also a paid representative for the Harrah’s/Forest City Enterprises casino plan for downtown Pittsburgh. This association has earned him the tongue-in-cheek nickname, "Franco Harrahs".

On July 9, 2006, Harris made an appearance in the 2006 Taco Bell "All-Star Legends and Celebrity Softball Game" at PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

In August 2008, Harris attended the 2008 Democratic National Convention, in Denver, Colorado, as part of the Pennsylvania delegation. Harris voted for Obama on December 15, 2008, as one of Pennsylvania’s 21 Democratic presidential electors.

In January 2011, Harris became co-owner of the Pittsburgh Passion; the world’s #1 female football team.http://www.pittsburghpassion.com/ownership.htmlGrebot

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, who he refers to as the "greatest Italian football player". This is a reference to Franco’s mixed racial heritage.

Harris briefly worked with The Meadows Racetrack and Casino in 2011, before the casino suspended the relationship after Harris’ comments in support of Joe Paterno, his coach while at Penn State, during the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal.Schilken, Chuck, , Los Angeles Times, Nov 16 2011 9:32 am. Retrieved 2011-11-22.