Gene Hickerson FINALLY receives recognition

[cheaptrick77]

Gene Hickerson, who has Alzheimer's, to enter Hall of Fame

(by Greg Johnson, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer)

CANTON, Ohio -- Former Cleveland Browns defensive back Bernie Parrish put it this way: "Jim Brown didn't just happen to get all of those yards."

The legendary running back who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971 had the good fortune to be behind a wall of blockers studded with perennial Pro Bowlers. One was Gene Hickerson, who will be inducted into the Hall today.

But this is a bittersweet day.

Since retiring in 1973, Hickerson has gone from being a dominant offensive guard over a 15-year career to a 72-year-old man who suffers from Alzheimer's and dementia.

Bobby Franklin, a friend of 52 years who, like Hickerson, also played for the University of Mississippi before being drafted by the Browns, will handle the introduction, reminding everyone about No. 66's football greatness.

"It's going to be tough in this speech to introduce him, because of the shape he's in," Franklin said. "I'm not really sure how much he will comprehend. It's a shame he couldn't have gotten in earlier when he really could have enjoyed it."

By all accounts, Hickerson has many days where he struggles with simple words and thoughts. So it was no surprise that at Friday's media event here, the ranks of this year's inductees were one man short. Michael Irvin, Bruce Matthews, Charlie Sanders, Thurman Thomas and Roger Wehrli arrived to reap the acclaim of their memorable NFL careers. There was no Hickerson.

For Hickerson's friends and former teammates, it has been a slow realization that his mental acuity was fading, in large part because his wry sense of humor and quiet way of moving through life deflected concern.

No acceptance speech is expected from this giant of a man at today's ceremony, but his appearance is eloquent in its own right because it comes amid an increasingly strident debate over what the league and NFL Players Assn. owe to retirees with financial and medical hardships.

Some former NFL players, for example, say that a growing body of medical evidence supports their claim that hard hits endured on the field -- particularly those that lead to repeated concussions -- are partly to blame for Alzheimer's and dementia. And pro football needs to help more, they say.

Yet last week, Hall of Famers Mike Ditka, Joe DeLamielleure and Gale Sayers angrily dismissed an NFL and NFL Players Assn. program designed to help struggling retirees as little more than a public relations gimmick. And in recent months, a House subcommittee held two hearings to review football's pension and medical disability system.

At last year's Hall ceremony, former New York Giants star Harry Carson used his induction speech to gently prod professional football to "do a much better job of looking out for those individuals."

"You got to look out for 'em," Carson said. "If we made the league what it is, you have to take better care of your own."

He since has joined the board of a nonprofit group that helps former NFL players in need.

Hickerson, who now lives in a nursing home, recently was cleared to receive benefits from the 88 Fund, a league- and NFLPA-funded program that helps former players who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's and dementia. He will join about three dozen other former players who have qualified for benefits that will total $88,000 or more per year for healthcare.

Dick Schafrath, the former left tackle for the Browns, plans to be in Canton today to cheer for his former teammate. Hickerson's health issues, he said, will give the football establishment one more look at the plight of veterans.

"The plus that might happen on this occasion is that it would open someone's eyes," said Schafrath, who roomed with Hickerson for 13 seasons. "The NFL has been putting its head in the sand on this for too long. There are guys who need help and who won't ask for it. They just go homeless or curl up in a shell. That's sad."

Franklin said he had heard talk of a possible protest at today's ceremony, although none of the former NFL players contacted for this story indicated that any protest would take place. Franklin said he understood the frustration in some quarters, but believes that protests would sully a special day that most aging football stars can only dream about.

Fans who study film footage and photographs of Hickerson in action see ample evidence of why he is a Hall of Famer. Hickerson weighed in at about 245 pounds, small by today's standards but hefty for his era. The athlete described by many NFL observers as the best pulling guard of his generation always seemed able to stay ahead of whoever was carrying the ball.

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Interesting fact from Hickerson’s AP HOF Capsule:

Before Hickerson joined the Browns, just seven runners in NFL history reached 1,000 yards rushing. With Hickerson as lead blocker, the Browns posted 1,000-yard rushers in nine of his first ten seasons.

[TJC_fan]

It is unfortunate that he wasn't inducted at an earlier age, before his current medical problems occurred.

 

I'm wondering if he knew where he was. He seemed to recognize his son.

[ramsn03]

It was very sad to see, but great that he finally got the honor that has been a long time coming.

[DLeihman32878]

No disrespect to Hickerson, I'm sure he is very deserving of this honor and I thought it was awesome that Jim Brown and crew would wheel him out on stage--that says alot about what he meant to the team, but at least Hickerson is alive.

 

Sadly, Bob Hayes will never get to see the day he is inducted into the HOF.

[cheaptrick77]

^ Hickerson is “alive” by definition, only.

 

This is all part of the same problem: the delayed respect of players who weren’t fortunate enough to benefit from looking good on SportsCenter...