A Giant Disappointment

ANDRE THE GIANT


The mood in the hotel bar was somber.

One day prior, the 1980 NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles had been manhandled 27-10 by the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl XV played in the Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. Even the large yellow ribbon that had been hung on the outside of the arena signifying the release of the Iranian hostages could not motivate us enough on that day. We had been beaten soundly by Al Davis’s team led by QB Jim Plunkett and LB Rod Martin. Because of post game interviews and logistics, team management had decided we would return home the next day. Our flight was scheduled to depart at 10 AM, but because of the massive numbers of fans and media attending this event, airspace was too crowded and our flight was delayed.

Most of the players had gotten up early for the scheduled flight time, so a convenient place to congregate and commiserate was the hotel lounge where we had stayed for the week. I was sitting at a bar stool chatting with offensive tackle Jerry Sizemore and running back Louie Giamonna when we noticed a massive figure had entered the room.

You must understand, it in nearly impossible for a professional football team to be intimidated by size. Usually the lineman on the team averaged close to 280 pounds (its more like 300 lbs. today), so finding bigger human beings is a tall task. However, when Rene’ Roussimoff came to offer our team his condolences on the loss, the neck on my 6’5” body took a serious tilt skyward. You may know him better as the late wrestling legend Andre the Giant.

This hulking human born in 1946 in Grenoble, France was a major star for the then World Wrestling Federation led by promoter Vince McMahon Jr. from 1973-1987. Roussimoff stood 7’2” and weighed 540 pounds. I have only met one other human being that was size was so intimidating, and that was Mark Eaton at 7’4” who played center for the Utah Jazz of the NBA. But as memory serves Andre the Giant had Eaton by at least 200 lbs.

Remember, I’m not exactly Tiny Tim. My hands could be characterized as extremely large as I have no problem at all palming a basketball. When I went up to Andre and extended my hand for a shake, it was engulfed by a mass of fingered flesh that was almost inconceivable. My large mitt was completely swallowed up by his, and if I had to guess his hand alone weighed 15 pounds. When we asked him to make a fist, his clenched hand looked to be about the size of a sixteen inch softball. After seeing this I immediately eliminated profession wrestling from my options of post football careers.

Our GM Jim Murray came into the lounge and announced it was time to head to the airport, so we bid a hasty adieu to our large friend. When Murray saw Andre, his jaw dropped. I could have sworn he made a beeline to our crestfallen coach Dick Vermeil to see if he was interested in the giant as a potential recruit. They must have decided against it…because Rene' Roussimoff was no where to be found at our next training camp. If he had decided to play, I would have strongly lobbied him to play offense. When a guy is as big as he was, you definitely want him on your side of the ball.

Andre the Giant died in 1993 at the age of 47. According to legendary female wrester The Fabulous Moolah, she once witnessed this gigantic warrior drink 327 beers in a single sitting and passed out in a bar in Reading, Pennsylvania. Because the staff could not move him, they had to leave him lying there on the floor until he regained consciousness. Thank God Andre wasn’t in a drinking mood on that January day in 1981 in New Orleans. Even the mighty Philadelphia Eagles wouldn’t have had the manpower to get him on his feet. And if we did, had he fallen on us it would have been a crushing blow….and we had had enough of that the previous afternoon.