Photo Credit:
Jersey
Number: 34
Position: Linebacker
Personal
History:
Born: October 29th,
1941
Birthplace: Detroit, Michigan
Died: March 1st,
2024
Height: 6 ft. 2 in.
Weight: 225 lb.
Career
Information:
High
School: Ladue Horton
Watkins, Ladue
Missouri
College: Missouri
NFL Draft: 1963: 16th round,
220th overall pick
Career
History:
Pittsburgh
Steelers: 1963, 1966 – 1976
Awards and Highlights:
· 2x Super Bowl champion (IX, X)
· First – Team All – Pro (1975)
· 3x Second – Team All – Pro (1968, 1970, 1972)
· 7x Pro Bowl (1968, 1970 – 1975)
· Pittsburgh Steelers All – Time Team
· Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Honor
· Pittsburgh Pro Football Hall of Fame
Career NFL Statistics:
- Interceptions: 18
- Interceptions
Yards: 238
- Touchdowns: 1
Early Life:
Andy
Russell was born on October 29th, 1941, in Detroit, Michigan to a
family that relocated multiple times in his childhood (to Chicago and New York)
due to his father’s work as an executive with the Monsanto chemical
company. The family eventually settled
in Ladue, a suburb of St. Louis, when Russell was a seventh grader. He grew up wanting to be a businessman.(1)(2)(3)(4)
He
attended Ladue High School where he played high school football and
basketball. He was nicknamed “the Horse”
for his power, and was known for his use of the stiff – arm as a runner. In a 1958 football game played on Halloween,
Russell scored five touchdowns as a fullback.
He scored 121 points total in 1958, and that team was undefeated and won
its league’s title. He was also on the
track team, and had once set a low hurdles record. Russell graduated in 1959.(5)(3)(1)(6)(7)(8)(9)
In
football, as a senior Russell was named an All – American by The Sporting
News and was first team all – state(6). He received the most votes of the all –
district tam selected by the St. Louis Globe – Democrat.(7)
College:
Heavily
recruited by out – state universities, he selected the University of Missouri
which gave him an athletic scholarship.
Under coach Dan Devine he played both linebacker and fullback. In his three seasons (1960 – 1962) with the
team, they lost just four times (with one loss later vacated) while Russell led
the team in rushing (1961) and interceptions (1962). In addition to his football talents, he
graduated with a bachelor’s degree in economics in 1963(10)(11)(12)(6). He played in the Blue Bonnet Bowl for
Missouri(13). He never missed
a game in high school or college.(14)
Playing
Career:
His father did not wish for him to play professional football, and Russell put a “no” on every questionnaire mailed to him by prospective NFL teams. However, the one team that did not send him a letter was the one who drafted him, the Pittsburgh Steelers(15). However, he elected to sign for a $12,000 salary and a $3,000 signing bonus. After playing for the Steelers his rookie season in 1963, Russell temporarily left the team for the Army to fulfill ROTC requirements that had him stationed in Germany(16)(17). He then returned to the Steelers in 1966, having convinced his father that it would be best for him to play football to pay for further studies in economics for a master’s degree. Russell would play the next eleven seasons and graduate with an M.B.A. from Missouri in economics / finance in 1967 (the following year, he formed his own company involving investment vehicle syndicates).(13)(17)(18)
Russell
was one of the few future Pro Football Hall of Fame players and a member of the
NFL 100th Anniversary Team that coach Chuck Noll kept, when he
became the Steelers head coach in 1969.
Russell was an early member of Pittsburgh’s famed Steel Curtain defense
and was named the Steelers’ MVP in 1971.
He made seven Pro Bowl appearances – in 1969 and from 1971 through 1976
– and earned two Super Bowl rings in Super Bowl IX and Super Bowl X(18)(19). When future Pro Football Hall of Fame
linebacker Jack Ham joined the team as a rookie in 1971, Russell took the time
to mentor Ham, contrary to the usual customs of veteran – rookie interactions
at the time.(18)
On
December 27th, 1975, Russell set the NFL playoff record for a
returned touchdown – 93 yards in a Three Rivers Stadium victory over the
Baltimore Colts. Some have claimed it as
the longest football play from scrimmage in time duration(20). The record was broken with a 98 yard return
in 2023.(17)
He
never missed a game, playing in 168 consecutive games for the Steelers(19)(17). His teammates voted him team captain for ten
seasons(18)(19). He was named
a member of the Steelers All – Time Team and the NFL’s All – Decade Team for
the 1970’s(21). In 2017, he
was an inaugural member into the Steelers Hall of Honor(21). Russell was one of only four inductees, out
of a class of class of twenty – seven, who were not in the Pro Football Hall of
Fame.(22)
In
1976, he was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and to the Mizzou
Athletics Hall of Fame in 1993. In 2011,
the Professional Football Researchers Association named Russell to the PFRA of
Very Good Class of 2011.(23)(24)
Personal Life:
After
his playing days ended, Russell maintained his interest in business and
investing to go along with endurance canoeing, mountain climbing, and
philanthropy(13)(14)(19).
Russell’s financial success came outside football, and he was an active
entrepreneur involved in the investment business during and after his football
career. He was a partner with various
investment banking firms.(21)
Among
his charitable and community service efforts, he founded the Andy Russell
Charitable Foundation in 1999,(25) and generated over $10 million
dollars in contributions to the Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh through the
Andy Russell Charitable Golf Tournament.
The foundation also supported charities and charitable causes such as
The Ronald McDonald House, Leukemia Society, The Cancer Society, Economics PA,
Cystic Fibrosis, Mothers Hope, Juvenile Diabetes, SIDS, and Pittsburgh Vision
Services. Russell’s most recent
charitable work before his death was Everyone’s Playground,(26) a
park for special needs children located in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania.(21)
In
1989, he was named Big Brothers and Sisters Man of the Year.(18)
Russell
wrote three books, A Steelers Odyssey (1998), An Odd Steelers Journey
(2002), and Beyond the Goalpost (2010).(18)
Death:
Russell
died on March 1, 2024, at the age of 82(27). He died of complications from Alzheimer’s
Disease and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)(21). A memorial service for Russell was held on
June 15th, 2024, at Everyone’s Playground.(28)
For more statistics about Andy Russell click on these links:
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/R/RussAn00.htm
https://mosportshalloffame.com/inductees/andy-russell/
https://mutigers.com/search?q=andy%20russell
https://mutigers.com/honors/hall-of-fame/andy-russell/55
https://profootballresearchers.com/hall-of-very-good-2011.html
References:
