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Hands of Maroon and Gold: A Talk with Former Gophers Receiver Ron Kullas · Hangin' Out with Bob

0:07
OK, welcome to Hanging Out with Bob, podcast
0:10
hosted by me, Bob at Home. Thanks for joining
0:16
us and let's get started. Well, in our most recent
0:21
podcast episode, my friend Tom Madigan and I
0:24
talked about the Minnesota Golden Gopher football
0:26
program during the Cal -Stall era, who was head
0:29
coach at the U for seven seasons from 1972 through
0:32
1978. And in this podcast episode, I'm happy
0:36
to have as my guest, one of the Gopher players
0:38
from that Cal -Stall era. He's Ron Koulis. who
0:42
wore jersey number 46 for the Gophers and caught
0:44
passes, a lot of passes in fact, for the maroon
0:47
and gold in the mid -1970s. Ron, welcome to hanging
0:51
out with Bob. Thank you. I appreciate it. Glad
0:57
to be here. We're happy you're here too, Ron.
1:00
Now, full disclosure, listeners have heard me
1:02
say in the past episodes that I grew up in the
1:04
Minneapolis suburb of Columbia Heights. Well,
1:06
guess what? Ron also grew up in the Heights.
1:09
We both went to Columbia Heights High School.
1:11
Ron is from the class of 1973, two years after
1:14
I graduated in 1971. And we both attended the
1:17
University of Minnesota. Ron and I have known
1:23
each other since at least junior high school,
1:26
the late great Columbia Junior High School, which
1:28
was located on 41st Avenue, just off Central
1:31
Avenue in the Heights. And while I may have graduated
1:34
from high school a couple years ahead of Ron,
1:36
I certainly was aware of his athletic accomplishments
1:38
in high school. He was a multi -year starter,
1:41
a multi -year letter winner in football, basketball,
1:44
and baseball. And there were some all -conference
1:46
and all -metro honors to go along with that,
1:48
right Ron? Yeah, good memory. It was a long time
1:52
ago. I played a lot of softball games against
1:55
Ron in the Heights Men's Slow Pit Softball League
1:57
in the mid -1970s. And just the fact that we
2:00
both grew up in Columbia Heights, which is a
2:01
relatively small suburb, geographically at least,
2:04
it was only natural that we would see each other
2:06
at different events in different places, like
2:08
the annual Columbia Heights Jamboree and Parade,
2:12
or fast food places like McDonald's, probably
2:14
even Tasty Pizza, still the best pizza in the
2:16
world in my humble opinion. I agree 100%. Still
2:19
go there today. And here's a fun fact for our
2:22
listeners. Ron Coulis and my brother, Dave, at
2:25
home not only share the same date of birth, November
2:28
3rd, 1954, but they were born at the same hospital,
2:32
St. Barnabas, in South Minneapolis. And our mother
2:35
shared the same hospital room after they had
2:37
given birth. It's a small world, right Ron? Yes,
2:39
certainly is. Amazing. Anyway, Ron is married.
2:43
He and his wife, Patrice, live in suburban New
2:45
Brighton. They have two grown daughters, Rachel
2:47
and Gabby. Ron is retired after 25 years in sales
2:51
and another 20 years or so in the gaming industry
2:54
at Mystic Lake. In this podcast episode, we're
3:03
going to have Ron tell us about the years that
3:04
he played football with the Minnesota Golden
3:06
Gophers in the mid 1970s. But before you do that,
3:10
Ron, let's spend just a moment about your high
3:12
school football years at Columbia Heights. You
3:14
were the quarterback there as a senior. But you
3:17
were also a defensive back, right? Correct. Tell
3:20
us a little bit about your varsity seasons at
3:22
the Heights, how you did, how the team did, and
3:25
what factors played into your decision to attend
3:27
the University of Minnesota to play for the Gophers.
3:30
Well, first of all, the playing both ways at
3:34
Columbia Heights was we had to because we were
3:37
limited with the amount of players we had. most
3:40
of the guys played both defense and offense.
3:44
My junior year we had two outstanding quarterbacks,
3:48
won the conference and had an excellent season
3:50
and that year I played defensive back and wide
3:54
receiver. And my senior year I switched to quarterback.
4:00
limited success. The way my path to the University
4:05
of Minnesota is somewhat interesting in that
4:08
I was a late entry as far as my scholarship.
4:12
I was all set to go to the Air Force Academy.
4:15
I had been out and visited and that's where I
4:17
was going to go and play football and they recruited
4:20
me as a defensive back. Late in the spring of
4:24
1973, Kel Stahl had Butch Nash. He's a legendary
4:29
coach. Many people in Minnesota will remember
4:32
Butch Nash. He called me out of the blue. It
4:37
was in the spring and I was in school. And he
4:42
said, how would you like to come over and watch
4:44
spring practice? Kel would like to meet you.
4:47
And I said... Fine. I was a little bit shocked
4:50
because I hadn't heard from the university since
4:52
Murray Warmoth had been fired. And I went over
4:56
and sat and watched spring practice in the stands
4:59
with Kel Stahl next to me. And he turned to me
5:01
and said, well, what do you think? And I was
5:04
a little bit baffled. I didn't exactly know what
5:08
was happening. And he said, would you like to?
5:12
Come here. Would you like to be part of this
5:14
program for the gopher? Yeah, and I just looked
5:16
at him and smiled and said well absolutely and
5:20
I went home and you know, I remember the telling
5:23
my dad about the conversation We sat on the steps.
5:27
I received a letter the next day was I don't
5:31
know how they do that next day air. It had the
5:35
offer in it and everything and we sat there and
5:38
opened it up and was a full scholarship to the
5:40
University of Minnesota. And my dad looked at
5:42
me and said, well, what are you going to do?
5:45
And I said, well, it looks like I'm staying home.
5:47
I mean, because I grew up listening to Ray Christiansen
5:50
on the radio like you did. You were a go -for
5:52
-football fan from the time I was young. So the
5:56
plans changed. And of course, my life took a
5:59
different. different route because I don't, I
6:01
think things would have been different had I
6:03
gone to the Air Force Academy and what I pursued
6:06
as far as a career and everything. That's how
6:10
I ended up there. Interestingly enough, I went
6:13
there as a defensive back. Was that why you got
6:16
number 46? That's correct. When I looked that
6:20
up, I thought it would be like 80 -something.
6:23
Absolutely. It's an odd number for a wide receiver.
6:27
I think back in those days, I remember there
6:28
was a tight end for the Oakland Raiders. Christensen
6:33
or something was his name, and he was number
6:34
46. players were anything, you know, they were
6:38
anything. Zeros, I've seen that. Interesting.
6:42
Okay. So they switched me after one week of practice
6:46
and I switched over the offensive side, which
6:49
again, as fate would have it, had I not switched,
6:53
again, my life might have been different. Right.
6:55
And we'll definitely get into that as we go along.
6:58
So, well, thanks for filling us in on how you
6:59
decided to go to the U and now let's talk about
7:03
those four years that you were part of the Golden
7:05
Gopher program. So, 1973, you're a freshman.
7:14
That was the second season under head coach Cal
7:17
Stahl. And for the record, the Gophers finished
7:19
third in the Big Ten with a 6 -2 record and finished
7:22
7 -4 overall. The two Big Ten losses were against
7:26
Ohio State and Michigan. both of which went 7
7:29
-0 and won in the conference that year. They
7:31
tied for their conference championship, in fact.
7:33
And the Gophers' two non -conference losses were
7:35
against Big Eight schools at the time, Kansas
7:38
and Nebraska. Nebraska, of course, came to the
7:40
Big Ten in 2011. Ron, talk about your freshman
7:43
season with the Gophers, from the first day of
7:45
practice till the last game of 1973, if you will,
7:49
against Wisconsin. And what was your involvement
7:52
with the team that year, you know, as a freshman?
7:55
Sure, as a freshman, I was pretty much overwhelmed.
7:58
Again, it was a surprise for me. And it all happened
8:00
so fast that all of a sudden I was on campus
8:03
and we were in pre -fall. And you had a place
8:06
where we grew up just, you know, in awe, actually,
8:09
when you go to gopher games. And so I was basically
8:13
walking around, you know, and just. Floating
8:16
just going. This is the greatest thing that could
8:18
happen and As a freshman the the opportunity
8:22
to play right away Well, it was afforded to a
8:25
few of our freshmen one of them being Tony Dungey.
8:28
He ended up ended up starting Later that year
8:31
against Nebraska on his 18th birthday. Really?
8:34
Oh, so it was quite a I know we had a running
8:38
back Larry Powell. Yeah, he played as a freshman
8:41
and another receiver who came in from Michigan,
8:45
Mike Jones, who played on the other side of me,
8:48
he played some games as a freshman, but it was
8:52
limited opportunities and I was squandering with
8:55
the scout team, you know, playing defensive back
8:58
and I did travel with the team for the whole
9:03
season because I was the holder for field goals
9:06
and extra points. That was nice because I felt
9:12
a part of the team a lot of times. It's an important
9:13
job. Freshmen don't, so I was traveling. It was
9:17
good energy. That's what they said. I had done
9:23
that in high school football as well, to hold
9:25
for the kickers. So I had that opportunity and
9:30
felt like I was part of the team, but really,
9:32
really didn't didn't start playing until the
9:34
following year, my sophomore year when I started
9:36
getting some opportunities. I did play two plays
9:38
in my freshman year against Purdue when our single
9:42
wide receiver went down with an injury and I
9:45
was next up and was in on two plays. But other
9:48
than that, I hadn't, I didn't play. No attempts
9:52
or anything. But then I think you mentioned before
9:55
we got together that actually Well, you were
9:58
holding every game, so that still would have
10:01
affected red shirting, right? I mean, you could
10:02
have... Yes, correct. That's a good point. Unfortunately,
10:06
those two games or those snaps, it might have
10:08
been three, I can't remember, but those cost
10:11
me, which was a strange rule in the Big Ten back
10:14
then. If you played in any Big Ten games, snaps
10:18
from scrimmage, that constituted... a no redshirt
10:24
year, which they've obviously gotten much more
10:28
lax on those rules now where guys can play half
10:31
a season and they still get redshirted with the
10:33
injuries and things. But another year would have
10:36
made a big difference in my future because I
10:39
would have had another year of... catching passes
10:42
and things. What was, for you, the biggest adjustment,
10:45
most striking thing going from a North Suburban
10:48
high school at Columbia Heights and all of a
10:50
sudden you're playing Big Ten football. Just
10:52
the size of the players or just the skill that
10:55
you saw. I mean, what things really struck you
10:57
as a freshman? Sure, sure. It's a good question.
11:01
When you're playing in high school, and I did
11:03
have success in three sports, and you just felt
11:06
like, well... I can do all of this, and the biggest
11:10
surprise to me was how everyone at the next level,
11:15
especially Division I, they've all had success
11:18
in high schools. They've all been at conference,
11:20
they've all been all state, and they play many
11:23
sports. When I really realized where I was, in
11:29
the winter of my freshman year, we put together
11:31
a basketball team that played at Williams Arena
11:34
in intramural basketball. And we were stacked
11:37
with the other than myself, and I was all conference
11:41
for a few years at Columbia Heights in basketball.
11:44
But other than myself, the guys that were on
11:45
the team were all state from the states they
11:47
came from in basketball. And so we cruised through
11:52
the. Luckily, we were there after Dave Winfield
11:55
and that group that had put together a. an intramural
11:59
team that was unbelievable, guys that went on
12:01
and played professionally. But we had no problems.
12:06
And I was just in awe of the guys, because I
12:08
thought, OK, football, you guys, you're good.
12:12
And I could maybe stack up. But I'm going to
12:14
show you something now in basketball, because
12:16
I kind of thought I was pretty good. You were
12:18
a good shooter, too, right? Yeah. I don't know
12:20
about that. But I took the shots. When I got
12:26
in with those guys, it was amazing because everybody
12:29
had skills. I mean, Tony Dungey ended up playing
12:34
basketball for the Gophers his freshman year.
12:37
I remember that. What would you say was your
12:39
biggest takeaway of that 73 season? If you were
12:42
just to tell somebody in 50 words or less, what
12:44
was it like as a freshman on the Gophers in 1973?
12:47
What was your biggest takeaway? Well, it was
12:49
other than being in awe pretty much for the beginning
12:52
of it. It was just the overall speed and size
12:58
of the guys. compared to in high school. That
13:02
and the pageantry of going to other stadiums.
13:07
I mean, I remember talking to my daughters when
13:09
they were looking at schools and everything.
13:11
And I said, you know, Purdue University, I never
13:15
had a thought of going there, but the campus
13:17
is just beautiful and everything. And to play
13:20
in what was known as the big house at Michigan
13:23
or Ohio State, the horseshoe, those things. And
13:27
to be able to travel as a freshman and see different
13:30
areas of the country. Now, you're talking about
13:32
a kid who had been on one airplane prior to that.
13:36
So I guess that would be the biggest thing is
13:40
just the... the normity of the situation that
13:44
I was in. Such a new experience. That's cool.
13:48
And you already answered the next question I
13:49
had. I said, what do you do in the off season?
13:51
You play basketball, obviously. And then was
13:54
there kind of a semi -structured weightlifting
13:58
protocol or something that you did after the
14:01
season ended? Well, yeah, it's interesting. It
14:03
was surprising to me of how we were always told
14:07
our coach, Coach Dahl says you're here for three
14:10
reasons. He says, number one, to get an education,
14:12
number two, to play football, and number three,
14:15
if there's any time left over for your social
14:17
life. And he always made a point of some of the
14:21
guys who maybe had that reverse. But it was,
14:25
I tell people all the time, when you're a scholarship
14:28
athlete, it's pretty much a full time deal. There
14:31
is no off season. And you have to schedule your
14:35
classes around that kind of thing. And a lot
14:37
of times, depending on your major and everything.
14:40
You know, it's very difficult to do but the the
14:44
the spring is football obviously in the winter
14:46
We had winter conditioning. So we conditioned
14:49
and then the small break you have in the summer
14:52
we still had a workout program and everything
14:54
and I can talk later about how Tony and I used
14:57
to get together all the time and he'd throw a
15:00
hundred balls to me a day so. Now you didn't
15:03
have that beautiful athletic village that's there
15:05
now. Where did you where did you go to lift weights?
15:07
Was that a cook hall or where did you go? This
15:10
kind of will age me but Beerman building was
15:13
relatively new then and that's where we that's
15:15
where we that's where we dressed and everything.
15:19
Okay. The stadium We had to walk to from yeah
15:22
over a bridge which was over the railroad tracks.
15:25
Yeah, and We we practiced our weight room. It
15:29
was at Beerman building and it was simply New
15:33
to me because I was allergic to weights. I never
15:36
really I never really did much weightlifting
15:38
in high school But it was Nautilus if you remember
15:41
the Nautilus equipment. Nautilus came out in
15:43
the 70s. Yeah, so, you know and they again in
15:46
the winter we had weightlifting and that was
15:50
the facilities although they weren't like they
15:53
are today they were certainly more than what
15:55
i had in height what we had in high school i
15:57
remember that weight room yes quote unquote weight
15:59
room at heights i remember that so okay thanks
16:03
okay on to the 1974 season your sophomore year
16:11
for the record the gophers struggled that season
16:14
They went two and six in the Big Ten, finished
16:17
in a three -way tie for seventh, I believe. It
16:20
was with Iowa and Northwestern. And they went
16:22
four and seven overall. Their two Big Ten wins
16:26
were at home against Iowa and on the road at
16:29
Purdue. And the Gophers also beat North Dakota
16:31
and TCU, Texas Christian University, in non -conference
16:35
games, both at home as well. And Ron, thanks
16:38
to, I should say, sportsreference .com and the
16:42
Minnesota Star Tribune Archives, which is really
16:44
a great resource, I was able to find that you
16:47
got the first passes of your college career in
16:49
your sophomore year with the Gophers. You got
16:52
two passes for 24 yards on October 5th, 1974,
16:56
in a loss at Nebraska. Again, Star Tribune has
16:59
all the stuff. And then the next week, October
17:01
12th, 1974, you got a pass for 17 yards in a
17:04
loss at Indiana. Describe, if you will, the plays
17:07
in which you caught those passes in both games.
17:10
And how did those first catches, those first
17:12
major college football catches feel? Well, exciting
17:15
to be frank with you. But before I talk about
17:19
the catches, I'll have to say that one of the
17:21
reasons we were four and seven in my sophomore
17:25
year is Tom Moore, who's an excellent football
17:28
coach, still coaching in the NFL. By the way,
17:32
he had left our team. and went to what was then
17:36
the new USFL or something and he coached a team
17:40
out in New York. They asked him to come there.
17:43
So he left the golfers and we struggled because
17:46
Tom Moore was a very innovator. He's the one
17:51
who developed the passing game, which we later
17:54
had. So our offense struggled mightily that year.
17:57
And that's one of the reasons why as a wide receiver,
18:00
there wasn't a lot of throwing going on. And
18:03
our offense just wasn't geared for that. And
18:05
when Tom Moore came back, then things changed.
18:09
Oh, he came back? He came back. Certainly. Yeah.
18:11
He was the architect of my junior and senior
18:14
year. So he was only with the USFL for one season?
18:17
One season. And I don't know if the team went...
18:19
if the team was defunct or if he just changed
18:23
his mind and came back. I get those mixed up.
18:25
There was also a World Football League. Was that
18:28
the WFL? I thought USFL came a little later.
18:31
You may be right. They did call it the WFL. But
18:34
I remember that league. There were so many of
18:35
them that had come and gone. It may be that the
18:39
league only made it one year. I don't even remember
18:41
that WFL. It wasn't around for long. Thankfully,
18:45
Tom Moore came back. huge difference in both
18:49
Tony and I's career. Oh, definitely. Yeah. Yeah.
18:53
Wow. Okay. Well, the 74 season, like I said,
18:56
it was probably tough just to have a losing season,
18:59
but how did, what was the difference between,
19:01
how did you feel as a freshman and then as a
19:04
sophomore? What was the difference in your development?
19:06
How did you feel? Well, I was getting more comfortable
19:09
with being a college athlete than I was as a
19:13
freshman and just finding my way. And as you
19:17
know, you were over there. It's enough just to
19:20
find your way to your classes. With the West
19:24
Bank, you're going over there in the middle of
19:25
the winter across that bridge and things like
19:28
that. But I was much more comfortable as far
19:30
as the academics and then that. translate into
19:33
being more comfortable with with being a football
19:36
player as well. Sure. Sure. Just the growth,
19:38
I guess. And it was disappointing those season
19:42
and everything. But I never had any doubts or
19:45
questioned the fact like, why did I choose here?
19:48
You know, this is this is not going well. Right.
19:52
Unlike. Today, with the portals and everything,
19:55
I mean, we may have lost half the team after
19:58
that year when Coach Moore left and guys would
20:01
have just left, but they didn't do that back
20:03
then, obviously. What would you say, again, this
20:05
is something I'll ask for each season, what was
20:07
probably your biggest takeaway then of the 74
20:09
season? You know, I can't think of a highlight.
20:15
The season was that difficult, you know, and
20:17
it was... When I started out as a freshman and
20:21
we were four and seven, we expected to build
20:22
on that. You mean seven and four. Seven and four,
20:24
yeah. We hope the next year that maybe we can
20:27
turn one of those losses or two of them into
20:30
wins. And then one thing I would point out is
20:33
that bowl games then, there weren't a lot of
20:35
them. But if we'd have finished even eight and
20:40
three, we may have had a shot at a bowl game.
20:43
And we kind of expected that. Cal. And it was
20:47
disappointing. I think we had a lot of injuries
20:50
with some of our veterans and seniors that year.
20:52
Can I ask you a question? What happened with
20:54
Larry Powell? He had such a promising, didn't
20:57
he get sick or something? He did after his freshman
20:59
year. He had a tremendous freshman year and he
21:02
was really good. I can't even pronounce the name
21:06
of the disease that he got. Did it kind of cripple
21:10
him? Yes, it's some kind of a blood disease.
21:15
it was it was devastating and now that you mentioned
21:18
it that may have just kind of put a cloud over
21:21
the whole thing because it happened in the offseason
21:23
and everything and yeah speak of yeah key player
21:26
that's coming back after a good freshman year
21:28
and as a matter of fact uh coach stahl had to
21:31
go and and and hit the junior college ranks and
21:34
get a few you know, running backs, which one
21:37
of which was Rick Upchurch. That was a blessing.
21:40
But Rick didn't come until a year later. But
21:43
it kind of it had its toll on us. And it's interesting
21:46
you bring that up, because I kind of forgot is
21:48
that. And looking back now, I'm thinking, yeah,
21:51
maybe maybe that had a lot to do with the, you
21:53
know, overall attitude of the team. Go down and
21:56
affect everybody. So OK. All right. Thanks. To
21:59
be honest with you, it's sophomore year. I don't
22:02
like thinking about it because there weren't
22:04
too many teams I played on in my athletic career
22:09
throughout high school and college that finished
22:11
with a losing record and that's hard to take.
22:14
No, I understand. I understand. On to the 1975
22:23
season, your junior year. For the record, the
22:26
Gophers went 3 -5 in the Big Ten, tied for seventh
22:29
place with Iowa, but they finished 6 -5 overall.
22:32
Their three Big Ten wins were on the road against
22:35
Iowa, and at home against Northwestern and Wisconsin.
22:38
The Gophers' three non -conference wins, all
22:41
of them at home, came against Western Michigan,
22:43
Oregon and Ohio, Ohio University. Not to be confused
22:48
with Ohio State. And Ron, you had a huge season
22:51
in 1975. Again, I'm using SportsReference .com
22:55
and the Minneapolis Star Tribune Archives as
22:57
my sources. But in that season, you had a total
23:00
of 42 receptions for 545 yards. You averaged
23:05
13 yards per catch and 49 and a half yards per
23:08
game. You also scored four touchdowns, which
23:10
is great. Statistically, at least, your biggest
23:13
game came on the road at Illinois, where you
23:16
caught seven passes for 98 yards, including one
23:19
catch for a 25 -yard TD pass. And then home against
23:23
Michigan, you caught five passes for 75 yards,
23:26
including an 8 -yard TD pass. In fact, in a story
23:29
written by Minneapolis star reporter, Bob Fowler,
23:32
you set three gopher records in pass receiving
23:35
in 1975. Awesome. Do you remember what those
23:38
three records are for? Was it number of receptions
23:40
was one of them? It was yes, it was number of
23:43
receptions for season and number of receptions
23:47
in the Big Ten because they kept track of that.
23:50
Okay. And the third one might have been yards.
23:53
Okay. Okay. Okay. Just just kind of an indication
23:56
that it's wouldn't seem much to people listening
23:59
to that must have been something get all those
24:01
passes around here after the you know. Yeah,
24:04
after that sophomore year. Yeah, yeah. Wow, that's
24:07
awesome. That's awesome. Which of those games
24:09
in that 75 season where you cut all those passes,
24:12
which game do you remember the most? Or what
24:14
was the one that you think of the most from that
24:17
season? What was the most gratifying? I guess
24:19
the Michigan touchdown would have been because
24:22
it tied the game and we were supposed to lose
24:24
by. you know 28 against Michigan I think they
24:27
were favored by that much so we were close with
24:29
them but that was the real highlight was the
24:32
touchdown against Illinois because it was my
24:36
it was my first touchdown in my career and a
24:39
story behind that is my my mom and dad after
24:43
that point came to every game even away games
24:45
oh and the road games too but the road games
24:47
were it's kind of tough you know financially
24:49
and everything to make all those games They never
24:51
missed a game at home, obviously, but my mom
24:54
told the story that they were driving up to the
24:56
cab and listening to Ray Christensen on WCCO.
24:59
Sure, Ray. Good old Ray. And when I caught the
25:03
pass, my dad, he slammed his fist on the steering
25:07
wheel and said, that's it. We're going to the
25:09
rest of the games. I'd like to describe that.
25:14
I don't remember many. catch us in detail or
25:16
what the plays were. But I remember that one
25:19
specifically because, after mentioned Tom Moore,
25:23
he was a stickler on reading what defenses would
25:26
do. And he was a very good at studying film along
25:29
with Tony. Tony was would study films forever.
25:34
And Tom Moore had noticed what their strong safety
25:36
was tipping off a coverage before the snap at
25:39
certain times. And so we practiced just like
25:42
every week for all the all the years you practice
25:45
things you hope they do and if you call it at
25:47
the right time it's a chess game you know but
25:49
it's it's it should work now most of the time
25:53
all the things you practice it never kind of
25:55
lines up that way yeah yeah but this particular
25:58
time i saw it i noticed what and and immediately
26:02
before tony even checked off i i said this is
26:06
a touchdown I said, they're doing exactly what
26:08
Tom Moore said. We saw what the safety was doing,
26:11
and he was going to be coming. And it left the
26:14
middle of the field wide open for me. And all
26:17
I had to do, the only thing I was worried about
26:20
is that Tony got the snap. Because I knew that
26:22
he would have time, and I knew that I was going
26:25
to be wide open. And so what's crazy about it
26:29
is any catch that I had over my career, I never
26:32
was. I wasn't thinking about it on the line of
26:35
scrimmage about what was going to happen. But
26:36
this one, a feeling just came over me, and I
26:39
go, this is going to be a touchdown. It was very
26:42
hard to contain myself on the line of scrimmage,
26:44
because it was, and it ended up being a skinny
26:47
post right over the middle of the field. And
26:49
when I caught the ball, there wasn't a defender
26:52
within 10 yards of me. And so I had untouched
26:56
into the end zone, and it was just kind of like.
26:58
Oh, is this the way it's going to be? I like
27:00
this feeling. So anyways, I remember that one
27:03
specifically. Tony and I have chuckled about
27:05
it many times because he gave me the or he checked
27:09
off and all like The sick signal for getting
27:12
it. It was either you don't tap your helmet But
27:14
I just grabbed my face mask and adjusted it so
27:16
it isn't so conspicuous You know that because
27:18
you do that a lot. Yeah, and that told Tony that
27:21
I got the thing and so it was a history So what
27:25
was your biggest takeaway of that season? And
27:28
I mean if you think back to see you were six
27:29
and five and three and five in the big ten what?
27:32
What was your favorite memory or the strongest
27:35
memory that season? Well, I would say just the
27:41
team and the wins and then the disappointment
27:44
on the losses, I think, is because once again,
27:48
we felt we were close. So close against Michigan,
27:51
yeah. Yeah, when you compete against a team like
27:54
Michigan, if they weren't number one, they were
27:57
number two in the nation. And it was always that
27:59
way with them in Ohio State. And when you play
28:02
them close like that, then you feel you're getting
28:05
closer. But the biggest takeaway were the defeats,
28:10
really, because those hurt with all the time
28:13
you put into everything. And then how did you
28:17
prepare for the next season, 76? I mean, realizing
28:20
that was your last season. But you can talk maybe
28:23
a little bit more in depth about that. But how
28:25
did you prepare? Get ready for 76 unlike maybe
28:29
the years before just well because it's been
28:31
from the benefit of being there three just kind
28:33
of know what to expect and prepare for well,
28:36
interestingly what what came along with the Media
28:40
and the records and things Tony set some records
28:43
with the offense and everything that year, you
28:45
know and so we you know the two of us decided
28:49
that we want we were six and five and even though
28:52
we had those statistics we could get better and
28:55
and have to give Tony the nod on this is because
28:58
we were all winter long we worked out at Beerman
29:01
and I'd go over there and Tony was an early riser
29:04
he had early classes so it would be like I'd
29:07
have to get up and be over there by 7 in the
29:10
morning and behind the bleachers in Beerman building
29:13
he would throw passes to me and and it would
29:16
heat I had to count and it would be a hundred
29:18
a day well I wasn't running routes or anything
29:20
but it was the middle of winter yeah but so his
29:23
arm could get smaller because he wanted to get
29:25
his arms in the work, yeah. And summer leading
29:27
up to it, we worked out all summer on trying
29:31
to get better. Where would you actually work
29:32
out practice? Right down to you or? We would,
29:36
wherever we could find a field. Really? Okay,
29:38
okay. Up here in the heights or mostly on campus?
29:40
Well, actually I think... Tony and I did come
29:43
back a couple of times just to, you know, I introduced
29:47
them to the coaches and things and to be up at
29:49
Columbia Heights with the current team. I hear
29:52
from guys all the time. They said that was a
29:55
highlight in their life when they came back,
29:57
you know, and they got to meet Tony. I don't
30:00
think they were that excited to meet me, but
30:02
just another Heights kid. Oh, yeah, they were.
30:04
Oh, that's nice. Yeah. And we actually came back
30:07
and did a few things sometimes at Columbia Heights.
30:11
field, but we would pretty much just practice
30:14
at our place. That's great, that's great. Now,
30:24
before we talk about the 76th season itself,
30:26
your senior season, I just have to remind myself
30:29
that you were a student -athlete in Minnesota.
30:31
What was your major? My major was in teaching.
30:35
I had a minor in health and coaching. Okay, okay.
30:39
And what kind of steps did you have to take just
30:41
to balance your studies with athletics? I mean,
30:44
you still had to go to class. You still had to
30:45
take tests. I mean, how did you find time for
30:48
everything? Well, a big adjustment into college,
30:52
and I think that was overwhelming my freshman
30:54
year, is that in high school, I don't know how
30:57
it was for you, but we very seldom had to bring
31:00
work home unless some teacher had a paper you
31:04
did then. But in college, as you know, there's
31:08
a lot of work you have to do on your own. So
31:10
at the time, we were fortunate that we had a...
31:13
freshman year we were required to go to study
31:16
skills in Beerman building we had a room you
31:19
know it was like an auditorium room a classroom
31:21
and they would have different uh I think they
31:25
were like student assistants the teachers coming
31:27
in and in different subjects and if you needed
31:29
help you could you could have that that's nice
31:31
now that the study skills was a was kind of a
31:35
deal between you and the school or you and the
31:37
team but you until you maintained a certain grade
31:40
point average and I can't remember if it was
31:43
I think it was like 2 .5, so it was simple to
31:46
get to. But once you got to that, you were excused
31:50
from that. So after the first quarter for my
31:53
freshman year, I was excused and didn't go to
31:55
it anymore. But I remember sitting in the study
31:59
skills room. It was the first time that I met
32:00
Flip Saunders because he was a freshman. He was
32:03
your age, basically, right? Yeah. And we got
32:07
to know each other pretty well then. And both
32:10
of us got out of study skills after the first
32:12
quarter. But some of the guys, they had to stay
32:14
in study skills through the whole year. But,
32:17
yes, balancing the schoolwork and, as I mentioned
32:20
earlier, just getting your class schedule. I
32:23
don't know if you remember when you were over
32:25
there, but we used to go and you'd stand in line
32:27
to get, there was no computers. And you had this
32:32
list and you'd be in line and you'd just be hoping
32:34
when you got there that it wasn't full, because.
32:37
As you know, if it was full, you had to change
32:40
almost your whole schedule. And to this day,
32:43
I tell my wife and kids, because they say I'm
32:45
very impatient, but I can't stand in lines. You
32:48
know, at the state fair, I go, well, you can,
32:51
I could be hungry, but I go, no, I'm not standing
32:53
in that line. And to this day, I blame it on,
32:56
because of that, it affected me. The fact that
33:02
you've got to rearrange your schedule, and that
33:03
was a real challenge. we had to be, we couldn't
33:07
take classes after I think it was two o 'clock
33:09
because we're in getting taped around around
33:11
2 30. Right. So and a lot of students, they have
33:15
that opportunity to take a later class. Yeah.
33:18
Yeah. So interesting. Because, you know, I went
33:20
to the U and I, I had to really work hard just
33:22
to finish, but I wasn't in sports. I had part
33:25
time jobs, but I thought that that was just hard.
33:27
Anybody who graduates with a college degree,
33:30
they've earned it in my opinion. You can't just,
33:32
you know, bluff your way through it. It's an
33:34
achievement. Now, on to the 1976 season itself.
33:45
For the record, the Gophers went 4 -4 in the
33:47
Big Ten, a four -way tie for third place with
33:50
Illinois, Indiana, and Purdue, and for the second
33:53
straight year they finished 6 -5 overall. Their
33:56
four Big Ten wins included two wins at home against
33:59
Indiana and Illinois, and two wins on the road
34:02
against Michigan State and Northwestern. The
34:05
Gophers' two non -conference wins, both of them
34:07
at home, came against Washington State and Western
34:10
Michigan. Ron, you had another great season in
34:14
1976. Again, thanks to sportsreference .com and
34:17
the Minneapolis Star Tribune Archives as my sources.
34:20
In those games, you had 33 receptions for 372
34:24
yards. You averaged just over 11 yards per catch
34:27
and just under 34 yards per game. You also scored
34:30
a touchdown. And I can't forget to mention this,
34:33
but you were also named the All Big Ten Second
34:35
Team in 1976. That must have felt great. All
34:39
the hard work paid off. Okay, statistically,
34:43
at least your biggest game during the 76 season
34:45
came at home against Ohio State when you cut
34:48
six passes for 73 yards. You also had a nice
34:51
game in the win at Michigan State where you cut
34:53
five passes for 61 yards. And in the season opener
34:57
against at home against Indiana, you scored on
35:00
a 15 yard TD pass and finished the day with four
35:03
catches for 58 yards. So those are some numbers.
35:07
And they're impressive numbers. But in all those
35:09
games in that 76 season, which catch, which game
35:13
is the one you remember the most and why? Probably
35:16
Michigan State. We went on the road and Michigan
35:20
State was, you know, probably similar to our
35:23
program at that time. But it was, Tony grew up
35:27
not too far. and had an opportunity. They recruited
35:31
Tony. He was from Jackson, Michigan? Jackson,
35:33
Michigan, correct. And they recruited him, and
35:36
as did Michigan, and it was important to him.
35:40
Cal Stahl had coached there, and it was their
35:44
homecoming. And again, we were underdogs. We
35:47
were in favor to win. back to Tom Morgan, he
35:51
put in, back in the 70s, it wasn't really, it's
35:56
not like you see football today where, but he
35:59
put in a lot of motion. And I was the person
36:01
that was going in motion the whole game. And
36:03
I just remember it because I probably ran, you
36:07
know, more than I'd ever in anything I've done
36:13
because I... would line up and be out on one
36:16
side. I was kind of a slot receiver but on the
36:18
way out we'd be in twins on one side and make
36:20
motion all the way across the field. Now we did
36:22
that because you can then Tony can look up and
36:26
you can see the defense adjust but I went in
36:28
motion on almost every snap. So I was just really
36:33
tired. And I had a lot of opportunities. I don't
36:37
remember how many I caught in that. You mentioned
36:39
it, but. The Michigan State? Yeah. It says five
36:42
passes, 61 yards. And they were, I'm proud to
36:46
say that they were all for first downs. Most
36:48
of my catches, I don't remember too many of my
36:50
catches that weren't for first downs. So I was
36:54
kind of like whatever we needed. That's why the.
36:56
I didn't even know what my average per catch
36:58
was, but you said it was 13 my junior year and
37:00
then 11, but 11 will get you a first down if
37:03
it's third and seven, you know. Exactly, yeah.
37:06
But I remember that game specifically for, I
37:09
was tired. It was an exciting win to beat them.
37:12
Kent Kitzman, a sophomore running back from Rochester,
37:16
ran for about, he carried the ball. At that time
37:18
was a record for how many carries he had. I think
37:20
he had like 51 carries. Is that the game? Yeah.
37:23
I remember that. I can't remember the yardage
37:25
but, you know, so if I got five passes, we probably
37:30
only threw the ball about 15 times that game
37:32
because Kent was running the ball real well.
37:36
One of the balls I caught down close to the goal
37:39
line, I caught it and I just got tripped up with
37:42
the boat. two yards to go and I remember diving
37:46
and reaching and I couldn't reach that far and
37:50
the ball fell out of my hands and it bounced
37:51
right back up to me but I was already kind of
37:53
going on the ground. I was disappointed in that
37:56
because in films it's like the coaches are like
37:58
no no no so different than today where the players
38:01
all reach out and everything. I would always
38:05
coach my receivers when I coached later on to
38:08
protect the ball all the time. I saw that on
38:12
a highlight film is the only reason I remember
38:14
it as I saw the play on a highlight film. I go,
38:18
yeah, you know, I'm doing that and I could have
38:20
cost us there. But we scored the, you know, Kitzman
38:24
probably ran the next one in from the two yard
38:26
line. So anyway. You received all conference
38:28
honors. How did you find out? I mean, how soon
38:30
before we found out about it, did you get notified?
38:34
Who told you? Cal Stahl? Yeah, I think. Or Tom
38:38
Moore? In the season end, they went over who
38:41
did what in our meetings and everything. But
38:43
my junior season, it's not written in there,
38:47
but I do have documents of my junior season.
38:51
I was first team all Big 10. Oh, I'm sorry. OK,
38:54
wow. But it was usually there's you. UPI and
38:58
this was the Chicago Tribune. Chicago Tribune
39:03
is all the writers of the Big Ten, I guess. And
39:06
they're the ones who vote on it. Some of those
39:08
other ones are maybe coaches and things. My junior
39:12
year, I found out at the end of the season and
39:14
everything. And that was quite an honor because
39:16
I remember. I still have the picture of the other
39:19
players on that team. And it's fun to look back
39:22
at because on either side of the ball, I would
39:25
say 90 % of those guys went on to pretty substantial
39:29
careers in the NFL, you know, at whatever position.
39:32
You know, it's funny you mentioned that I'm going
39:33
to have to check my source again, where I was
39:35
looking, I was looking to go for records, you
39:37
know, of each season, and they listed players
39:39
that made all big 10. But like you said, I think
39:41
it was like AP or UPI, and it depends on, I guess,
39:45
the source, you know, so, so you You were a first
39:47
team All Big Ten as a junior by the Chicago.
39:51
Chicago Tribune, the writers. Okay. Well, congratulations.
39:54
I wasn't aware. And I thought the same thing
39:57
because I've never just a few years ago, I had
40:00
someone ask me some questions. I should know
40:02
some of that stuff. Like, I didn't know that
40:04
my four touchdowns my junior year led to Big
40:07
Ten. receiving a touchdown. Think of that. Today
40:11
there are receivers that might get four in a
40:13
game for a touchdown. It was a different time.
40:16
Until I looked it up and googled it but I did
40:18
find a sheet that said and it had Kelstahl's
40:21
era and awards. And in the early years, you know,
40:25
John King, you mentioned him. He was first team
40:29
All -Big -Ten, everything. But Keith Von Horst,
40:30
who I played with, a teammate of mine. But my
40:33
name was on there as first team All -Big -Ten
40:36
in the year that it was. They had a list and
40:38
I went, hmm, there's the only place I see that
40:41
around. So two years you were All -Big -Ten.
40:44
So first team and second team. Second team. No,
40:47
that's awesome. That's awesome. So when you think
40:50
back about your senior year then, what is your
40:52
biggest takeaway from that? I mean, what sticks
40:54
with you the most? Once again, disappointing
40:56
because we had worked so hard and thought we
41:00
would, but we had injuries and not just myself,
41:03
Mike Jones, the other receiver. He hurt his knee
41:06
in summer, ended up missing quite a few games
41:10
to start the season and that takes away a threat,
41:13
you know, puts more pressure on me when there's
41:15
not both of us. We had an outstanding defensive
41:20
lineman. George Washington was his name. I remember
41:22
that name. He was a nose guard in the year before.
41:24
He was a Michigan kid too, right? Yes, he was.
41:26
From Flint, Michigan. Okay, okay. He might have
41:30
been from Detroit. Flint or Detroit, I can't
41:32
remember. But George was a tremendous player
41:35
and the year before, his junior year, he had
41:37
led the entire Big Ten in tackles. Wow. And George
41:40
got hurt. That shuffled everything because we
41:44
had to take a center, Mark Slater from North
41:47
Dakota, who was strong, was a strong offensive
41:50
player, and he was a great athlete, and we had
41:53
to move him over to replace George. And then
41:56
we lost the left tackle, and then we lost the
41:58
guard, and as I said, Mike was hurt. One of our,
42:03
a couple of our defensive backs, George Azick,
42:04
who was tremendous, had to miss a little bit
42:06
of time. He was a four -year starter at Strong
42:09
Safety. He was injured. I was out. I broke my
42:13
back against Michigan in the second quarter,
42:17
I think. I sat out one game. I missed the Northwestern
42:21
game. I didn't want to, but the doctors said
42:23
I had to. Well, yeah, you're back. And so with
42:27
Mike being out in the beginning, and I, you know,
42:30
I mean, we. at Northwestern, we won handily.
42:34
And another thing that sticks out for me is watching
42:36
or listening to that game on the radio at home.
42:39
Oh, you actually stayed at home for that? Yes.
42:42
They weren't traveling. They're going to take
42:44
a guy to travel if he's not even suiting up.
42:46
It was the hardest day of my four -year career
42:49
to be home and listen. Although we won. And I
42:53
will say that Northwestern's program, thankfully
42:56
for them, turned around over the years and got
42:59
better, but they were so poor then that we beat
43:02
them with a limited team with guys that were
43:05
hurting out, but also the team got food poisoning
43:08
the night before the game. And from what I understand,
43:13
when the guys that came back said it was a good
43:15
thing, you didn't go because some meal or something
43:17
they ate and they were literally getting sick
43:21
on the sidelines. So this is a depleted team
43:24
with many guys out with injuries and the team
43:27
that was sick and they had no problem. So I remember
43:31
that it was tough to be home though. You know
43:34
we've talked about the four seasons that you
43:35
played with the Gophers. Three of them were winning
43:37
seasons. Two with six wins overall and then the
43:40
one with seven wins. In today's major color football
43:43
world, those winning seasons would have definitely
43:46
been bowl eligible. But that was then. It's different.
43:50
I mean, there's so many more bowl games today
43:52
than there were back in the mid 70s. After that
43:56
was done then, if you want to talk just briefly
43:57
about that, when was the last time you actually
44:00
put on football pads? You did try out with the
44:02
Vikings, right? Was that the year right after,
44:06
so it would have been 70s? the fall of 76? Yep.
44:09
Okay. Yep. I, you know, with, uh... So you went
44:11
down to Mankato and... Yes. Yeah. I was in Mankato
44:15
in 1977. 77. Okay. 77 because, uh... Right. Right.
44:20
You got it. Yeah. And, uh, actually it was Tommy
44:23
Kramer's rookie year. Tommy and I became good
44:26
friends over the summer because he was up here
44:28
already, being the number one draft hit. Him
44:30
and Scott Studwell. Studwell, sure. ironically
44:33
I had played against because Studs played for
44:36
Illinois and he probably hit me a few times.
44:40
We'd have Scott come because we needed more legs
44:43
to run routes and Tony and I worked out all summer
44:45
together. We rode down to camp together to Mankato
44:49
and that was interesting because I had lived
44:53
here my whole life and you too and I knew that
44:56
169 to Mankato is at that time was one of the
44:58
most heavily patrolled highways in the state
45:01
of Minnesota. and I knew that we shouldn't speed
45:05
and Tony showed up late picking me up and him
45:08
being a number one draft choice. He didn't care
45:11
because what are they gonna do to put me being
45:13
a free agent? I didn't want to really be a rookie
45:15
that's showing up late, late. It wasn't terrible,
45:19
you know, if they said we were supposed to be
45:21
there at 11. He's picking me up at my house and
45:25
I wanted to be there at nine and he doesn't come
45:27
until 10 30. And he just goes, no problem. And
45:30
he jumped in his Lincoln Continental that he
45:33
had won in the senior bowl for being MVP and
45:36
picked me up. I think the statute of limitations
45:40
is over now, but we went 110 miles an hour down
45:43
169, and I looked at them all the way saying,
45:46
you can't do this. Anyway, it was fun, because
45:49
I got to know Tommy pretty well. And camp was
45:57
fun. Once again. If I thought the step from high
46:01
school to college was, you ask me the, you know,
46:07
the differences or what was, and it was overwhelming
46:09
with the, but the size and the speed, just the
46:13
athleticism of people that are at the next level,
46:17
you can't describe it. You know, even, and I'd
46:20
say from, it doesn't matter, division one football
46:23
player to the next level. An example I always
46:27
give people is Chuck Foreman held out for the
46:30
first week or two of practice. He was holding
46:33
out for a better contract, which he deserved.
46:36
And I remember the day he came back, because
46:39
I would be in the huddle sometimes, and he just
46:42
rotated, so I would be in the huddle sometimes
46:44
with all the starters. And I just remember Fran
46:47
Tarkington missing handoffs. to Chuck because
46:50
he was so much quicker than the other guys. The
46:54
timing and everything. I'd watch him in awe because
46:59
of how quick he was off the ball. We all remember
47:01
his patented spins and everything that he made
47:05
so famous. Just the overall athletic ability
47:09
and speed of all those guys. I was fortunate
47:13
enough to be able to be in the huddle for a short
47:16
time in a summer of 77 with some of our idols,
47:20
guys you knew. I mean, the Vikings had been to
47:22
four Super Bowls prior to me getting there and
47:25
we all grew up with them. And to be in the huddle
47:29
with all those guys, I mean, it was a good experience.
47:33
How many games did you play with them? I was
47:36
only with them through, I'd say, three quarters
47:40
of the preseason. Oh, okay. And unfortunately,
47:45
Bud didn't believe, Bud Grant didn't believe
47:47
that uh rookies had to earn their their way in
47:51
practice and he back then they played the preseason
47:55
a little different but they played for some reason
47:57
they played them seriously they started yeah
47:59
starters played most of the games yeah and uh
48:03
it's very rare it's a different very rare yeah
48:05
you know to uh to even get an opportunity but
48:08
i will share one story with you that i don't
48:10
think i did on we we played the los angeles rams
48:13
in the la coliseum I think I remember that game.
48:17
It was on TV. I don't know if it was or not,
48:19
but I just remember that I stood on and watched
48:23
across the field was my height. childhood idol
48:27
was Joe Namath. Now, Joe Namath last year, he
48:30
switched, last year of his career. And I remember
48:34
seeing him across the thing and then being able
48:36
to watch him. And I said, you know, I wore white
48:38
shoes in high school because of Joe Namath. Okay,
48:41
so you were the first kid in high school to wear
48:42
white football shoes. I do remember that. That's
48:44
right. I brought him out on the old WTCN TV game.
48:49
Oh, yeah, yeah. I remember those Thursday nights
48:52
or whatever they played. Coach Ron Raveling during
48:55
pregame warm -ups was walking around watching
48:59
everybody as we're stretching and he just he
49:01
looked down at me and he just he said something
49:03
I can't repeat about my about my shoes but he
49:06
said I looked like a blankety -blank registered
49:08
nurse and that was it. He didn't make me go in
49:12
and change him or anything. But anyway I digressed.
49:15
I went to Joe William. Joe Namath was my childhood
49:19
hero. Yeah. And after the game, I made sure that
49:23
I went in the other locker room and I went up
49:25
to them because we could, you know, yeah, they're
49:27
pretty loose and down in the locker rooms. Yeah.
49:30
And I went in and introduced myself and shook
49:32
his hand and stuff. And so I got an opportunity
49:34
to meet my. Yeah, that's cool. That's cool. Great
49:37
story. Great story. Did you ever consider Canadian
49:40
Football League or once that the Vikings did
49:42
you see? I actually did when I was when I was
49:45
released by the Vikings. I got letters after
49:49
my junior year. I got a lot of letters from numerous
49:52
teams, but from the Canadian Football League.
49:55
But I was in Bud Grant's office talking to him.
49:59
He had called me and got me some tickets to,
50:03
I think it was some kind of a retirement thing
50:05
for Butch Nash. Oh, okay, sure. But isn't a man,
50:08
wasn't a man as well. And he said, I thought
50:12
you might enjoy going to this. They were expensive
50:14
tickets and I thought that was nice. But I said,
50:16
what do you think I should do? Because what do
50:21
you think about? Canada but had coached up there
50:24
and he said Ron you can go up there and you can
50:28
be you'll bounce around on some teams because
50:30
back then they could only have we were considered
50:32
I don't know foreign players or something there
50:35
was a certain amount of Canadian players yeah
50:37
they were only a few you know that could be American
50:40
on each team and he says because of that no matter
50:42
how well you're doing you may the next year you
50:44
may find yourself at another team he said and
50:46
they don't pay much he said and he actually was
50:51
Honest with me and I to this day I admire him
50:54
for that and he said to be honest with you He
50:58
said I would start your whatever you're gonna
51:00
do in your life right now in your career because
51:03
he said it you're not going to make any money
51:06
and you're going to get bounced around and things.
51:07
So he was he was being brutally honest with me
51:09
and I just I took his advice because I respected
51:12
him as I always had and uh went on to just start
51:17
my my work my career. Well it was a good four
51:21
years there so that was that was that's always
51:24
something you can always look back on. I want
51:31
to do something real quick now, Ron. I'm going
51:33
to call it a lightning round. I've asked a lot
51:35
of open -ended questions, but I've got some just
51:36
quick ones that I thought of as I was just, you
51:39
know, thinking about things to ask you and that
51:40
stuff. And these are just quick responses. You
51:43
can, if you don't know an answer, just say pass
51:44
and we'll go to the next one. All right. You
51:46
already answered this question. I said, did you
51:48
choose go for Jersey number 46 or was it assigned
51:50
to you? Yeah, it was given. Okay. But you made,
51:54
you made the best of it. Okay. What was the warmest
51:57
hottest, you know, excruciating game you remember
52:00
playing and where you get kind of sidelines or
52:03
you're out in the field and you go, man, I'm
52:04
roasting this is. Yeah, the games in early, early,
52:07
the first one would always be, but the hottest
52:10
I ever was was in a, in a pre fall practice.
52:13
Okay. The, the heat on the field, the heat index
52:17
they said was like 110 and we had the terrible.
52:22
astral turf or whatever they called it. So you
52:24
could see, if you looked, you could see that
52:26
kind of fume. And I got, at that time, didn't
52:29
know it, but I got heat exhaustion or something.
52:34
And the trainers knew that I sweat easily and
52:37
heavy, but they came by me once and I said, hey,
52:41
I stopped sweating. And they immediately rushed
52:45
me in, put me on a table, and put ice on me.
52:48
So I missed it. a good part of the practice because
52:51
I overheated. But it wasn't a game. It was it
52:53
was practice that you remember being the hottest.
52:56
Yeah, I don't remember. I remember being cold
52:58
in the later games, but that was my next question.
53:00
Which game was the most miserable as far as cold
53:02
weather, whether it was rain, snow, just cold
53:05
wind? Be Wisconsin every year because we played
53:08
Wisconsin last year and the snow at our place.
53:12
When we won our my. Junior year. I remember that
53:16
because the snowballs flying Lots of people from
53:19
the stands you might have been there and you
53:20
might have been throwing them. Yeah But you mentioned
53:24
the rain and unfortunately the worst feeling
53:26
I ever had was we lost to Wisconsin my senior
53:29
year with the last game at Camp Randall and in
53:31
the rain and a terrible terrible feeling Especially
53:37
when it's cold and cold rain and maybe I will
53:39
win in their band playing and I yeah Who is your
53:44
favorite local media personality? You had to
53:47
know between print, TV, and radio. Who did you
53:51
talk or interact with the most? Well, the obvious
53:53
one is Sid. Sid was good to me. And even after
53:57
I left, I would say Sid. John Rowe. Do you remember
54:00
John Rowe? Oh, yeah. John Rowe was really big
54:02
in the golf scene, too, as far as he covered
54:05
golf. But John Rowe was just a tremendously nice
54:08
man. And I remember him. Any St. Paul writers
54:12
come to mind? St. Paul, um... Was Royce Cochran
54:15
a gopher? Royce was. He actually was the editor
54:19
over there, if you remember his name. I can't
54:23
remember, but he said a lot of nice things about
54:25
me. I never met him except... It would have to
54:28
be Sid. Sid was not shy about it. He had a little
54:33
tape recorder and he would follow you everywhere
54:36
with that. For so long too, he had to be 100.
54:40
Amazing. Which stadium was the crowd like the
54:44
most hostile or at least friendly? Do you remember
54:46
being it? Easily Wisconsin. It was a close second,
54:50
but it was Iowa. Ah, okay, yeah, that doesn't
54:52
surprise me. Cal, am I supposed to answer these
54:55
quick, but I have a story for all of them. That's
54:57
okay, go ahead, go ahead. Before we went to Iowa,
55:00
the first time I went there, he said, we practice
55:03
at the stadium, obviously the day before on Fridays,
55:07
and it's empty. And he said, tomorrow, he says,
55:11
when you come out of the stadium, he said, make
55:12
sure you got your hats on, and hats meant helmets
55:15
and stuff. And when we came out of the tunnel
55:17
at Iowa, the people are... dumping whiskey and
55:21
beer on you. It literally was soaked into you.
55:25
It was hostile there. A lot of pleasant environment.
55:29
No, that's a rivalry. I mean, there's a reason
55:32
they have a trophy. Kind of a two -part question,
55:36
but during your four years with the team, who
55:39
was the biggest... Physically biggest player
55:41
who's the smallest when you look at him going
55:43
got that guy's huge or you saw some guy going
55:46
He's football player. Yeah, I'm thinking like
55:48
a kicker. Maybe you're oh, but who is like who
55:50
is the biggest guy? Well be lineman, I suppose.
55:53
You know, it is an alignment that the most the
55:56
most The most impressive guy was was Archie Griffin
56:01
Now you'd look at him and everything, but he
56:03
had the most powerful legs I've ever seen. I'm
56:08
talking about an offensive guy, not somebody
56:09
I'd believe against. He was just an amazing athlete.
56:15
Two -time Heisman winner. We played against him
56:17
twice. I couldn't imagine. I was glad I was on
56:20
the other side of the ball because I couldn't
56:22
imagine having to tackle him. Well, defensively,
56:25
there's just... some defensive backs that I know
56:29
were, if they weren't playing, they would have
56:32
been in prison because they were physical. Physical,
56:35
yeah, and just tough and strong. A lot of things
56:38
they did that would be assault and battery. What
56:42
was the sweetest victory while you played there
56:45
and what was the toughest one, I mean the toughest
56:47
to take? Which one felt the best for you? That's
56:51
a good question. I would say Wisconsin. Okay.
56:54
Yeah, just because the Just like it is now, that
56:57
rivalry was big there, and we were two and two
56:59
against Wisconsin, as you pointed out. We won
57:03
both games at home against Wisconsin and lost
57:06
there. just not that nothing personal as far
57:11
as the kind of game I had or anything but just
57:13
to just to beat him and it was the end of the
57:14
season and everything that one always was was
57:17
to me the the best that we we didn't have any
57:19
you know we were close we were close to Iowa
57:21
State my my senior year we we lost eight to three.
57:25
I was at that game actually. We held that they
57:28
we had we held them to the our defense held them
57:30
obviously to the lowest point total they had
57:32
their whole year but they were averaging you
57:34
know like 28 points a game. Yeah we had a field
57:36
goal is the only thing. Would you say, as far
57:39
as the toughest loss to take, you've mentioned
57:41
before, but maybe that Michigan game when you
57:43
were a junior where you could have won, but didn't
57:46
quite? That was hard. I personally thought that
57:48
was the toughest one. I'll tell you how Tony
57:52
would answer this because I'll tell a story about
57:54
it. He had a great ability to have things in
58:00
perspective and everything, but we were cruising
58:02
along our senior year doing well. We did lose
58:07
to Michigan. I got hurt and went to the hospital,
58:10
so I didn't even finish that game. But we played
58:13
Iowa, and we had a... I think we had... That's
58:17
a 12 -0 lead at the half or something? Yeah,
58:19
we were up 12 at the half, and we ended up losing
58:22
14 to 12. But I remember in the locker room,
58:26
Tony never... He was never very high up or very
58:31
low. He just even keel all the time. He couldn't
58:34
leave the locker room. He's sitting on a bench
58:35
and I just come on We got to go, you know, we
58:37
have people out there with my family and everything
58:40
He just looked at me and he said Ron this one's
58:43
this one's gonna hurt I was in the middle of
58:45
the year and everything and I didn't but he was
58:47
right because it made the difference in everything
58:49
and we again we were close to maybe we were being
58:52
looked at by like the Fiesta Bowl and things
58:54
and and we but he knew that that was a game that
58:58
we let get away and I was just I was just so
59:02
surprised that that he He saw that. He kind of
59:05
saw how the rest of the season would play out,
59:07
and he knew that. That was a tough one. Yep.
59:10
No, I can see that. And you've already answered
59:12
this question. Was that Michigan game where you
59:14
literally broke your back? That was the most
59:16
pain you felt after a game? Well, it caused you
59:18
to miss a game, right? Yeah, I didn't. The pain
59:21
was when it happened. I thought I'd gotten the
59:25
wind knocked out of me as many kids do. You do
59:28
that on the playground and everything where you
59:29
can't breathe. And I literally couldn't breathe
59:31
as I was laying there. And then it subsided and
59:34
I went to get up and I couldn't get up. What
59:36
happened? Did you jump up for a pass or something?
59:39
I was catching one over the middle and I was
59:41
completely stretched out up high and got hit
59:44
in the lower part of my back. At that time, they
59:48
still could lead with their helmets. And I'll
59:51
never forget the player because they... Obviously
59:53
had studied film and everything and was Dwight
59:56
Hicks number 17. Oh Yeah, he ended up playing
59:59
I think for the 49ers leader, but He just which
1:00:05
they were coached to do that then because you
1:00:07
want you want to separate the receiver from the
1:00:09
ball and one of the good ways to do it is to
1:00:11
to with impact and The helmet hit me right in
1:00:15
the lower part. I fractured two transverse processes
1:00:17
on the back which but you still play like three
1:00:20
or four more games, right? Well, like After that,
1:00:24
I went to the hospital and had to lay on the
1:00:30
floor on the plane on the way home because I
1:00:31
couldn't sit in a chair. It was too painful.
1:00:33
And I sat out the Northwestern game and then
1:00:36
came back for, it was actually all we had left
1:00:40
was Ohio State, the close game that we could
1:00:42
win and then the disappointing one in Wisconsin.
1:00:47
I know, you know, with practice and, you know,
1:00:51
working out and studying and all stuff. While
1:00:53
you were down there, though, living as a student
1:00:55
athlete, do you have a couple of places where
1:00:58
kind of like favorite hangouts? I mean, I know
1:01:00
there's a McDonald's there and Dinkytown and
1:01:03
there's a Vessio's. I mean, was there a place
1:01:04
you guys like to go to a lot? I think it's changed
1:01:11
now and I was down there with my daughters when
1:01:14
we went back to a game and it's called Sally's
1:01:16
now, but I think that was called, wasn't that
1:01:18
called, was that the Big Ten? The Big Ten. The
1:01:19
Big Ten, the guys would hang out. I would say
1:01:22
that I didn't have the normal college life because
1:01:25
after my freshman year, when we were required
1:01:28
to stay in the dorms, then I lived at home because
1:01:31
Columbia Heights and it was easy. So when practice
1:01:35
was over, I'd go home where a lot of the guys
1:01:37
were down there still, the guys from out of state.
1:01:39
See, I didn't know that. I wasn't sure if you
1:01:40
were living in a dorm or in a friend. I only
1:01:43
lived in a dorm my freshman year when it was
1:01:44
required and then I commuted. And it kind of,
1:01:50
well, my daughters had a completely different
1:01:52
experience at their college because they stayed
1:01:54
on campus. an apartment or whatever right right
1:01:58
i tell them yeah i wish if i had any regrets
1:02:00
i would have stayed there down because yeah coming
1:02:03
home then you're not doing it was but it but
1:02:05
it also was probably good that i wasn't going
1:02:07
going out like some of my teammates in the middle
1:02:08
of the night you didn't get in trouble yeah but
1:02:11
it was yeah you mentioned the mcdonnells the
1:02:14
mcdonnells tony and i had Plenty of meals at
1:02:17
the McDonald's right there. Was that steakhouse
1:02:19
still there? Steakhouse, yes. With the Bridge
1:02:21
Best Steakhouse. The great toast. The 99 cent
1:02:23
special order. Oh, unbelievable. I talked about
1:02:25
the big, big potato and a piece of toast that
1:02:28
was grilled. And I even think there was a little
1:02:32
salad with it, a tiny little bit of lettuce.
1:02:34
It was a great deal. Yeah, that's interesting
1:02:37
that you brought that up. Or Vechios, like you
1:02:39
said. Yeah. This is just a fun question. Was
1:02:44
there a combination uniform that you liked best?
1:02:47
I remember you had the really cool gold helmets,
1:02:50
but sometimes you had gold pants at home. Did
1:02:53
you always have gold jerseys? Did you have maroons
1:02:55
sometimes? Did they kind of mix it up? Yeah.
1:02:57
What was your favorite? What did you like wearing
1:03:00
best? We didn't mix it up like they do now where
1:03:01
they have a different combination. We always
1:03:03
had the same helmet when I was there. We only
1:03:05
had the gold which are pretty popular. Those
1:03:08
are beautiful. I still think they're awesome.
1:03:10
My freshman year we had a terrible looking old
1:03:13
gold complete uniform. The jerseys were old gold.
1:03:16
They almost looked pea green. As a matter of
1:03:19
fact I might have one of those at home. It doesn't
1:03:21
fit me anymore. Because they became practice
1:03:24
jerseys. Didn't they bring in maroon jerseys
1:03:28
after a while? Yeah, we had maroon. We also had
1:03:31
the mesh ones. We had nice maroon uniforms, but
1:03:34
then the mesh was big then. Unfortunately, those
1:03:38
guys would get their fingers caught in the little
1:03:41
holes and things. We also had tearaways. And
1:03:44
they went around for like one year in college
1:03:48
football. but and I don't ever know why maybe
1:03:51
because they were almost like t -shirts but there
1:03:53
was for the backs and I remember some of our
1:03:55
guys they they'd go through three four of them
1:03:57
a game because as the people are holding on to
1:04:00
them they'd rip they'd rip yeah so yeah but the
1:04:03
combination I think that that I enjoyed the most
1:04:06
were the were the maroon I mean yeah well I always
1:04:10
thought maroon and gold is a great combination
1:04:11
so um here's kind of a fun song When you hear
1:04:15
any song on the radio today, does it bring you
1:04:18
back to your playing days? Like if you listen
1:04:19
to a more of a classic genre, I mean, there's
1:04:22
certain songs and you hear it and you go, oh
1:04:23
yeah, that's back when I played football. Was
1:04:25
there a song that was like popular among the
1:04:28
players? Yeah, Brickhouse. Oh, okay, okay. Because
1:04:31
the guys kind of named, they named our stadium
1:04:35
after that. Brickhouse by the Commodores, right?
1:04:38
I think it was, I think it was, yeah. How did
1:04:43
it work? This is back before guys had their own
1:04:45
phones and earbuds and that stuff, but was there
1:04:48
like a radio or stereo that would play in the
1:04:50
locker room or you didn't have music, anything
1:04:53
like that? You could hear music while you guys
1:04:55
were showering? No, we didn't, but I remember
1:04:59
specifically... what a shock it was when I was
1:05:02
a freshman and we were in the dorms because all
1:05:05
of the guys had, they brought stereos and they'd
1:05:09
play their own music and it would be loud and
1:05:11
it was playing all the time. But we didn't have
1:05:14
music in the, I think that's something that came
1:05:16
later as far as like even during practices or
1:05:19
anything, wasn't any music. I just wondered,
1:05:22
because the way I'm wired, I can always place
1:05:24
a song. Or if I hear a song from the 70s, I can
1:05:28
always remember where I was or what I was doing.
1:05:30
That's when I was working here. That's when I
1:05:31
was going to school. I always bring back. And
1:05:33
I just wondered what songs from the 70s that
1:05:35
you would think of that would remind you of football.
1:05:38
Well, to that point, the song that still gives
1:05:41
me chills and makes the hair stand up on my arms
1:05:45
is if I'm at a game and I hear the band marching
1:05:48
down when they come down the street and they're
1:05:52
playing or to hear the rouser. I like that and
1:05:56
I like Minnesota March too, the John Philip Sousa
1:05:59
one. It's just such a tradition. Yeah, that's
1:06:02
cool. That's cool. Of all the other big ten fields
1:06:04
you played on, which one felt the best or which
1:06:06
one did you like playing on? Ignore the crowds,
1:06:10
just the whole like the actual field. This is
1:06:12
a really cool place. Well, that's great that
1:06:15
you said that because I played my whole career
1:06:17
and it was new then. It was the turf and it was
1:06:20
bad. I know. I'll start with the worst was Michigan.
1:06:25
Their turf was old and it was basically, that
1:06:28
stuff was just blacktop and then, yeah, the kind
1:06:34
you put at your doorway and theirs had wore down
1:06:37
the door. parts of the stadium where it wore
1:06:40
down and when you were on it you could actually
1:06:43
see the blacktop through it. So theirs was down
1:06:46
to just basically you're playing in the street.
1:06:49
The best field that I played on was the only
1:06:51
time I played on in my whole career on natural
1:06:55
grass was at Purdue. Oh okay they always had
1:06:58
grass. And I remember sliding and yeah because
1:07:01
if you slid on turf it was turf burns and it
1:07:03
was just the most painful thing and then if you
1:07:06
got in the shower it just burned. But I remember
1:07:09
sliding for a catch or something and getting
1:07:12
up all I had were grass stains. I had grass stains
1:07:15
on you know and I went This is the way it should
1:07:17
be. Isn't that amazing? I mean, they've come
1:07:19
a long way with even artificial surfaces, but
1:07:21
oh my gosh, it's just like the fields that kids
1:07:23
had to play on back then, it just, it was barbaric.
1:07:27
Well, I remember, well, Memorial Stadium was
1:07:29
like that. I mean, that was, that was, that looked,
1:07:31
that just looked hard. In fact, wasn't it the
1:07:34
year after you graduated, they moved to grass
1:07:36
and they put natural grass back on the field?
1:07:37
They did put something there, yeah. Because when
1:07:38
they got Michigan at home. Yeah, that's right.
1:07:41
They tore it up. You missed by a year. Oh, wow.
1:07:45
A lot of the places had gone back to grass then
1:07:47
because the stuff was so bad. Who was the best
1:07:51
athlete that you saw on the football squads the
1:07:54
four years? I mean, this guy was not only a great
1:07:56
football player, but he probably could have played
1:07:58
in the NBA. He had a 50 -inch vertical leap.
1:08:02
Well, I don't know about the vertical. The obvious
1:08:04
answer is Tony, and I'll talk about him. But
1:08:07
on the other side of the ball was... a kid by
1:08:11
the name of Doug Bedoyne. Oh, from North Dakota,
1:08:13
I remember him. He started out, he was one year
1:08:16
ahead of us, but his freshman year. He was running
1:08:20
back and he set the freshman rushing record for
1:08:24
freshmen. But they switched him and he ended
1:08:26
up having a short career in the NFL. He played
1:08:29
for three, four years as a safety. But Doug,
1:08:34
again, played basketball with him. He was tremendous.
1:08:37
But we had the opportunity to play golf with
1:08:39
him once when we were at school. He just did
1:08:43
everything naturally. Just tremendous. From Jamestown,
1:08:45
North Dakota, something like that? Exactly. And
1:08:47
a good buddy of mine while we were at school
1:08:50
together. But Tony, without a doubt, he's not
1:08:58
only a special individually, he's a special athlete.
1:09:03
Many people don't know about his... prowess on
1:09:06
the basketball court, but he was a great basketball
1:09:08
player. I saw a clipping one time in his apartment
1:09:12
is from his sophomore year in high school. And
1:09:15
he was first team all state in Michigan as a
1:09:18
sophomore. And the four other guys on that thing,
1:09:21
I told him to this day, I said, I want to get
1:09:23
that because when I tell this story, I can't
1:09:25
remember the names of the other four. But they
1:09:27
all not only they all not only played tremendous
1:09:30
careers in college, they all played in the NBA.
1:09:33
And you don't remember the names? No, no, I can't
1:09:35
even tell you who they were, but because they're
1:09:37
older guys, you know, and they were older than
1:09:39
him because he was a sophomore and they were
1:09:41
all seniors. You know, to be all state in a state
1:09:44
of like Michigan in basketball and you're a sophomore.
1:09:48
So he could have easily, he played his freshman
1:09:52
year under muscleman with the Gophers in basketball
1:09:54
too, but he could have easily just. not played
1:09:57
football and played basketball and he would have
1:09:58
been tremendous. He was good. Was there a player
1:10:02
on the team, I don't want to use the term class
1:10:05
clown, but was there a guy on the team that could
1:10:07
just kind of keep guys light or keep things light?
1:10:10
Which is funny, he could just say something.
1:10:11
Yeah, George Washington probably because he had
1:10:14
to be because of his name. But he was very funny.
1:10:18
He was an actor. But a year later, Desi Williamson
1:10:21
came. Desi Williamson was a linebacker. And he
1:10:25
to this day, he does professional speaking and
1:10:28
things. I mean, he was tremendously funny. He
1:10:32
could imitate people and things. Desi Williamson?
1:10:36
Desi Williamson. He was a linebacker. Interesting.
1:10:40
He was very funny. Yeah. I was just trying to
1:10:42
get some elements that people wouldn't normally
1:10:44
think of, you know, and they're all good football
1:10:46
players, but what are they like as people? Yeah.
1:10:48
George Washington never lost a wrestling match
1:10:50
his whole, his whole high school career. He was
1:10:52
a state champion in Michigan and a tremendous
1:10:55
football player. As I said, he was a, one year
1:10:57
he led the big 10 in tackles. So as our nose
1:10:59
guard and he had the name George Washington.
1:11:02
And in 1976, Kelce. It all coined him as my bicentennial
1:11:06
nose guy. But he played, he literally could sing.
1:11:10
He had a tremendous voice and he played the piano.
1:11:13
Oh my gosh. Oh, what a fun guy to have on a team.
1:11:16
Wow. Well, it's been nearly 50 years now since
1:11:19
you last played. You talked about some injuries.
1:11:21
What kind of lingering injuries, kinds of surgeries
1:11:25
have you had since you played? Probably because
1:11:27
of football. Time won't allow to tell you, but
1:11:30
I have a knee replacement. Everybody our age
1:11:33
does. But I injured both knees. Never had to
1:11:37
have surgery back then, thankfully, because surgery
1:11:39
then would mean almost that you're done. I broke
1:11:42
my hand. I had to back. Many shoulder injuries.
1:11:48
But my children will tell you to this day that
1:11:50
most of it was probably the hits to the head,
1:11:52
because I suffered three concussions while I
1:11:55
played. I joke with people that I'm still in
1:11:57
the concussion protocol. There's lingering effects,
1:12:01
let's say. Well, they treat concussion so differently
1:12:05
now. I mean, the protocol is so much stricter
1:12:08
now than then. So I can remember they talk about
1:12:10
somebody just got their bell rung, and they'll
1:12:12
be OK. That's what they said. And you remember
1:12:14
smelling salts, you know? Yeah. In high school,
1:12:17
Rav would come by with the smelling salts. But
1:12:20
I, I got, I specifically remember one time when
1:12:23
I got knocked out and it was at, was at Ohio
1:12:25
state. Um, and the fun part about this is it
1:12:29
dates me, but the coach at Ohio state then was
1:12:31
Woody Hayes. And I got, I got caught a pass near
1:12:34
their sideline. Maybe that's, that's what I did.
1:12:37
I guess I either, I either caught quick slants
1:12:39
or I caught sideline catches and I got hit, um,
1:12:43
helmet to helmet, I think. And, and I, all I
1:12:46
remember is I was laying on the ground and I.
1:12:49
opened my eyes and a figure was above me and
1:12:53
put his hand on my shoulder because I was trying
1:12:55
he said stay down son your your trainer's on
1:12:57
his way over because he was coming across field
1:12:59
and I look up and go what what what he haze is
1:13:01
here and where I were you know I didn't know
1:13:03
where I was let I go why is what he haze talking
1:13:05
to me and the black hat to your to your point
1:13:09
though uh cross the field to place and back in
1:13:13
Now today that would be two weeks of protocol
1:13:16
and everything else, at least, before you clear,
1:13:20
which is good. And then finally this one here,
1:13:25
this is long after your playing days I guess,
1:13:28
but which stadium do you like better? The old
1:13:29
Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis or Huntington
1:13:31
Bank on campus? Oh, I feel bad for the guys that
1:13:38
had to play in that. Oh, I know, I know. It was
1:13:39
off camera. I don't know. They were hoping that
1:13:42
it could be a good venue. Did you continue to
1:13:44
go to games when it was in there or not? I did,
1:13:47
but I love TCF. Excuse me, Huntington. I love
1:13:51
the stadium, I think. They did that one, right?
1:13:53
That's a nice stadium. I agree with you, 100%.
1:14:00
All right, Ron. Well, I appreciate this. What
1:14:03
I'm going to do now is I'm going to let you talk
1:14:04
for as long as you want, because I know this
1:14:06
person is really special to you. Tell me about
1:14:08
Tony Dungey. I mean, well, you played with him
1:14:12
then and how you've kept in touch with him over
1:14:14
the years. Sure. Yeah, we remain friends now.
1:14:17
I guess it's going on probably 52 years since
1:14:21
we met in 1973 when we were freshmen. The first
1:14:24
couple of weeks I was on the other side of the
1:14:26
ball. You know, obviously I knew. who Tony was
1:14:29
and he knew who I was. But once I switched over
1:14:32
to offense, I would say we were people still
1:14:35
joke us that we were inseparable for four years
1:14:37
because we we did, you know, pretty much if after
1:14:40
football, he'd come home with me to my house
1:14:43
many times and stay. It just depend on the situation.
1:14:48
But we became very close. And I'm fortunate to
1:14:54
call on my friend for this long. But he had.
1:14:57
He had effects on my life much deeper than just
1:15:00
the athletics. I didn't realize his faith, how
1:15:04
strong it was when we were in school, because
1:15:07
he didn't promote it or push it on people. But
1:15:12
just the character and everything, you hear people
1:15:14
talk about him. But over the years, he's just...
1:15:18
He set so many good examples for me and for everyone,
1:15:22
to be honest with you. Our friendship has been
1:15:26
maintained over all these years. How often do
1:15:27
you actually see him? I mean, when you take a
1:15:30
vacation or something? Because he lives in Florida,
1:15:32
probably. Right, but with his speaking and everything
1:15:34
and that's intensified since he got in the Hall
1:15:39
of Fame. But one thing I will mention. People
1:15:43
come up to me all the time and say, hey, do you
1:15:45
think Tony could come and do this or do that?
1:15:47
And it's very difficult now, because people demand
1:15:51
a lot of his time. And he's still working for
1:15:53
NBC. He's going to do one more year, I think.
1:15:56
But he's got a large family that they've adopted.
1:15:59
So he's busy. But he's written, I don't know,
1:16:05
between, he wrote three books. And his wife and
1:16:09
him have done some children's books. And they
1:16:11
do book. appearances and signings and things
1:16:14
like that. But all of the money from the books,
1:16:16
all of his speaking and everything, it all goes
1:16:18
to charity. You know, he doesn't take that money.
1:16:22
And when you're in Hall of Famer, it's a pretty
1:16:25
substantial fee you can get. So it tells kind
1:16:27
of the character of the person. He doesn't do
1:16:30
it for fame. He doesn't do it for money. But
1:16:34
he has a calling that he's always said it was
1:16:37
much higher than just being a football coach
1:16:39
or a football player. somebody who, you know,
1:16:43
other than my dad, I can't say I've ever respected
1:16:46
a man more than Tony. Wow, that's really nice.
1:16:50
And it's great that you kept in touch, you know,
1:16:51
because it's been a long time since you played,
1:16:54
but there's a saying, I can't remember who said
1:16:56
it, but they said, time doesn't take away from
1:16:58
friendship, nor does separation. Oh, that's good.
1:17:03
Yeah, because it seems like when he comes up
1:17:05
here and has a talk, in Eden Prairie, that big
1:17:10
church, Grace Lutheran, I think it's called Grace
1:17:12
Lutheran, and it's called Reckless with the Coaches
1:17:15
or something, and he brings some, they always
1:17:17
have an award for somebody around the country
1:17:19
that I can't remember what they title it, but
1:17:22
it's a faith -based meeting and everything, and
1:17:27
when he comes then, we always make sure we see,
1:17:29
he comes up sometimes to, he'll have something
1:17:31
to do with the Gophers, he may, you know, for
1:17:34
Coach Fleck, he may be... Talking to the team
1:17:36
or something when he, when he comes and, you
1:17:38
know, I find out about it with his, um, his job
1:17:41
with NBC, when he does a Viking game, we, we
1:17:44
tend to get together, have breakfast or something.
1:17:47
Sometimes the day of the game, or sometimes we'll
1:17:49
have something the evening before, but, and,
1:17:51
uh. He lives in Tampa down there and I've threatened
1:17:54
that we're going to be down there. My wife and
1:17:56
I, now when she retires, we hope to be down in
1:17:59
Florida for a few months anyway. Most Minnesotans
1:18:01
do is leave. My folks did that for a few years.
1:18:05
I'll visit them then and hopefully he's there
1:18:07
because he might be going the other way. He told
1:18:09
me summertime he has a place out in Oregon. So
1:18:13
get out of the heat. Thanks for sharing that.
1:18:21
Run! Run! Run! I just want to share a couple
1:18:24
of things with you, Ron, that I found as I was
1:18:26
preparing for this podcast. The first was from
1:18:29
an article written by Bob Fowler from the Minneapolis
1:18:31
Star. It was dated September 9th, 1976. It was
1:18:34
a Thursday, just two days before the first game
1:18:37
of your senior season at home against Indiana.
1:18:40
In this article, he has quotes from both Cal
1:18:42
Stahl, your head coach, and from you. I'll give
1:18:45
you this Cal Stahl quote first. When Stahl was
1:18:48
asked how you were able to set a gopher receiving
1:18:50
record in 1975 with 42 catches in one set. season,
1:18:53
your coach Cal Stahl said of you, quote, he has
1:18:57
great athletic ability, a fine touch with his
1:18:59
hands, and great concentration. Some receivers
1:19:02
have one or two of those things, but Ron's a
1:19:05
rare one who has all three. Most important is
1:19:08
his concentration. He's outstanding at that,
1:19:10
end quote. That's pretty nice. And then Bob Fowler
1:19:14
also included a quote from you in that same article.
1:19:17
And you said, quote, once a ball is in the air,
1:19:20
I can lock myself into it and block everything
1:19:22
else out. I don't see my teammates or the opponents
1:19:25
and I don't hear the fans yelling. It's like
1:19:27
I'm deaf." Like Coach Stahl said, your concentration
1:19:32
is outstanding. So that must have been kind of
1:19:35
your thought when you went into it. And I'll
1:19:37
read you one more quote. And this is from you.
1:19:40
It was an article written by John Rowe, whom
1:19:42
you mentioned earlier. It was in the Minneapolis
1:19:44
Tribune, dated November 13th, 1976. OK, so it's
1:19:49
a Saturday. It was a story about the 22 seniors,
1:19:51
and you were among them. You'd be playing your
1:19:53
last final home game at Memorial Stadium. And
1:19:56
here's what you told John Rowe. Quote, I was
1:19:58
sure we'd play in a bowl game during my four
1:20:00
years. You get programmed to thinking that happiness
1:20:03
only comes with winning. But I think we've learned
1:20:05
something from the other end, too. Maybe we've
1:20:08
learned more than the guys at Michigan in Ohio
1:20:10
State. I'm sure that as we grow older, we'll
1:20:13
realize that these have been some of the best
1:20:15
times of our life. Then winning might not be
1:20:17
the most important thing that we think it is
1:20:19
now." Do you remember that quote? A little, but
1:20:26
I'm surprised that I had the... that I said something
1:20:29
so smart. I was going to say profound. A lot
1:20:33
of times when I spoke to reporters and I see
1:20:36
quotes from me back then, I just shake my head
1:20:38
and go, if my girls would read a clipping or
1:20:42
something like that, now they go, Dad. And I'm
1:20:43
just going, it was the 70s. Don't get to hear
1:20:46
this, Ron. They'll hear what you said. Yeah,
1:20:50
that was a profound statement. and it rings true,
1:20:55
I'll touch on both of those things. I was able
1:20:58
to coach a little bit at Tatino Grace for four
1:21:02
or five years and coach the wide receivers. And
1:21:06
I tried, it was very difficult for me to express.
1:21:11
what the concentration part of a ball is and
1:21:13
everything, but it has to become secondary. And
1:21:16
the main thing I try to tell receivers is that
1:21:19
you can't be thinking, all coaches tell you that,
1:21:21
just react because, but you can't be thinking
1:21:24
because like, I gotta catch this, I gotta catch
1:21:26
it. I never thought that. Just once the ball
1:21:28
was in the air, it was just like. I would always
1:21:30
say, I got this in my mind. It was coming and
1:21:34
it was just, I said, it has to be positive and
1:21:37
you can't let anything slip in that's negative
1:21:40
because the human mind can't. decipher from negative
1:21:43
and positive thoughts. And generally, if your
1:21:46
last thought is a negative thought, that's the
1:21:49
result you're going to get. And it was hard for
1:21:51
me to explain what my mind was like. And I'm
1:21:54
surprised that back then at 21 or 22 years old
1:21:58
that I said it. But yeah. And the other statement
1:22:02
is just it's true. I thought guys at Michigan
1:22:06
and Ohio State, they take for granted. That they're
1:22:09
gonna win and and it's kind of like but we learned
1:22:12
a lot more as you do as you know through athletics
1:22:15
You you learn a lot of life lessons. Yeah, and
1:22:17
I'm surprised that I had that that statement
1:22:20
Boy I'm sure glad there's a such a thing is the
1:22:25
Star Tribune archives because I I can't find
1:22:28
this stuff when I google it Oh, I I subscribe
1:22:30
to it and it's worth every penny for me because
1:22:32
I'm always researching things for podcasts, but
1:22:40
I'm going to give you one last thing. I got a
1:22:43
kick out of this. This is from a Facebook page
1:22:45
called Minnesota football posted on April 30th,
1:22:48
2020. And this question was asked, quote, what
1:22:52
for go for wide receivers do you think belong
1:22:55
on the Mount Rushmore of go for football? Or
1:22:58
is it Mount Goldy more unquote? As you can imagine,
1:23:01
there were tons and tons of responses, but there
1:23:04
was one person who responded with these four
1:23:06
Gopher wide receivers. Eric Decker, Tyler Johnson,
1:23:11
Rick Upchurch, and the man sitting across from
1:23:15
me, Ron Goulas. Interesting. Yeah, you got mentioned
1:23:21
there. So what do you like better Mount Rushmore
1:23:24
or go for football or Mount Goldymore? Goldymore,
1:23:27
yeah. I think that's better. That was cute. That
1:23:30
was cute. I'm not a big Facebook guy. I don't
1:23:33
post stuff, but I will look at stuff and when
1:23:36
I saw that, I thought that's cute. Well, you've
1:23:45
graciously answered all my questions, Ron. I
1:23:47
want to give you the last word, if you will.
1:23:50
If you could just please sum up what playing
1:23:52
football at the University of Minnesota meant
1:23:54
to you and maybe talk about some of the things
1:23:56
you learned or gained from that experience that
1:23:59
have helped you on your life's journey or things
1:24:01
that you've been able to pass on to your family
1:24:03
or to your friends or other kids. Well, like
1:24:06
I indicated at the beginning, I always felt that
1:24:09
it was a privilege the fact that I was able to
1:24:12
to live out a childhood dream. I guess as a kid,
1:24:16
I'm not growing up going, well, I'm listening
1:24:18
to them, but I'm never going to get to play there.
1:24:20
But I think that I was blessed. And I always
1:24:23
look back now and people say, well, what would
1:24:26
you have done with this situation now with the
1:24:28
portal and everything? It's easy for me to say,
1:24:31
I have it in my blood. I wouldn't leave the Gophers.
1:24:33
I was just happy that they let me attend the
1:24:37
university and let me play football for them.
1:24:39
Can't answer that, honestly, because what? you
1:24:42
know, 19, 20 -year -old kid would say no to,
1:24:45
you know, $700 ,000 if you go over here. But
1:24:48
I'm just thankful for the opportunity. The people
1:24:54
that I met, like Tony and things, what an impact
1:24:58
they've had on my life. Athletics in general,
1:25:01
I've always said, it teaches you a lot of values
1:25:05
and things that you take into your life. So I
1:25:09
just would say grateful. Unfortunately, some
1:25:14
of the hits to the head, and I already forgot
1:25:15
what the second question you had was. Well, no,
1:25:17
just, there's lessons you've learned you've been
1:25:19
able to pass on to your family or to other friends
1:25:21
or the kids. Yeah, probably ad nauseam because
1:25:24
the kids, you know, they call me a philosopher,
1:25:26
but I give them some, they'll ask me a simple
1:25:29
question I might go on and on about, but yeah.
1:25:34
the life lessons. I can only say that I'm thankful
1:25:39
for the opportunities that I had. Well said.
1:25:44
Well said. Well, this has been fun, Ron. It was
1:25:50
great to get together with you. It's been a while.
1:25:52
And share some of your stories and memories of
1:25:54
your years of playing football for the Minnesota
1:25:56
Gophers. And kudos to a mutual friend of ours,
1:26:00
Steve Durant. Another Columbia Heights alum from
1:26:02
the class of 74. Steve was the intermediate and
1:26:05
can you say the word intermediary if you will.
1:26:08
He reached out to you so you can get my number
1:26:10
and you can call me we can set up this time.
1:26:12
So thanks again to Steve. He owes me. Well, Ron,
1:26:17
you were able to live a dream that only a relative
1:26:20
handful of high school football players ever
1:26:22
get to live. And that's to play for a Big Ten
1:26:24
or other major college football program. So thanks
1:26:26
again for joining me on this podcast. I really
1:26:29
appreciate it. Well, thank you, Bob. I appreciate
1:26:31
it. I'm honored to a little bit embarrassed almost
1:26:35
because it's a long time ago. And as I told you
1:26:38
that, but hopefully there's some people at our
1:26:41
age that are listening. Well, that's that's why
1:26:42
I know there are a lot of people want to do this.
1:26:44
And I appreciate your time. And to our listeners
1:26:51
again, thanks for hanging out with me, Bob at
1:26:53
Home, and my guest, former Gophers receiver and
1:26:57
former Albig 10 receiver, Ron Coulis. We hope
1:27:00
you'll join us for the next episode of Hanging
1:27:02
Out with Bob wherever you listen to your podcasts.
1:27:04
And until then, bye.