He had been suffering from dementia for a few years, so it wasn't a big shock to hear of the passing of Gale Sayers this morning. It's still a bummer. He was my first football hero.
He was also the last football star to spend the majority of his career at Wrigley Field. I included Gale on my website Just One Bad Century. Here is his write up...
~Gale Sayers 1943-2020 (Bears in Wrigley, 1965-1970)
The greatest years of Gale Sayers football career were spent at Wrigley Field. He won the Rookie of the Year, scored six touchdowns in one game, and electrified the fans with his incredible open field moves. Sayers was a four-time Pro Bowler, a two-time rushing champion, the comeback player of the year, and his number 40 has been retired by the Bears. He also, unfortunately, badly hurt his knee–cutting his Hall of Fame career short. The movie about his relationship with Bears teammate Brian Piccolo “Brian’s Song” has made more grown men cry than any other movie ever made. (Photo: Topps 1969 Football Card)
