Not all people who become iconic
faces and names in sports are players and athletes. Even the ones who support
them can be immortalized themselves if they are the best at what they do. The
easiest examples would be the coaches. In the 1950s John Madden, frustrated at
injuries prematurely ending his professional football career, turned to
coaching. From college football to the NFL, coaching the Oakland Raiders, he
became a legend in his own right with a Super Bowl win (XI) to cement it.
Madden went on to become a football commentator and even got a game franchise
with his name on it. His legend was set by the time that he passed away.
Entertainment Weekly tells us that iconic football coach and
sportscaster John Madden died Tuesday, December 28, at his home in Pleasanton,
California. He was 85 years old. The sad new was appropriately broken by the
National Football League (NFL) via a statement from Commissioner Roger Goodell,
who extended condolences to Madden’s widow Virginia, sons Joseph and Michael,
and their families. "Nobody loved football more than Coach. He was
football,” says Goodell. “There will never be another John Madden, and we will
forever be indebted to him for all he did to make football and the NFL what it
is today."
Madden was an example of a star
sports athlete transitioning to become even better as a coach/trainer. While
his player future was ended by a training camp injury with the Philadelphia Eagles,
it did steer him into the more-remembered path that he took. His stint as
Oakland Raiders head coach led the team to championship over the Minnesota Vikings
in Super Bowl XI of 1977. After retiring the following year he turned to color commentating
in 1979, going from CBS to Fox, ABC and NBC in three decades before retiring
from football involvement in 2009.
Another avenue where John Madden
became a media giant was through videogames, where his name, image, endorsement
and sports expertise were lent to the “Madden NFL” franchise by Electronic
Arts. Although work on the initial game (for MS-DOS) began in 1984, Madden’s
insistence on realism for gameplay mechanics pushed the debut of the franchise
until 1988. His involvement in the game series, which spans multiple gaming
platform generations, lasted until in 2009, but “Madden NFL” remains an ongoing
and popular series. “Madden NFL ‘22” came out months ago in August.
No cause of death was given for
Madden. Details for his memorial services will be provided at a future time.
Image courtesy of Variety
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