I am still in a bit of shock at the recent shooting death of former National Football League star quarterback Steve McNair at the age of 36.
I got a chance to meet McNair briefly in St. Louis 16 years ago when he visited our town as a budding college star at Alcorn State University. He was in town to play in the first St. Louis Gateway Classic Football Game against Howard University at Busch Stadium.
It was the beginning of McNair’s junior season and he was already a household name in black college football circles, but he hadn’t blown up yet nationally. Even then as a 20-year-old, he was a confident young man with an abundance of talent. But true to his Southern roots, he was a very humble and polite to anyone who wanted to speak with him, including me. It was a pleasure to speak with him and a even bigger thrill to watch him actually play.
The game itself was a classic black college football showcase with Howard winning a 38-36 thriller. McNair put on a show, throwing for something like 360 yards and four touchdowns while running for a bushel of yards. Howard had a nice quarterback of its own in Jay “Sky” Walker, so it was really a nice show. What would you expect from two quarterbacks named “Air” and “Sky.”
I had heard a lot of about McNair in the weeks leading up to the game, so I was anxious to see him in action. McNair was as good as advertised. He was big and strong with a rifle for a throwing arm and terrific running ability. McNair was the total package.
McNair reminded me of one of the old-school black college superstars from the 1960s who could have played at any major college in the country, but was not afforded the opportunity because of his skin color. A high school star at nearby Mt. Olive, Miss., McNair wanted to play quarterback in college, but the big schools wanted him to play defensive back. Alcorn State gave him that opportunity to play quarterback and a star was born. He was that good. Several of us in the press box got into a spirited discussion about his chances to succeed at the professional level. I was in the camp of “this guy is going to be a star in the NFL,” just on what I witnessed that one day at Busch Stadium. I can remember asking the question out loud, “How in the hell is this guy not playing in the SEC at Alabama, Tennessee, Auburn or someplace like that?”
At the time, I did not know how fortunate I was to get this sneak peak at what would become something truly special in college football. The following season in 1994, McNair really, really blew up into a superstar and Heisman Trophy candidate. While he was setting passing records out the ying-yang and getting all kinds of publicity, I was running around telling people that he was in St. Louis last year when few people were paying attention. I almost felt like I was ahead on the curve on this one.
But still:
Who knew that this would be the young man who would go on to nearly win the Heisman Trophy while playing for an all-black NCAA Division I-AA school and become a top draft choice.
Who knew that he would follow Doug Williams (another former black college star) as the second black quarterback to start in the Super Bowl.
Who knew that this would be the man who would stand in the way of the St. Louis Rams’ 1999 dream season that would end in a world championship.
McNair nearly broke our hearts when he rallied the Tennessee Titans from a 16-0 deficit to a near-overtime in Super Bowl XXXIV. The second-to-last play of that Super Bowl when he literally shook Rams’ defensive linemen Kevin Carter and Jay Williams off his back to complete a pass to set up the game’s last play is the one moment which symbolizes McNair’s talent, toughness and competitiveness. That play represented everything about Steve McNair as a player.
One player who had a first-hand look at McNair’s greatness during that season was former Parkway Central star Isaac Byrd, who was a starting wide receiver for the Titans during their drive to the Super Bowl.
“It was an awesome experience to play with Steve,” Byrd said. “You never saw him sweat, and he always had a smile on his face. He kept us loose in the huddle because he wanted all of the pressure on him.”
Byrd remembers being in the huddle in the fourth quarter when the Titans got the ball after the Rams had taken a 16-0 lead in the fourth quarter on a touchdown by Torry Holt.
“He was still smiling in the huddle and keeping us loose,” Byrd said. “We’re down and getting our butts kicked and he’s joking and talking about where we’re going to eat dinner after the game. He was so calm.”
McNair went to lead the Titans’ big comeback which left them just one yard shy of sending the game into overtime.
Throughout his career, McNair was beset with a number of serious injuries that would have felled most mere mortals, even those who made their living in the National Football League. Instead, McNair answered the bell every Sunday and played the game at an All-Pro level, which made him a hero in Nashville.
“He was a tremendous leader who always played hurt. You never knew he was hurt because he went out there and played so hard,” Byrd said.
“He was Mr. Nashville. Everyone loved him because he was so visible and so touchable. People could just walk up to him and start a conversation and he would stand there for a long time and talk with you.”
McNair’s numerous injuries were not enough to bring down this proud warrior of the football field, but it seems that temptation led to the tragic demise of this great athlete and community man when nothing else could. It is truly a shame.
“I am absolutely devastated,” Byrd said. “I feel for his family and his boys. This is a terrible loss for his family, the NFL and the Nashville community.”
R.I.P., Jesse Payne
I would like to express my condolences to the family of Jesse Payne, a budding basketball standout at Normandy High School, who was killed last week in a shooting incident where he was caught in the crossfire. Young Jesse was 16.
He was heading into his sophomore year at Normandy. Jesse was the Most Valuable Player of Normandy’s sophomore team, where he was the team’s leading scorer as a freshman.
“Jesse was an outstanding young man,” said Normandy Athletic Director Malcolm Hill. “He will be missed by the Normandy community.”