LEGENDS OF THE FALL

Century in the Making gets a star-studded start

By Steve Pate

January 7, 2010

An aging, historic auditorium on an East Dallas high school campus will be transformed Tuesday into Canton South and more.

North Texas’ living version of not only the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, but all levels of North Texas pigskin greatness will gather under one roof for one grand cause — the official kick-off for fan voting of the “100 Greatest Moments in the History of North Texas Football.”

At Woodrow Wilson High, these will not be the sculpted busts of famous players on display. These will be the living legends themselves.

There’ll be Mean Joe Greene representing the University of North Texas; Sooner legend Billy Sims, whose exploits in the Texas-OU rivalry cemented his legacy; Abner Haynes of the AFL’s Dallas Texans, by way of UNT; One half of the Pony Express, Craig James of SMU; Woodrow alum Tim Brown representing North Texas high school football; and to prove this day isn’t just for old fogies, Andy Dalton, the QB of this season’s 12-1 TCU Horned Frogs.

And of course, there will be Dallas Cowboys. Five of the best, in fact: Host Committee Chair Roger Staubach, Troy Aikman, Tony Dorsett, Michael Irvin and Daryl Johnston.

All-in-all, that group tallies 16 Super Bowl rings, four Heisman Trophies and five Hall of Fame busts (with Tim Brown eligible to join that HOF group for the first time this year).

“It’ll be a great afternoon,” said Tony Fay, the Host Committee’s Vice President of Communications. “We’re talking about one of the greatest gatherings of this region’s football heroes. The first Texas/OU game at Dallas’ Fair Park was in 1912. Super Bowl XLV will be on Feb. 6, 2011. This is a great way to commemorate 100 years of amazing football action in our region.”

Tuesday’s event will take place at Dallas’ Woodrow Wilson High School, which was picked as host because of its own legendary status — it’s the only public high school to produce two Heisman Trophy winners (TCU’s Davey O’Brien and Brown, who took home the trophy at Notre Dame).

The event is the grand kick-off of the Host Committee’s Century in the Making campaign.

“We’re unveiling a list of the 250 greatest moments in our region’s football history that was compiled by the Century in the Making Action Team,” Fay said. “That group includes some of the area’s top sports writers and broadcasters, and they are the ones who came up with what we’re calling the Nominating List.”

Throughout 2010, fans from across the region — and thanks to the Internet, from around the world — will be given the opportunity to vote on that Nominating List. In Fall 2010 those votes will be tabulated, and the “100 Greatest Moments in the History of North Texas Football” will be announced.

“We will use the Woodrow event to explain the voting process,” said Fay. “The Century in the Making program is about celebrating our rich football history. Tuesday’s event is a great way to get the party started.”