‘Crazy Legs’ Hirsch was a big kick at Newport

DON CANTRELL

Quick! Name one of the greatest football players ever to appear on

Davidson Field at Newport Harbor High.

If you said Elroy “Crazy Legs” Hirsch that would be worthy of a

blue ribbon.

Hirsch, an All-American out of Wisconsin and a member of the

professional football Hall of Fame after playing for the Los Angeles

Rams, had been invited with All-American linebacker Bob Dove of Notre

Dame to hold a practice session with the 1945 Harbor High football

team and its coach, the late Les Miller.

Any such adventure would astonish a prep gridder during that time

so many years ago.

Even more astonishing, according to Sailors guard Bill Clark, was

when Dove initially set things in motion by kneeling to hold a place

kick for Hirsch.

Recalling the event last week, Clark said, “Hirsch only took about

two steps and then booted a 50-yard field goal right through the

uprights.”

Few prepsters had witnessed a 50-yard field goal in those days.

Clark added, “And what’s more, Hirsch was never known as a kicker,

but as an ace receiver and runner.”

John Fowler, 75, a superb tailback in ‘45, also recalled the

delight of his Tar teammates to experience attention from the two

All-Americans, who, at the time, were serving at the El Toro Marine

Base as World War II was fading from their future schedule.

Unfortunately, Hirsch and Dove missed one Fowler event at the

field weeks earlier, when he stunned county sportswriters by snagging

a 73-yard pass from fullback Ralph Freitag at the back of the end

zone in the Huntington Beach game. It appeared to be a game-winning

touchdown until one referee ruled he was one step out of the end

zone.

And little could they have projected future recognition coming for

Freitag when he was invited to try out with the Chicago Bears.

Clark, 74, said, “They were super guys. And our players really

appreciated them coming to visit. They were very humorous and showed

us all a lot of respect.”

Clark said the pair had attended a banquet honoring the ’45

Newport gridders at the Castaways Club and it was there where Coach

Miller invited them to come visit the team at practice.

Coincidentally, the pair was only about 200 yards away from the

Harbor High gym where start basketball center George Yardley was

inside at cage practice. In time, Yardley would become a known figure

to Hirsch as a sterling Hall of Famer for the Fort Wayne (now

Detroit) Pistons at the pro level.

Hirsch and Dove were top players on the El Toro Marine Base grid

team. It had lost the national military title to Fleet City Navy.

The sad note from last week was news that Hirsch, 80, had died

Jan. 28 of natural causes in Madison, Wis. He once served as the

athletic director of Wisconsin University in Madison.

In fact, Hirsch sent an autographed book to Miller in 1989 and

conveyed regrets he could not attend the Oct. 20, 1989 Newport Harbor

25-year grid anniversary, which was covering the years from 1931 to

1955.

Hirsch, who drew the nickname of “Crazy Legs” because of his

unique running style, played for the Rams from 1949-57. He played as

a receiver and a halfback along with the great back Glenn Davis.

Davis led Bonita High to a 39-6 small schools CIF championship

playoffs against Newport in 1942.

The top season for Hirsch in pro ball was 1951 when he led the NFL

with 66 catches, 1,495 yards receiving and 17 touchdowns.

Two of his remarkable quarterbacks for the Rams in those years

were Bob Waterfield and Norm Van Brocklin.

“There has never been a more loved and admired ambassador for

Wisconsin sports than Elroy Hirsch,” said Pat Richtor, the athletic

director at Wisconsin.

Hirsch also had a brief film career and played in three movies,

including “Unchained” and “Zero Hour.”

He portrayed himself in the film titled, “Crazy Legs, All

American.”