An old foe remembers McGee
The last time Willie Mitchell saw Max McGee, the Packers receiver had just gotten finished burning him throughout the course of Super Bowl I in January 1967.
Mitchell was a 26-year-old cornerback for the Kansas City Chiefs when they lost 35-10 to the Packers in the first NFL-AFL championship game.
"I told him, 'Good game,' and that was about it," Mitchell told David Flores of the San Antonio Express-News. "I wish we could have sat down and talked for a while later on down the road."
That wish became all the more poignant after McGee's death on Saturday. When Mitchell heard the news, he felt like he'd lost a friend.
"I paused and said a prayer for Max. You never lose respect for the teams and the individuals you played against," said Mitchell, 67, who's a building contractor in San Antonio.
Mitchell certainly respected McGee, even after being torched for seven catches for 138 yards and two touchdowns by an aging -- and perhaps hung-over -- backup eight years his senior.
"Look, Max McGee had a terrific game that day," Mitchell told Flores. "And by him having a terrific game, and the highlights on TV every year, that keeps me identified with pro football forever."
Mitchell's friends still chide him about being burned by McGee, but he's cool with it.
"Yes, we lost," Mitchell told Flores. "But being in that light with Max McGee has been a blessing for me."
-- Jeff Ash, jash@greenbaypressgazette.com
Mitchell was a 26-year-old cornerback for the Kansas City Chiefs when they lost 35-10 to the Packers in the first NFL-AFL championship game.
"I told him, 'Good game,' and that was about it," Mitchell told David Flores of the San Antonio Express-News. "I wish we could have sat down and talked for a while later on down the road."
That wish became all the more poignant after McGee's death on Saturday. When Mitchell heard the news, he felt like he'd lost a friend.
"I paused and said a prayer for Max. You never lose respect for the teams and the individuals you played against," said Mitchell, 67, who's a building contractor in San Antonio.
Mitchell certainly respected McGee, even after being torched for seven catches for 138 yards and two touchdowns by an aging -- and perhaps hung-over -- backup eight years his senior.
"Look, Max McGee had a terrific game that day," Mitchell told Flores. "And by him having a terrific game, and the highlights on TV every year, that keeps me identified with pro football forever."
Mitchell's friends still chide him about being burned by McGee, but he's cool with it.
"Yes, we lost," Mitchell told Flores. "But being in that light with Max McGee has been a blessing for me."
-- Jeff Ash, jash@greenbaypressgazette.com
posted by PackersNews.com at
4:40 PM
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