A SPECIAL DAY FOR A SPECIAL COACH
By STEVE KING
Happy birthday, Sam Rutigliano!
The former Browns head coach from 1978 until midway through ’84 – the guy who was the orchestra leader for the Kardiac Kids – turned 86 on Sunday. He was born July 1, 1932 in Brooklyn.
Though Sam, who still lives in the Waite Hill home in the far eastern Cleveland suburbs that he purchased when he was hired by the Browns, had some good success, guiding the club to two playoff appearances and an AFC Central Division championship in a three-year period from 1980-82, and twice being named the AFC Coach of the Year, he’s certainly not the greatest coach in team history.
But he’s the most fun coach because he put together the most fun period in Browns history. And he’s also my most favorite coach.
It’s impossible to put into words just how much fun – just how exciting, unbelievable and off the charts – that 1980 season was. That’s when the Kardiac Kids reached their zenith, finishing 11-5 and winning the franchise’s first division crown in nine seasons, and its first playoff berth in eight years.
But as impressive as those accomplishments are – and to be sure, they are really, truly impressive – what’s even more so is how the season played out. A total of 13 of the 16 games – 14 of 17 if you count the postseason, and unfortunately, you have to count the postseason – were not decided until the final two minutes.
Think about that for a minute, nearly every game went down to the wire.
These weren’t football games as much as they were great theatre. They were so great, in fact, that no one knew how the story – how the play – was going to culminate until the very end, almost as the curtain was coming down.
As such, the games kept everyone on the edge of their seats. You couldn’t take your eyes off the action, lest you miss something big.
I think about that season every once in a while when the misery that has been the expansion era gets me down. It makes me smile.
Thanks, Coach Sam, for that season and those memories, and happy birthday!
