No one is prouder of where he came from, who he played for and what those teams did when he was there, than former Browns linebacker/defensive end Jim Houston.
He will tell you with passion, excitement and joy in his voice, and a little fire in his eyes, that he had the honor and privilege of playing for what was considered the golden triumvirate of football in Ohio for many years — in high school for the Massillon Tigers, who won a big-school state championship when he was there, then for head coach Woody Hayes and the Ohio State Buckeyes, who won a national championship when he was there, and finally for 13 years for head coaches Paul Brown and Blanton Collier with the Browns, who won an NFL championship in 1964 when he was there.
Houston, who started out at end for the Browns and was moved to left linebacker in 1963, was a great player and as such had a lot to do with the success of those teams. Taken by Paul Brown in the first round at No. 8 overall in the 1960 NFL Draft, he played in Cleveland through 1972 before retiring, making it to four Pro Bowls, tying for the most by a linebacker in Browns history. He also was named All-NFL twice.
As such, he will never be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but he has certainly earned a spot in what HOF Vice President of Communications and Exhibits Joe Horrigan calls “the Hall of the Very Good.” And that’s definitely not anything to sneeze at.
Houston reveres Paul Brown, and he also reveres his older brother, Lin, who played for Brown at three different places — Massillon, Ohio State and as a right guard, almost entirely as a starter, on the first eight Browns teams from 1946-53, being a part of state champions while with the Tigers, of the Buckeyes’ first national title team in 1942 and of five league champions during his time in Cleveland.
Yes, Massillon, Ohio State and the Browns. That’s where it was at, football-wise, way back when, and Houston, who is 78 and living halfway between Cleveland and Akron in Sagamore Hills, can talk about those days all day – gladly so.
Houston has been on my mind a lot this week as the Browns get ready to go to Columbus and participate this afternoon in the second annual Orange and Browns Scrimmage at Ohio Stadium, the home of the Buckeyes since 1922.
The Buckeyes, as we all know, are still among the best teams in the country year in and year out.
The Tigers aren’t what they were in the 1950s, when Jim Houston was there, or in the 1930s, when Lin Houston was there, but they’re still pretty good every season and are one of the most tradition-rich, iconic high school programs in the country.
The Browns?
Not so much.
They haven’t won an NFL championship since 1964 when Houston was there.
They’ve never been to the Super Bowl, but, as Browns fans know all to well, they got within one win of getting there in 1986 and ’87, along with in 1989, ’68 and ’69. Almost doesn’t count, though. This isn’t horseshoes or hand grenades.
And since the Browns came back in 1999 as an expansion franchise, it’s been an unmitigated disaster. In the previous 17 seasons, they have had just two winning records and one playoff appearance, with no victories. They head into 2016 having suffered through a franchise-record eight consecutive seasons dating back to 2008. Previous to this dreadful run, the longest streak of losing seasons the Browns had ever endured was four, three different times, all in the last quarter-century — 1990-93, 1995-2001 and 2003-06.
Head coach Hue Jackson knows all this about his Browns, what they once were and what they’ve been recently. He knows all about the Buckeyes, obviously. Even if you live in the northern reaches of Alaska – or anywhere else in this country – you know all about the Buckeyes.
And in having spent seven seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals in two different stints, he even knows all about the Massillon Tigers.
The guy is crazy busy getting the Browns ready for the season, so I am almost certain that Jackson won’t think about the Massillon-Ohio State-Browns connection today – or any other day, for that matter — as has been discussed in this piece. Why would he?
Nonetheless, his job is to get the Browns into that mix of excellence in this state – to get fans thinking about the team in some of the same ways they think about the Buckeyes, the affection for whom grips Ohio completely from Cincinnati to Conneaut, Maumee to Martins Ferry, Warren to Wapakoneta, and Put-In-Bay to Portsmouth.
It’s a huge task, to be sure, but Jackson, ever confident in his own abilities as a coach, doesn’t shy away from huge tasks.
And this afternoon, the team at one end of the spectrum in Ohio will be playing at the stadium of the team at the other end of the spectrum. That disparity will be on display for everybody to see, if they care to look for it, and look at it.
Indeed, it’s a two-hour drive from Cleveland to Columbus, but in regards to the two teams there, it’s a lot longer journey than that.
But the only way to close that gap and get there someday, is to take that first step, which is what the Browns will do this afternoon with their scrimmage at Ohio Stadium, the first big event of Jackson’s first training camp.
A lot of firsts there.
And somewhere, guys like Jim Houston, who have long memories, will be watching, hoping and waiting – no doubt with fire in his eyes.
