Sweetness_ The Enigmatic Life of Walter Payton - Jeff Pearlman [86]
A fast-talking, chain-smoking hard-bargainer, Finks had a confident strut that masked a reputation for being honest and fair. His arrival was greeted gleefully in Chicago, a city fatigued by chronic losing. The headlines spoke for themselves—FINKS: HE’S A REAL BEAR (Chicago Sun-Times); NEW PAPA BEAR (Chicago Tribune); THE BEARS BEAR DOWN (The Chicago Daily News). On his first day, Finks promised every returning employee a fair shake, and he was true to his word. Instead of firing Gibron and his staff midway through a miserable four-win season, he waited until after the final game.
In Gibron’s place, Finks hired Jack Pardee, a gritty Texan who had spent fifteen years as an NFL linebacker before coaching the Florida Blazers to the 1974 World Football League championship game. In the stoic, business-first Pardee, Finks brought Chicago a thirty-eight-year-old up-and-comer who looked to be the anti-Abe in every possible sense. “He has the temperament and disposition to be a successful coach in the NFL for years to come,” Finks crowed, “and is the type of man who can lead the Bears back to where they belong.”
“It was the first time in years that the Bears seemed to have a clue what they were doing,” said Pierson. “And then they took the next step and drafted Walter Payton.”
Because these were the Bears, nothing was as simple as it seemed.
Normally, when a rookie comes to terms late with an organization, he reports to training camp and begins the arduous process of catching up. Payton, however, didn’t have such an opportunity. On June 1, 1975, two days before Payton signed with the Bears, John McKay, USC’s legendary coach, selected him to be on the fifty-four-man College All-Star football squad that would play the world-champion Pittsburgh Steelers in an August 1 exhibition at, coincidentally, Soldier Field.
At the time, the NFL considered the annual game to be a vital outreach tool, and any man chosen to play was required to do so. As a result, Payton would miss three full weeks of Bears’ training camp to work with the All-Star team at Northwestern University.
On Wednesday, July 9, Payton arrived in Evanston, pulled his gold Datsun 280ZX up to the front of the swank Orrington Hotel and checked in. Though by now most everyone knew of his existence, there was still an element of mystique to small-school superstars. Among his fifty-three teammates were many of the biggest names in college football—the three men picked ahead of him in the draft (quarterback Steve Bartkowski, defensive tackle Randy White, and offensive guard Ken Huff), as well as marquee stars like USC quarterback Pat Haden, Ohio State defensive back Neal Colzie, and Penn State defensive lineman Mike Hartenstine (the Bears’ second-round selection). Two Jackson State peers, linebackers Robert Brazile and John Tate, also took part.
While lip service was paid to beating Pittsburgh, most of the All-Stars came to Illinois anxious to party. Dave Wasick, a defensive lineman from San Jose State, arrived at the Orrington one day after Payton. Strolling through the lobby, he was greeted by the sight of Dennis Harrah, the Miami offensive tackle, lugging three cases of Budweiser toward the elevator. There was Russ Francis, the tight end from Hawaii, serenading a gaggle of young women with his guitar. “Every night was all-out craziness,” Wasick said. “Randy White, Steve Bartkowski, Dennis Harrah, myself—we’d hit the town, stay out until three or four in the morning. One night we went to this bar, and these two enormous bouncers wouldn’t let us in. Well, both of the bouncers ended up being punched out cold. It was wild.”
The tone was set during the first official