Home >  Sports >  Steelers

Sunday, December 17, 2000

They are strikingly similar, Franco and The Bus. Neither needs a last name, not in this town. One is the greatest running back in Steelers history and is in the Hall of Fame. The other is the second-best back in team history and will be in the Hall of Fame. They are terrific people. Each is always there for the community. Each makes Pittsburgh proud.

Let's just hope there's one difference between Franco Harris and Jerome Bettis.

"I want to retire a Pittsburgh Steeler," Bettis said yesterday.

It didn't happen that way for Harris. In one of the franchise's darkest moments, the Steelers cut him before the 1984 season after a contract holdout. He retired a Seattle Seahawk.

Wouldn't it be just as painful to see Bettis retire a Chicago Bear? Or a New York Giant? Or a ...

It could happen. Bettis played his final game in the late, great Three Rivers Stadium yesterday, rolling for 104 yards in a 24-3 victory against the pathetic Washington Redskins. It also might have been his final game in Pittsburgh. He's a free agent at the end of the season. He and the Steelers have talked about a new contract but haven't been able to do a deal.

"Hey, they definitely should re-sign him," Harris said.

Harris was back for the stadium's closing ceremonies, back to walk the home sideline one final time, back to revel in the love that Pittsburgh holds for its Super Bowl heroes, back for a silly, yet wonderful re-enactment of the Immaculate Reception.

Harris also was back to check out The Bus.

"He runs so hard and with so much enthusiasm. You can tell it's infectious with his team," Harris said.

It certainly was against the quitters from Washington. It was fun to watch Bettis dance after his long runs. It was fun to see him jawing with Redskins linebacker LaVar Arrington. "I just told LaVar, 'You might be from here, but this is still my house.' "

It was fun to see him go over 100 yards on the Steelers' final possession, then jog off the field to the roar of the crowd and leap into Bill Cowher's arms.

Bettis' big day gave him 1,290 yards for the season with one game remaining. He has three of the four best single-season totals in Steelers history. He -- not Barry Foster -- would have the team record if Cowher hadn't kept him out of the final game in 1997 to get him ready for the playoffs.

Bettis said he was inspired by the crowd. "The atmosphere was incredible." He was inspired by the return of so many great Steelers players. "It makes you realize when you put on this jersey, you're not just representing yourself, but every guy who played here and gave it up on that field." He was inspired by a pre-game chat with Harris. "I just told him to have fun and do his thing," Franco said. "He must have listened to me. He sure had fun today."

Who knows? Maybe he was inspired by the thought this was his final game here.

"I sure hope not," Bettis said. "I want to do everything I possibly can to stay here."

How reasonable Bettis is will determine if he gets a new deal. If he insists on being among the top two or three highest-paid backs, the Steelers probably will pass. He's going to be 29. Even Hall of Famers can lose it quickly. Look at Dermontti Dawson.

The other side is Bettis has shown no signs of slowing. He's missed only three games in eight seasons. The Steelers have no one to replace him. Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala could be a big-league back, but he can't stay healthy. There will be pressure on Dan Rooney to keep Bettis, especially with the team moving into a new stadium.

Of course, there was pressure on Rooney with Harris, and you know how that turned out.

Neither Harris nor Bettis wanted to think about that after this feel-good win. They were loving the moment, the pageantry, especially the re-creation of the Immaculate Reception.

It started with Terry Bradshaw throwing a football on the Fox set. Suddenly, Frenchy Fuqua was on the field, deflecting the pass to Harris, who caught it out of the air and sprinted down the left sideline. Talk about a memory.

Somehow, it seemed appropriate that Bettis was waiting for Harris in the end zone, that Harris handed him the ball after they embraced.

Bettis has admirably carried the torch that Harris lugged so well for so many years.

It would be a real shame if Bettis doesn't get to carry it in that new palace next door.

Ron Cook can be reached at`rcook@post-gazette.com