The whole hospital was humming. Johnny Unitas and Tom Matte
were both in the hospital and our friends were visiting. All of our friends
brought a case of beer with them. They wanted us to be able to have a couple of
drinks when they visited. By the end of the day we had eight cases of beer
against the wall! We actually had a good time in that hospital… but we were
both happy to get out of there.
John and I had a lot of good times but I will always admire
him. He was the epitome of professionalism. He always had a game plan. He had a
great arm and he was always thinking. He practiced intensely. He’s the reason I
was in the league for 12 years. He helped me understand what the defenses were
and how to read them like he read them. He told me that if I could read the
defense the same way he could, then he could always anticipate where I’d be on
each and every play. He was right. We had a great rapport with each other.He
said he knew where I would be every play and he wanted me in his back field,
and his back field is where I was. John was a true leader on the field. When we
got into a huddle, there wasn’t a peep. We waited silently because when John
spoke, we all listened. We were incredibly successful all the years we played.
It’s because of my admiration as well as what Johnny Unitas
means to football that we decided to release his Keepr collectible first. He
really is a Keepr Legend. His Keepr card will have his hall of fame speech, his
statistics, different head shots, different posing shots, his two minute
offense, and his interviews. We dug into the NFL vaults to get footage of
Johnny Unitas that people haven’t seen in 40 years.
Johnny Unitas’ legacy will live on and what he’s done will
never be forgotten. I’m excited to give a Johnny Unitas Keepr to my grandson so
I can show him why Johnny Unitas is a legend.
We are in the process of putting Johnny's Story on the Silver Screen..."Unitas We Stand" Please check out our website and spread the word.
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Johnny Unitas & Tom Mattie were my hero's as a kid growing up playing football & lacrosse at the Dundalk YMCA.
ReplyDeleteTom Mattie spoke at a retirement dinner at the Sparrows Point Country Club attended by my father Buddy. I still have the signed autograph from Tom Mattie from that dinner. I was #41 in football & lacrosse when I could choose my number or when it was available.
Mr. Mattie, I see you are wearing your "Ohio State" helmet in the above photo! I also remember your remarkable game vs. the Packers in the 1965 playoffs & how you destroyed the Cowboys in the 1965 Playoff Bowl. God bless you Tom Mattie for the memories!
Jimmy Perouty
Ihave vivid memories of Tom Matte pushing a 2 man sled, being interviewed and stating if he did not do this he would not be ready for the season. The other memory is an interview in Memorial Stadium with Lenny Moore, Tom stated people are calling Dallas Americas' team, Tom said that was BULLSH#t,every place we go EVERYONE KNOWS' US, i'll never forget it, would like to find a copy of that interview. Thanks for all the memories Tom Matte,Regards, Bob Stinson.
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