A regular guy who ran wild.(Elroy 'Crazy Legs' Hirsch (1923-2004))

Pro Football Hall of Famer Elroy Hirsch died last week of natural causes at the age of 80. As Ron Smith writes in the SPORTING NEWS book Pro Football's Heroes of the Hall, Hirsch "walked like a duck but ran pass patterns like a gazelle" and was "a deep-threat receiver who terrorized defensive backs ... (and) helped put the word 'bomb' in the NFL dictionary."

Hirsch became such a celebrity with the Los Angeles Rams in the 1950s that he was chosen to play himself in the film Crazflegs, All-American and also played starring roles in Unchained and Zero Hour. In his home state, he'll forever be known as a Badger--even though he played only one season at Wisconsin. Hirsch returned to Madison and was athletic director from 1969-8Z He is remembered by current Wisconsin A.D. Pat Richter, a former Badgers All American and Washington Redskins standout and, like Hirsch, a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.

Icon. Idol. Role model. Hero. All of us grow up seeking people who fall into those categories. As a young boy in Madison, I was no different. It ...