Boston Sports Then and Now

Steve Grogan

We honor Steve Grogan as the Boston Sports Then and Now Athlete of the Month. The former Patriots quarterback left it all on the field during his 16 year career. Grogan was playing the “Patriots Way” before Bill Belichick introduced it in 2000.  He led by example and his teammates were always behind him.

Steve Grogan was drafted by Patriots coach Chuck Fairbanks in the fifth round of the 1975 draft out of Kansas State. He was one of the school’s all time passing and total offense leaders. Grogan not only beat you with his arm but he was exceptionally quick for a man standing at 6’4”.

The Patriots already had their franchise quarterback in place when he was drafted. Former Heisman Trophy winner, Jim Plunkett had been the Patriots starter for his first four years in the league. However, Coach Fairbanks was not afraid to make a move if a player was under-performing.  It didn’t matter who he was.

Midway through the 1975 season, Grogan was given the reigns of the Patriots offense.  He started the last seven games with only one victory to his credit. As a rookie, Grogan posted respectable numbers with 1976 yards with 11 touchdowns and 18 interceptions.

He also added 110 yards on the ground with three rushing scores.

This would just be a sneak preview for things to come from the lanky quarterback out of K-State.

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Vintage Athlete of the Month: Bill Russell

We honor Bill Russell as the Boston Sports Then and Now Athlete of the Month. In the dictionary next to the definition of champion, there should be a picture of Bill Russell.

Before he even entered the NBA, Russell experienced his share of collegiate basketball glory while playing for San Francisco State.  Russell was the defensive core of a team that won 55 games in a row.

Russell was a shot blocking machine during his college career. After batting away 13 shots against the NCAA basketball powerhouse UCLA, legendary coach John Wooden said of Russell, “He is the greatest defensive man I’ve ever seen.”

And defense does indeed win championships in basketball, as SF State won back to back NCAA titles in 1955 and 1956.

Due to his stellar collegiate career, Bill Russell was an easy choice for captain of the US Olympic Men’s Basketball team in 1956. His winning ways continued on the world’s biggest stage. The United States squad would go on to defeat the USSR, 89-55 to capture the gold medal.

Before the age of 22, Bill Russell experienced championship glory three times.

And he was far from done.

The 6’9” center was a top prospect in the 1956 draft. The only question was which NBA franchise would choose this natural born winner.

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Carlton Fisk

We honor Carlton Fisk as the Boston Sports Then and Now Athlete of the Month. The story of Carlton Fisk is of the local boy done good. Born in Vermont in 1947 and growing up in Charlestown, New Hampshire, he was a New Englander to the core. He played baseball for Charlestown High School and collegiately for the University of New Hampshire.

Fisk was chosen by the Boston Red Sox with the fourth overall pick in the 1967 draft.  He made his big league debut in 1969 appearing in just two games. Carlton Fisk wouldn’t play in the friendly confines of Fenway Park again until 1971. He appeared in just 14 games with the parent club that year.

The ’72 season is when “Pudge” Fisk made his splash in the big leagues. He was had a stellar campaign offensively and behind the plate for Boston. Fisk batted .293 with 22 homers, 61 RBI’s, and nine triples. His nine triples were good for tops in the American League along with Oakland’s Joe Rudi. Fisk is the last catcher to lead this statistical category.

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Reggie Lewis

We honor Reggie Lewis as the Boston Sports Then and Now Athlete of the Month. He was a budding star for the Boston Celtics from 1987-1993. He died tragically during the summer of ‘93 at the age of 27. The cause of death was cardiac arrest.

This would be Boston’s second tragedy over a 7 year span. Lenny Bias, the college superstar from Maryland, died from a drug overdose before he ever played one game in Celtics Green. Coincidentally, both players hailed from the same state.

Reggie Lewis was a high school star with the 50-0 Dunbar High School team. He then left his home state of Maryland to attend Northeastern University in Boston.  He played for the Huskies from 1983-1987 while averaging 22.2 points per game during his collegiate career. He was also team captain and graduated as the school’s all-time leading scorer. Fittingly on January 21, 1989, Lewis had his #35 retired never to be worn again by another Northeastern Husky.

Like Bias, Lewis was chosen by the Celtics in the first round, 22^nd overall.

Lewis was perceived as the local boy done well even though he was not born in Massachusetts.

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Dwight "Dewey" Evans

We honor Dwight Evans as the Boston Sports Then and Now Athlete of the Month. With the opening of the baseball season around the corner, the choice of “Dewey” Evans is fitting. He was a player who gave his all, all the time to the Boston Red Sox where he played from 1972 to 1990. He is one of the best players not in the Baseball Hall Of Fame.

Dwight Michael Evans made an immediate impact in his professional baseball career by winning the International League’s MVP in 1972. With AAA Louisville, Evans had 17 hrs, 95 RBI and hit .300.

Dewey was called up to the tail end of the ’72 season. On September 16^th, he pinch ran and was 0-1 at the plate. He played 18 games and decent numbers during his call up. In 57 plate appearances, Evans had 1 hr, 6 RBI and batted .263.

Dwight Evans called right field in Fenway Park his home. He was a defensive standout and offensively could hold his own.

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We honor Mike Eruzione as the Boston Sports Then and Now Athlete of the Month.   This February will mark the 30^th anniversary of the “Miracle On Ice” when the US hockey team stunned the powerful Soviets and went on to capture the gold.  Eruzione was team captain of that squad and scored “the goal heard around the world.”

Like US Olympic teammate, Jim Craig, Eruzione was also a Massachusetts native and played collegiate hockey at Boston University. Eruzione grew up in Winthrop, MA where he was captain of his high school hockey team. After graduation in 1972, he attended Berwick Academy for one year to polish his hockey skills before attending Boston University. Read the rest of this entry →