April 2008
Rocky Bleier at DRT
Like children going to a Hana Montana concert, the DRT was all abuzz about Rocky Bleier’s Tuesday appearance at DRT. For those of you too young to remember, Rocky was a war hero in Vietnam and a running back for the Steelers with four superbowl rings. Rocky and Franco Harris are considers one of the most successful running back pairs of all time.
What makes Rocky’s story so interesting is how his early life evolved. After graduation from Notre Dame he played 1 season with the Steelers before being drafted to the Army. In Vietnam he won several medals include the Silver Star and Purple Heart for very serious injuries he sustained in combat. His doctors never thought he would play football again.
After leaving the Army he re-joined the Steelers, but never really had the playing time he wanted. Depressed he quit the Steelers but re-joined after a friend on the team convinced him to return. When Franco Harris became injured and the backup to Franco became injured, Rocky got play time. Yet to his surprise when Franco returned Rocky was not sidelined but became a starting back. From this point on Rocky’s career flourished with the Steelers.
His discussion at DRT focused on the idea of HOPE. Given all the events of his early life and the difficulty he had as a 5′9″ running back on an NFL team, it is easy to see how one can become discouraged. Much of Rocky’s point is that we ourselves choose to succeed or fail in life. Yes life can be hard and many things that are outside your control can create major barriers, but it is how we respond to those barriers that matters the most. Hope is a powerful emotion that helps you overcome those barriers.
For Rocky his hope became his reality. He wanted to be a hero…and he was! He inspired millions through his play on the field and how he overcame the extreme difficulties of his was injuries. In many ways Rocky is an inspiration. Yes he had doubts, yes he was told by “experts” he could not play football, yes he had major physical injuries…and yes he was able to achieve great success.
We all face major barriers in our life. How we respond to them determine who we are and what we become. Hope for the future, for one’s life and for one’s destiny can and is the cornerstone of how one can achieve anything, regardless of the circumstance.
Rocky Bleier to speak at DRT
Rocky Bleier is an NFL Legend and was the starting running back (side-by-side with Franco Harris) for The Pittsburg Steelers when they won 4 Superbowls in the 1970s. He currently possesses Championship rings from Superbowls IX, X, XIII, and XIV.
Rocky was known as the catalyst and Team Leader for what is arguably the greatest football team of the 20th century.
His life story was made into a movie, called “Fighting Back”, starring the late Robert Urich, and he is the author of a great book, by that same name.
What has made Mr. Bleier’s life so fascinating is that after he was drafted as an All-American out of Notre Dame, he was then drafted by Uncle Sam and had to go on the front lines in the war in Vietnam in the late 1960s.
He was badly injured TWICE on the battlefield and was told that he would never be healthy enough to be an athlete, and that his athletic career was OVER. Incidentally he was also awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze star.
Even though he is VERY small by NFL standards at 5′ 9″, and even though he had debilitating injuries; he decided that he would fight his way back to being a starter on an NFL Team; and become a Champion (which took 3 1/2 long, grueling years to make the starting lineup). Then he decided that he would spend the rest of his life inspiring people to fight the odds in their own lives, which he has done for the past 25 years.
