For someone who has never actually seen Mount Rushmore, I sure spend a lot of time debating Mount Rushmores for various sports teams and popular culture.
Picking a Mount Rushmore for the Steelers is especially difficult because there are so many worthy candidates for so few spots. I wimped out, to a degree, as I picked Mount Rushmores for players through the 1970s and players after the ’70s, as well as one for coaches and front-office people. I also picked an ultimate Steelers Mount Rushmore, four towering figures in an organization that produced an abundance of them and added a fun/miscellaneous Mount Rushmore. Even with all of these I agonized over some of the picks and who I had to leave off the lists.
Players Through the 1970s: DT Joe Greene, DT Ernie Stautner, RB Franco Harris, and LB Jack Lambert.
How could I leave Terry Bradshaw off the list? Good question, and the only answer I have is that I also had to leave Mike Webster, Mel Blount, John Stallworth, and Jack Ham, among others, off the list. Greene, the best player in franchise history, is a no-brainer. So is Stautner, the first player to have his number retired by the Steelers. Harris conjures images of “Franco’s Italian Army” and the “Immaculate Reception” but he also is the Steelers’ and Super Bowl’s most productive rusher. Lambert’s gap-toothed scowl is the picture of the Steelers in the 1970s when they muscled their way into the NFL’s elite franchises.
Players After the 1970s: WR Hines Ward, RB Jerome Bettis, S Troy Polamalu, and QB Ben Roethlisberger.
There are some cringe-worthy omissions, from Rod Woodson and Jason Gildon to Joey Porter and James Harrison but, again, there are only four spots. Ward ran away with all of the Steelers’ major receiving records and also blocked with such ferocity that his fingerprints are on NFL rules that protect defenseless players. Bettis is the Steelers’ second-leading rusher and one of their great all-time leaders. His punishing running style meshed perfectly with Pittsburgh’s blue-collar sensibilities. Polamalu became a Steelers icon in large part because you simply could not take your eyes off him—whether you were an opposing quarterback or a fan watching from the comfort of a couch. He and Ed Reed are the best safeties of their generation. The Steelers had a lot of good teams after the ’70s, but it took the drafting of Roethlisberger and his rapid rise for the Steelers to finally add one for the thumb. Roethlisberger is the biggest reason why the Steelers haven’t had a losing record since 2003 and played in three Super Bowls since 2005.
Non-Players: Art Rooney, Chuck Noll, Dan Rooney, and Bill Nunn.
Art Rooney might have been the patriarch of the Steelers but he carried himself with a common touch that still permeates the organization. The Steelers’ founder was beloved by his players and the city of Pittsburgh. Noll is the only coach to win four Super Bowls without losing in the big game. He changed the Steelers’ culture as soon as he arrived in Pittsburgh as a 38-year-old first-time head coach. Dan Rooney came into his own as an executive after Noll’s arrival and the two embraced the philosophy of building through the draft. He also emerged as one of driving forces behind policies, such as shared TV revenue, that allowed the NFL to thrive and become a billion-dollar industry. And the aptly named “Rooney Rule” has created more opportunities for minorities in coaching and the front office because of Dan Rooney. Nunn, a newspaperman turned scout, helped establish a Steelers pipeline to historically black colleges whose players were often overlooked. His work helped change the culture in the NFL and there should be a place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame for Nunn. It’s hard to leave Art Rooney Jr., the architect of the drafts that turned the Steelers into a dynasty, off this list and you could make a strong case for him.
“Mean” Joe Greene (75) runs with a fumble during a game against the Philadelphia Eagles in Pittsburgh, November 3, 1974. The Steelers defeated the Eagles 27-0 at Three Rivers Stadium. (AP Photo/NFL Photos)
Steelers’ Ultimate Mount Rushmore: Art Rooney, Joe Greene, Chuck Noll, and Dan Rooney.
Man, it’s hard to have only one player among this foursome considering all of the great ones the Steelers have had. But Greene is clearly the best player in franchise history and the other three are towering figures in the organization and the NFL in general.
Steelers’ Miscellaneous Mount Rushmore: The Terrible Towel, Frenchy Fuqua’s platform shoes and L.C. Greenwood’s gold cleats, Bill Cowher’s chin, and Brett Keisel’s beard.
Nothing better symbolizes the Steelers’ popularity beyond Western Pennsylvania than fans waving Terrible Towels at games away from Heinz Field. The 1970s Steelers were as colorful as they were talented. The preferred footwear by Fuqua and Greenwood were expressions of the former. Nothing said Pittsburgh more than Cowher’s chin and jutted jaw and Keisel’s beard took on a life of its own after he grew it out, inspiring Twitter accounts and an annual charity event that raises money for cancer research.