Yelberton Abraham Tittle.
Yeah, and I’ve been making fun of Claude Crabb and Fair Hooker.
But I come actually to praise…a book.
Giants and Heroes is a book about YA Tittle by his daughter, Dianne DeLaet, who is a professional harpist and Greek history scholar. Yeah, just what you’d expect from a football player’s family. But that is what makes the book fascinating—she compared her father to the Greek heroes Sappho and Pindar, and Yat replied that the only Sappho he knew was a linebacker for the Packers and Pindar was a good defensive lineman for the Bears.
Yat also commented that perhaps his daughter was actually swapped with some philosopher’s child at the hospital. Nice move, Dad.
Dianne is not a football fan. But she knew from her early years that she was fascinated by the ancient Greeks, and that her aging father, “The Bald Eagle”, was similar to the Greek heroes and gods. And it is a fascinating read.
The book chronicles the 1963 season, and especially the ’63 championship game versus the Chicago Bears, played in the bitter cold of Wrigley Field. With swirling winds and hostile fans, YA was crippled by an accidental hit to his left knee, tearing ligaments. When their rookie QB failed to move the ball, YA returned, but with no mobility and throwing off his back foot, he was intercepted five times. Here is Dianne’s account of the lethal hit…
The spell of the last three years was broken. It was hard to believe it was over. Slowly, the game came back, piece by piece, like a child’s puzzle. Yelberton Abraham Tittle lay there remembering himself and listening to the scream of the crowd. At first it was a note barely heard, then a note sustained, which built to an inhuman pitch. A raw sound, the sound of thousands hoarse with joy.
As one of many spectators in the stands that day, I remember a human bullfight. My father considers it the worst game of his life, and I consider it his best.
(Meanwhile, I look at this 1961 card and wonder how many thousand copies of this card have “49ers” scratched out and “GIANTS” clumsily written in…)
Check out this highlight video of the 1963 NFL Championship game:
