Former Steelers’ head coach Chuck Noll response to a question about Franco Harris’ 1984 contract holdout was “Franco who?” In light of the Penn State scandal and alumnae Harris’ comments on the ousted PSU head coach, whom he played under some four decades ago, the refrain around town is now “Franco, that’s who”. As in, whose comments resulted in the end of a relationship between a racino and him, and whose comments prompted the Mayor of Pittsburgh to try and remove him from the board of the Pittsburgh Promise (as of this writing, Harris is no longer the chair but remains on the board).
Inevitably, discussion is going to turn to what becomes of the large statue that greets visitors at Pittsburgh International Airport. It is the one right next to George Washington. Presumably the statue is property of the History Center, as a 2009 article noted that overzealous fans journeying to Tampa for Super Bowl 43 had damaged the statue’s facemask and “technicians from the [center]” were to repair it. “A similar statue stands at the entrance of the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum” according to a January 2009 article.
No doubt we will soon be treated to stories on whether the History Center or the Airport Authority, separately or jointly, are having discussions on whether to keep the statue at the concourse.
