Andrea Kremer summed it up best with one of the last things she said while moderating an hour-long roundtable with Joe Montana, Joe Namath, Dan Marino and Jim Kelly.
“You can take the boys out of Western Pennsylvania, but you can't take Western Pennsylvania out of the boys,” she said.
That was evident Saturday night in front of more than 1,000 people at the Wyndham Grand at Gridiron Gold — an event that celebrated the six Western Pennsylvania quarterbacks in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Montana (Monongahela), Namath (Beaver Falls), Marino (Oakland), Kelly (East Brady) and representatives of the late George Blanda (Youngwood) and Johnny Unitas (Mt. Washington) were honored at the event, which included a personal note from President Obama, as well as a who's who guest list including Jerry Rice, Ronnie Lott, Howard Schnellenberger, Marv Levy, Dwight Clark and Franco Harris.
“This is a once in a lifetime event,” Ellis Cannon said, who emceed the event that benefited Neighborhood Legal Services Association and the charities of the quarterbacks.
Of the 23 quarterbacks in the Hall of Fame from the modern era, six grew up within a 60-mile radius of Pittsburgh.
“A night like this reminds me that I am glad we won a couple Super Bowls,” said Art Rooney II, Steelers president and the event's honorary chairman. “If we didn't, we would've been remembered as the franchise that cut Johnny Unitas and didn't draft Dan Marino. Thank God we won a couple.”
The four living quarterbacks took part in a 45-minute conversation moderated by Kremer and recorded by NFL Films that will be made into an hour-long special.
Each quarterback had a chance to reflect on their career, with one of the highlights being a pass thrown from Montana to Rice. The two hooked up 446 times in their six years together in San Francisco.
Marino, who played at Central Catholic before going on to Pitt, grew up a Steelers fan. He had a chance to reflect on his greatest moment in his NFL career.
“Nothing against Mr. Rooney, but beating the Steelers to go to that Super Bowl,” Marino said. “Donnie Shell and Jack Lambert were on that team, and I grew up watching the Steelers and loving Franco and Terry and Mel Blount and Joe Greene and everybody else. To be a 23-year-old kid in that game and win that game was pretty special to me.”
Kelly also was a Steelers fan growing up in East Brady. Kelly played in four consecutive Super Bowls, but never was able to win one.
“You always dream as a little boy of wanting to play in the NFL but never even thought about or dreamt about being in the Pro Football Hall of Fame,” Kelly said. “The first time I walked into the Hall of Fame, I saw Merlin Olsen and Deacon Jones, Gayle Sayers, Bob Griese — and I can go on and on.”
Kelly talked about growing up admiring Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw on the field and Namath off it.
Kelly recalled a moment when he was 10 years old during a punt, pass and kick contest.
Kelly went up to Bradshaw and told him he was going to take his job.
Namath, who helped the Jets win Super Bowl III said: “It's just the hard work of the people in the community that made us successful.”
Mark Kaboly is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. Reach him at mkaboly@tribweb.com or via Twitter @MarkKaboly_Trib.
