About Bob Underwood

Digital Content Creator for the St. Louis Football Cardinals (1960-1987) and founder of the Big Red Zone.

Bob DeMarco: Tough, Opinionated, Outspoken

Posted on July 3, 2020 by Bob Underwood

Former St. Louis Post Dispatch columnist and Cards beat writer Jeff Meyers wrote this story a few years ago on Big Red center Bob DeMarco and wanted to share it here.

There was a brief moment when Bob DeMarco considered becoming a TV sports analyst after football. None other than legendary broadcaster Jack Buck was encouraging him to give it a shot.

DeMarco, a 2-time All-Pro center, was a natural for the broadcast booth: gregarious, intelligent, outspoken. But with only three TV networks and no cable channels in the early ‘70s, analyst job openings were rare, and DeMarco needed to feed his family of four in Creve Coeur, Mo.

*Bob DeMarco was an All-Pro center who played 9 seasons in St. Louis.*

So when he retired in 1976 after 15 NFL seasons, he took a job selling deflocculants, a chemical additive that prevents flocculation in liquids (look it up).

Continue reading →

Big Red Legends: Roy Green

Posted on June 30, 2020 by Bob Underwood

Posted by Bob Underwood

He was known as “Jet Stream” in St. Louis, but at Henderson State University they called Roy Green the “Green Machine.”

“Every now and then we’ll be talkin’ about the ol’ days and someone’ll bring up the Monticello game and how incredible Roy was,” Green’s college coach Ralph Carpenter said in a St. Louis Post Dispatch story back in 1981.

Carpenter was referring to the Green Machine’s performance against the University of Arkansas-Monticello in 1978. Green returned a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown, a punt 65 yards for a touchdown, and returned an interception 40 yards for a touchdown. He even blocked a field goal late in the game.

“There was nothin’ he couldn’t do. Nothin’,” Carpenter said.

Green was a NAIA All-American cornerback at Henderson State. He intercepted 9 passes his senior season and averaged over 13 yards on punt returns and almost 22 yards on kick returns.

Green was a speed burner, running the 40 yard dash in 4.3 seconds. The Cardinals drafted the Magnolia, Arkansas native in the fourth round in 1979 as a defensive back. He played in all 16 games his rookie season and was named the top return specialist by The Sporting News and Pro Football Weekly.

*Roy Green returned this kick 106 yards against the Dallas Cowboys in 1979.*

Continue reading →

Big Red Tough Guy: Dan Dierdorf

Posted on June 29, 2020 by Bob Underwood

Posted by Bob Underwood

One of the all-time great Big Red memories is when Hall of Fame safety Larry Wilson played a game with two broken hands against the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1965. Not only did Larry play with casts and layers of gauze on both hands, but he also intercepted a Bill Nelson pass during the game. It’s the stuff that legends are made of. And of course Larry Wilson is a legend.

But many people have forgotten that Wilson’s teammate, and fellow Hall of Famer, Dan Dierdorf once played with a broken jaw. In fact, he missed only two games after suffering the injury against the Minnesota Vikings in 1977.

*Dan Dierdorf played four games in 1977 wearing a modified face mask to help protect his broken jaw*.

Continue reading →

Dan Dierdorf Talks About the Late Bill Bidwill

Posted on June 27, 2020 by Bob Underwood

Bernie Miklasz of WXOS talks with Cardinals Hall of Fame Tackle Dan Dierdorf after the passing of Arizona Cardinals owner Bill Bidwill in 2019.

*Dan Dierdorf with Cardinals owner Bill Bidwill before Dan’s last game at Busch Stadium in 1983.*

https://soundcloud.com/101sports/dan-dierdorf-pro-football-hall-of-fame-on-the-life-and-legacy-of-bill-bidwill?fbclid=IwAR2sUMyFwINFWFOS2jY9ie_aFVsAT6gU6BBqZyBnPsrCd40WCIVAmz0dQC4

Why Dave Butz Left The Cardinals

Posted on June 23, 2020 by Bob Underwood

Desperate for a front-seven playmaker, the St. Louis Cardinals selected big Dave Butz with the fifth overall pick in the 1973 NFL Draft. The 6 foot 7, 290 pound Chicago area native was an All-American defensive tackle and Lombardi Finalist at Purdue University and would ultimately end up in the College Football Hall of Fame (2014).

*Dave Butz was the Cards 1st round pick in 1973 out of Purdue where he was an All-American.*

Big Red personnel director Abe Stuber told the St. Louis Post Dispatch in 1973 that Butz “was our highest rated defensive player. He has the greatest potential of any defensive lineman in the country.”

Continue reading →

O.J. Anderson Highlights – 1979

Video

Ottis “O.J.” Anderson set numerous NFL rookie rushing records in 1979 including most yards in a debut (193) and most yards in a season (1605). He was named NFC Player of the Year and NFL Rookie of the Year.

Sportsman’s Park (Busch I) Gallery

Gallery

Posted on June 16, 2020 by Bob Underwood

This gallery contains 19 photos.

The Big Red played in old Sportsman’s Park (Busch Stadium I) from 1960-1965.

Larry Wilson on NFL Today

Video

Former NFL defensive back Irv Cross interviews Cardinals Hall of Fame safety Larry Wilson on the NFL Today in 1982.

Remembering Bill Wilkerson

Posted on June 14, 2020 by Bob Underwood

St. Louis lost a broadcasting icon in 2017 when pioneering sportscaster Bill Wilkerson passed away at the age of 72.

Wilkerson’s career spanned over 4 decades and is most remembered for his work at KMOX radio where he got his start and made his name.

*Bill Wilkerson called Big Red games on KMOX Radio.*

Big Red fans remember Bill calling Cardinals games starting in 1973 and continuing until the team left in 1987. He also served as color commentator for the baseball Cardinals, St. Louis Blues, St. Louis Spirits basketball, and was the longtime play by play voice of the Missouri Tigers.

Continue reading →

Sibling Rivalry: How Bill Bidwill Landed the Cardinals

Posted on June 9, 2020 by Bob Underwood

After ten years of co-owning the St. Louis Football Cardinals, Charles “Stormy” Bidwill had had enough. Either he or his brother Bill had to go.

The Bidwill brothers took over the Cardinals after their mother had suddenly passed away in 1962. Violet Bidwill Wolfner was the first female owner in NFL history and she left most of her multi-million dollar estate, including the football team, to her sons. The brothers already held titles of President and Vice President, but Violet’s husband, Walter Wolfner, essentially controlled the team. After being pushed out after Violet’s death, Wolfner filed a lawsuit claiming the brothers were illegally adopted as babies. This shocked Stormy and Bill who had not known they were adopted until they heard about it in Probate Court.

Judges ultimately ruled against Wolfner, allowing the Bidwills to assume complete control of the Grid Birds in early 1963.