Remembering Luis Sharpe: A Life Beyond Football

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Former St. Louis Cardinals number one draft pick, Luis Sharpe, has died. He was 65.

The Big Red selected Sharpe with the 16th pick in the 1982 NFL draft. The 6-foot-5, 275-pounder was named to three consecutive Pro Bowls from 1987 to 1989 and played 13 seasons in the NFL, all with the Cardinals organization. He also played a season in the USFL with the Memphis Showboats.

Sharpe was born in Havana, Cuba, on June 16, 1960. He and his family fled Cuba for Detroit for a better life when he was six years old.

“We were following the American dream,” Sharpe said in a 1982 interview with the St. Louis Post Dispatch. “My father moved to Detroit and worked in an auto factory.”

At Southwestern High School in Detroit, Sharpe earned All-American honors in sports and academics. He was recruited by over 200 schools and chose UCLA, where he began on the defensive line but soon switched to offense. “It was the best thing that ever happened to me,” he said.

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Doug Marsh: From Father-Son Football Bond to the NFL

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Bo Marsh introduced his son, Doug, to the game of football when he was eight years old.

“I’d never throw it where he could catch it,” recalled Bo in a 1980 interview with the John Sonderreger of the St. Louis Post Dispatch. “I’d throw it high or low and he’d ask me if that’s the best I could throw. I’d ask him if that’s the best he could catch. I told him anybody can catch it when it’s on the numbers.”

“He’s a football fan—period,” Doug said of his father. “He never pushed me into the game; he just asked me if I wanted to play. You know, a father wanting to get closer to his son.”

The young Marsh would later become a high school All-American at Akron East High, playing both tight end and defensive end. He was recruited as a linebacker by Ohio State’s Woody Hayes, but Doug wanted to play offense.

Enter the University of Michigan. Marsh signed with the Wolverines, where he played tight end from 1976 to 1979. He was named first-team All-Big Ten and third-team All-American after leading the team in receiving in his senior season with 33 receptions for 612 yards.

Bo Marsh bought a motorhome after Doug enrolled in Michigan, and the family only missed five games over the course of four years.

“We’ve followed Doug all along,” Bo said. “We’ve always been sort of sports chasers anyway and we always took the kids with us.”

Doug’s numbers at Michigan caught the attention of the St. Louis Cardinals, who had been trying to fill a hole at tight end since the retirement of Hall of Famer Jackie Smith and the sudden death of J.V. Cain.

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The Legacy of Emmitt Thomas with the Cardinals

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On February 19, 1981, the St. Louis Cardinals hired Emmitt Thomas as the team’s wide receivers coach.

The NFL Hall of Famer played cornerback for 13 seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs (1966-78). He finished his career with a franchise-record 58 interceptions.

At the time, Thomas was the youngest member of the Big Red coaching staff and just the second black coach in the team’s history.

“We’ve been trying to encourage the situation (hiring black coaches) for years,” team owner Bill Bidwill told the St. Louis Post Dispatch. “We’ve made some offers to people over the years. If we can find qualified people to coach, people who are good teachers, we’re going to hire them.”

“If the individual is a damn good coach,” said Jim Hanifan, who recommended Thomas to Bidwill, “I don’t care if he’s orange or green, or black or white, I want him.”

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From Sharecropper to NFL Star: Tootie Robbins’ Journey

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It didn’t take long for James Elbert “Tootie” Robbins to impress Jim Hanifan and the rest of the Big Red coaching staff during his first training camp in 1982.

The Cardinals selected the Windsor, North Carolina native in the fourth round of the NFL draft and had hoped he could provide depth on an aging offensive line. Robbins had other ideas.

“He has played like a first-rounder from Day 1,” Hanifan told the St. Louis Post Dispatch.

The 6-foot-5, 270-pound rookie impressed so much in training camp that the Cardinals shifted future Hall of Famer Dan Dierdorf to center, clearing the way for Robbins to step in as the starting right tackle.

“I knew I could play,” Robbins said. “I just never knew I could become a starter as a rookie.”

“Playing professional football is a dream come true for me. When I got drafted, I told my mom, ‘My dream is coming true.’

The Cardinals started the season with a pair of rookie offensive tackles. First-round pick Luis Sharpe was the other one.

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Former Cardinals Running Back Jerry Latin Passes at 71

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Jerry Latin, who played running back for the St. Louis Football Cardinals from 1975-1978, passed away this morning at the age of 71.

One of the greatest football players to come out of Rockford, Illinois, Latin starred at Rockford East High School and played college ball at Northern Illinois University.

After an injury-plagued senior season in DeKalb, the Cardinals selected Latin with their eleventh round pick in the 1975 NFL Draft.

“I was the last pick by the Cardinals,” Latin said in a 2020 interview in the Rockford Register Star. “I look at a guy like Jim Germany. He was the second-round pick out of New Mexico State,” Latin said. “If I hadn’t gotten hurt, could I have been a second-round pick?”

“I just went there to see what it was all about,” he said of his first training camp. “Then I got on the field and I saw that I hit just as hard as they did. I ran just as fast. I was just as good.”

Latin backed up Pro Bowl running back Terry Metcalf during his stay in St. Louis. But, he got his chance to shine in the 1975 season finale against the Detroit Lions and made the most of it.

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Willard Harrell Inducted into Missouri Sports Hall of Fame

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Former St. Louis Cardinals running back and special teams star Willard Harrell was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame on Sunday at a ceremony in Springfield, Missouri.

Harrell was one of 22 inductees that included former Kansas City Royal Matt Damon, St. Louis Cardinal Matt Adams, and Mizzou Tiger Brock Olivo.

The Stockton, CA native was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in 1975 and played in the NFL for 10 years. Harrell scored a touchdown the first time he ever touched the ball when he raced 82 yards on a punt return in the Packers first exhibition game. In his second season, he led the team in rushing. After being released by Green Bay in 1978, Harrell had a tryout with the Cardinals where he eventually signed and played seven seasons.

According to the Missouri Hall of Fame enshrinement program, Harrell had one man to thank for becoming a St. Louis Cardinal.

“A few days later (after the tryout), they contacted my agent with an offer and I became a Cardinal,” Harrell said. “I found out later that Hanifan (former St. Louis head coach Jim Hanifan) was responsible for me becoming a Cardinal. He remembered me from my college days and always wanted me to play for him.”

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Why the Cardinals Traded Conrad Dobler

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On January 30, 1978, the St. Louis Cardinals traded Pro Bowl guard Conrad Dobler and wide receiver Ike Harris to the New Orleans Saints for guard Terry Stieve and defensive end Bob Pollard.

According to the January 31 edition of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Dobler’s teammates and Big Red coaches were in shock when they learned of the news.

“You’re kidding,” offensive line coach Jim Hanifan said after learning of the trade. “Well I’ll be a son-of-a-gun. All I can say is that’s show business. Conrad, well, Conrad is special to me. Conrad and I go into a deep personal thing—it breaks my heart.”

“My gut feeling is that I don’t understand,” quarterback Jim Hart said. “It doesn’t make sense.”

“They’re two of our finest players,” fullback Jim Otis said, “and you hate to see them go. I’m not too familiar with those people we’re getting, so it’s difficult for me to comment. Let’s put it this way: there are 11 people on the offense and that offense has been described as the best in football. Now, two of those people are gone and maybe there will be more.”

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Why the Cardinals Traded Ahmad Rashad

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On January 26, 1974, the St. Louis Football Cardinals traded second-year wide receiver Ahmad Rashad to the Buffalo Bills for quarterback Dennis Shaw.

The trade raised more than a few eyebrows around the league.

Cardinals WIde Receiver Ahmad Rashad in 1973

Rashad was a number one draft pick just two years prior and was named to the NFL All-Rookie team after hauling in 29 passes for 500 yards and three touchdowns.

But the Tacoma, WA native fell out of favor with coaches and management in 1973 and Rashad didn’t think it had anything to do with his play on the field.

The summer before training camp, Rashad changed his name to conform to his new Islamic faith and the former Oregon Duck All-American felt that people suddenly regarded him differently.

“I don’t know what to think,” Rashad said in an Associated Press interview in October 1973, “but I went from a starter one day to the bench the next and the whole thing coincided with my name change. The people in St. Louis booed me when I was introduced as Ahmad Rashad.”

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Flashback: Big Red Hire Don Coryell

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On January 18, 1973, Cardinals owner Bill Bidwill surprised everyone by announcing the hiring of Don Coryell as the new head coach of the St. Louis Football Cardinals.

The Cardinals were coming off consecutive 4-9-1 seasons under Bob Hollway, who had been fired after the last regular season game. Hollway was let go, in part due to his drab play calling and his inability to choose a starting quarterback. Bidwill admitted that he hired Coryell “to put the offense back in the Cardinals.”

The 48-year old had spent the last 12 seasons directing San Diego State University to a 104-19-2 record. The Aztecs averaged 45 points per game in 1969.

“I like to throw the ball,” Coryell said after the hire. “I’ve gone from ball-control philosophy to a wide-open style. I believe in attacking the defense. I don’t believe in waiting for other people to make mistakes.”

“I believe in the passing game. I’m not a coach who builds on defense. If you’re playing a team with more talent, the only way to win is by throwing the ball well. And I desperately want to win.”

Coryell claimed to have only seen the Cardinals play a few games, but that didn’t prevent him from commenting on former number-one quarterback Jim Hart.

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Former Big Red Lineman Herschel Turner passes at 82

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The St. Louis Football Cardinals lost another teammate this morning.

Herschel Turner, who played offensive guard and tackle, passed away at the age of 82.

The Cardinals selected 6-foot-3, 230-lb lineman in the second round of the 1964 NFL Draft out of the University of Kentucky, where he was an All-American offensive guard and tackle.

As a senior, he was named first-team All-Southeastern Conference and participated in the Blue-Gray Game and the Senior Bowl. He logged the most minutes played on UK’s 1962 squad, known as The Thin Thirty. Turner was named Sports Illustrated Lineman of the Week on November 10, 1963. He is a member of the inaugural UK Hall of Fame.

Turner played two seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals and was named the club’s Rookie of the Year in 1964 after starting five games on an injury-depleted offensive line. He received accolades from head coach Wally Lemm after his first start on November 22 against the Philadelphia Eagles.

“Herschel Turner, whom we had taken off the defensive unit and just starting working at offensive tackle last week, had a grade of well over 90. He is the best of our draft choices last year. He really wants to play.”

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