Past Our Prime

Babe Ruth is on the cover of the 3/18/74 of Sports Illustrated as SI did a 3-part series on the Bambino. He's been dead for over 75 years but did you know he has a granddaughter that is still very much alive? Linda Ruth Tosetti sits down to tell us tales of her iconic grandfather, arguably the most famous athlete in history. Linda, and her fact-checking husband, Andy, are working to keep the Babe'...

Gordie Howe's hockey career was so legendary it earned him the nickname, Mr. Hockey. After 25 seasons with the Red Wings he turned up in the WHA in Houston with his two sons, Mark & Marty, and won a championship and the MVP. Now, 50 years later, his good friend, Chick Kaiton, who broadcast games from Gordie's final season in Hartford in 1979 tells us how tough Gordie was, how you didn't go after h...

He was one of the first bad boys of tennis, but boy could he play. Sports Illustrated's Curry Kirkpatrick covered Jimmy Connors right when the young tennis star was breaking onto the scene and before his run at being #1 for 160 weeks in a row. Now, 50 years later, Kirkpatrick tells us about Jimmy's upbringing, his relationships with Ashe, Smith and McEnroe as well as Chris Evert... and his unbelie...

The Oregon Ducks and Center Gerald Willett were on the cover of Sports Illustrated February 25, 1974 after shocking the UCLA Bruins in Eugene, OR. But the story of them beating Wooden, Walton and the kids from Westwood pales in comparison to some of the events Willett has been through since then. From surviving a 32,000 airplane nosedive, a riot in Barcelona on the night the Dictator Francisco Fra...

Bob Ryan knows a thing or two about the Boston Celtics. The legendary Globe writer started covering the team in 1969 and was there for their run at banner number 12 in 1974. The insights and stories he has of Dave Cowens, Tommy Heinsohn and the guy on the cover of the 2/18/74 issue of Sports Illustrated, John Havlicek are both entertaining and informative. His knowledge is 2nd to none when it come...

In the February 11, 1974 issue of Sports Illustrated, the WFL was making a move on the NFL, and the draft was their target. One year later, a 25-year old Leigh Steinberg entered the sports world when his UC-Berkeley friend Steve Bartkowski was the #1 overall pick of the NFL Draft and asked Leigh to be his agent... and with that, the door was opened for Leigh's incredible career. A record 8 times h...

Two heavyweight titans Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier fight for the 2nd time in their trilogy, with Ali winning the rematch. Mark Kram, Sr. covered the fight for Sports Illustrated 50 years ago, but it's his son, Mark Kram, Jr. who wrote the book on Joe Frazier... literally. The author of Smokin' Joe: The Life of Joe Frazier joins us to discuss this great time in boxing history, what it meant when F...

Larry Farmer played for three seasons under John Wooden at UCLA winning 3 National Championships while losing just one time in 90 games! Truly one of the most successful players in the history of college basketball, Larry then became the first African-American Head Coach at UCLA at the young age of 30. Now, 50 years after Notre Dame ended the Bruins record 88-game winning streak at South Bend, Far...

50 years ago, Larry Csonka and the Dolphins were winning back-to-back Super Bowls and the Zonk was on the cover of the 1/21/74 SI after taking home the MVP. Larry joins us to talk about that team, how he narrowly escaped death... twice, and how an 8th grade principal changed his life. Then Mr. Infomercial Man himself, Joe Fowler tells an amazing story of how being a fan of the Atlanta Braves got h...

50 years ago, Dr. J was on the cover of SI while leading the Nets to an ABA title in his MVP season. Legendary NBA journalist Peter Vecsey covered that team and joins us to discuss the impact Julius Erving had on an entire league. Then we're joined by Dr. Bill Sanders, who talks about the late Bud Goode, his friend and mentor who helped change the game of football as a computer data analyst. See w...

In the premiere of Past Our Prime, two NFL vets take center stage in the sports world from 50 years ago. Ed White was one of the greatest guards in NFL history, blocking for the likes of Joe Kapp, Fran Tarkenton and Dan Fouts. On the cover of the January 7, 1974 issue of Sports Illustrated were the Vikings who had just beaten the Cowboys to advance to the Super Bowl. We'll talk with Ed about the Q...