Ed Sherman’s nostalgic account of Elroy “Crazylegs” Hirsch’s life (Tribune, Jan. 29) made me recall how revered Hirsch was by a generation of Midwesterners impacted by the Great Depression, World War II and the Korean War. Many young men, like my dad, suspended their college education for military service and identified with Crazylegs, who left the University of Wisconsin to serve his country before starring again at Michigan. The men of his generation did more with less, despite life’s interruptions.
I first recall hearing of Crazylegs during tryouts for the St. Cajetan Warriors grade-school football team.
My dad took me to the sports store, where I pulled from the shelf massive, multi-layered shoulder pads and a fierce looking helmet with the full-grid facemask. My dad handed me lightweight, single-wing shoulder pads and a slight helmet with a modest plastic facemask.
As we walked to the cash register, he said, “Crazylegs ran faster than anyone else because he had the lightest equipment.”
Three years later, Crazylegs’ gear was handed down to my brother.
