What happens when you have a fun loving spirit like Nose Tackle Jim Burt playing and having friends on both teams? Well he enjoys himself is the short answer as we prepare you for this shirt tale of football fun from 1989.
Cat Call
Jim Burt was Big and Tough, but was also a Ton of Fun.
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The Cats Meow
There have been some real characters throughout football history that have done some really crazy things. The story we share today that I found in the very entertaining book, Football Great Records, Wild Happenings, Odd Facts, Amazing Moments and Other Cool Stuff, by Ron Martirano , really is the cat’s meow.
Football players are just like others in the workforce in that if they like the people they work with…then sometimes they like to have a bit of fun with them in jest. Jim Burt was a defensive lineman that in 1989 moved out to the West Coast to play with the San Francisco 49ers. The nose guard had previously spent the earlier portion of his career on the New York Football Giants. Jim in fact was on the Giants team that won Super Bowl XXI.
On the Niners the men around him really looked up to this champion not only for strong play and plugging up the middle of an offense, but for his wisdom and sound game-day advice. Lo and behold during the 1989 season San Francisco would get to face off against Burt’s old team the Giants.
Looking for an upper hand other members of the Niners' defensive front seven asked the veteran Burt for any advantages they could gain against the Giants' offensive linemen. Burt told them that one of the G-men big boys was deathly afraid of cats, even the sound of them. The 49ers' defensive front was ready on game day. Early on they lined up and made meowing sounds all over the D-line in an effort to distract the New York big men. As the game wore on it seemed to have little effect, so the cat calls, meows, and purring became louder and more demonstrative.
The Giants looked at each other bewildered as to why their opponents were acting in this way, but none of them were afraid and they were not distracted from doing their jobs. It seems that Burt made up the story and had a big old belly-aching laugh about it. He didn’t hurt or help either side in the matter as he showed good jolly loyalty to both and made the game fun and memorable. Oh, and by the way besides winning Super Bowl XXI with New York.. a few years later Burt and the 49ers won Super Bowl XXIV.
Credits
The banner photo is of Football signed by Steve Spurrier and 35 others from a 49ers team. The ball also sports the 49ers logo on a white quarter of the football.
A Very Special thanks to information obtained from the book, Football Great Records, Wild Happenings, Odd Facts, Amazing Moments and Other Cool Stuff, by Ron Martirano