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View Full Version : Report: Gene Upshaw dead at 63


GoReds
08-21-2008, 07:44 AM
Here's the link:

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/26326065/
Edskin
08-21-2008, 07:53 AM
Wow, sad.

Upshaw was a MAJOR figure in the NFL.... I know a lot of people did NOT like him or the way he represented the union. Sports Illustrated did a nice piece on him several months ago. Bottom line, Upshaw oversaw some huge gains for the players over the years.

Also a sad day for Raiders fan.....Upshaw was a key component of those teams in the 70's.

RIP
UKFlounder
08-21-2008, 07:54 AM
Wow.

How sad
RedsBaron
08-21-2008, 08:32 AM
I'm sorry to learn of Upshaw's death. I was a big Raiders fan in the 1970s and I have fond memories of how Upshaw and Art Shell usually dominated on the left side of the Raiders offensive line.
cumberlandreds
08-21-2008, 08:49 AM
I'm sorry to hear of this. He was a great offensive lineman in his day. He was part of some really great Oakland Raider teams of the 70's.
I'm sure he did a lot good things as the union head but I always thought he was a little too close to the NFL chiefs to be really effective.
Sea Ray
08-21-2008, 09:54 AM
I didn't know he had pancreatic cancer. Was that common knowledge?
Danny Serafini
08-21-2008, 10:21 AM
He didn't know until this past Sunday.
Sea Ray
08-21-2008, 10:43 AM
He didn't know until this past Sunday.

You're telling me he was just diagnosed 4 days ago? :eek:
Danny Serafini
08-21-2008, 11:00 AM
Yep. Rough way to go there.
Highlifeman21
08-21-2008, 11:28 AM
Wore #63, left us @ 63.

RIP Gene.
Roy Tucker
08-21-2008, 11:32 AM
RIP Gene.

My dad was diagnosed with liver cancer and died 3 days later. It happens.

Evidently being a pro football player doesn't lend itself to longevity.
Unassisted
08-21-2008, 12:22 PM
That's too bad. Gene had a great career as a player.

Hopefully the NFLPA can move on and find a replacement who will be more sympathetic to the retired players. Gene never seemed to grasp why more of that TV money that's lavished on today's players should have been shared with the players of the past who made the NFL the sport it is today.
HalMorrisRules
08-21-2008, 03:46 PM
I have been a Raiders fan since I was 10 years old and they beat the Vikings in the Super Bowl. Gene Upshaw and the rest of the Raiders got a huge monkey off of their backs in that game and he was a huge part of their successes in that decade. There is a void in Raider Nation today, particularly on the left side. RIP #63.
Strikes Out Looking
08-21-2008, 04:27 PM
In the early 90's, I used to see him at the gym by my office. He was a very nice man, my condolences go to his family.

As someone whose had a family member go through pancreatic cancer, it may have been a blessing in disguise that he didn't have to go through the treatments from it--however, I'm sure he and his family would have enjoyed having more time together.
MasonBuzz3
08-21-2008, 04:44 PM
Evidently being a pro football player doesn't lend itself to longevity.

probably the opposite. I have met Gene a few times, such a nice man...extremely sorry to hear this news
bucksfan2
08-22-2008, 08:38 AM
I always feel mixed about the publicity that a sports figure gets when the pass on. Not that its right or wrong but there have been very influental people that pass one every day who don't get a mention besides the local paper.

On to Upshaw. He did one heck of a job with the NFL. Him and Tagliabue not only kept labor peace but structured the NFL up for success across the board. They turned the NFL into the most watched sport in America today. It will be up to Upshaw's successor and Goddell to continue the labor peace and salary cap.