American football fullback who played in the National Football League with the Pittsburgh Steelers (1972-1983), he was one of the best running backs ever to play in the NFL. He scored the most famous touchdown in football history at the 1972 Superbowl playoff game between the Steelers and the Oakland Raiders. Named Most Valuable Player in 1972, his stellar career landed him a place in the Football Hall of Fame in 1990.
Harris was the third of nine children born to Cadillac and Gina Harris. “Cad” was a black army medic stationed in Lucca, Italy during World War II where he fell in love and married a local woman who, along with other inhabitants, revered American soldiers of all creeds, colors, shapes and sizes. “So many of us were helped by Americans. They gave us food, they helped us to live,” she said. If her interracial marriage presented problems once the couple arrived in America when the war ended, Gina Harris was completely unaware of them. “Nobody ever saw me. Nine children – who ever went out of the house?”
Settling in Mount Holly, New Jersey, Cad, now retired from the army, supervised the food service at nearby Fort Dix army hospital.
Harris was a high school all-American in Mount Holly. In his senior year, he was recruited by Pennsylvania State University, where he graduated with a degree in hotel and food service. Drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1972, he proved himself invaluable by
the end of that year. He made his first headlines breaking an NFL record that was established the previous year by Larry Csonka, by rushing 34 times for 158 yards and, secondly, by making what became known as the “Immaculate Reception,” leading to the most famous touchdown in football history. In the 1972 Superbowl playoff game between Pittsburgh and the Oakland Raiders, Pittsburgh was losing with a few seconds remaining. A pass bounced off two other players into Harris’ hands, who ran the length of the field for the winning score. Voted the Most Valuable Player, Harris went on to play on four Superbowl winning teams.
After retiring from pro football, Harris put his college degree to use and purchased Parks Sausages in 1996, saving it from bankruptcy. He is also the owner of The Super Bakery, the top supplier of baked goods served in high schools across America.
Link to Wikipedia biography