Tuesday, August 10, 1999
Greats on hand to greet Browns
Hall of Famers back for return of Cleveland
The Associated Press
CANTON, Ohio — The best Dallas and Cleveland players at the Hall of Fame game left the field before the kickoff.
Five Cowboy Hall of Famers and eight Browns inductees met at midfield Monday night for a ceremonial coin toss.
How about this lineup? For Dallas: Tony Dorsett, Bob Lilly, Mel Renfro, Roger Staubach and Randy White. For Cleveland: Frank Gatski, Otto Graham, Lou Groza, Leroy Kelly, Dante Lavelli, Mike McCormack, Paul Warfield and Bill Willis.
The Hall of Famers were loose and jazzed up, like old pals meeting at a 25th high school reunion. Another Hall of Famer, San Francisco's Joe Perry, jokingly held the two sides apart.
“I'm very excited to be part of this,” said Kelly, who chatted with Dorsett before taking the field. “The people in Cleveland always support their team. They are wonderful.”
Some of today's players took a minute to pay their respects to the old timers.
Browns running back Terry Kirby, who wears Warfield's number 42, greeted the former receiver.
“I just wanted to come over and meet the man who had this number, maybe I better go take it off,” Kirby said.
Warfield shook Kirby's hand, patted him in the back and said, “No, no, you look just fine. Go out and get them.”
The Browns and Cowboys were tied 17-17 afterthree quarters.
Sports Stories
Bengals plan: Hit ground running
TRAINING CAMP INSIDER
BENGALS NOTEBOOK
REDS 4, PIRATES 2
Phillips says umpires may strike
REDS NOTEBOOK
Box, runs
Braves 5, Astros 3
