(Story courtesy of Colorado College)
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Colorado College lost another one of its Hall of Fame legends on Tuesday morning when NFL Films president Steve Sabol '65 passed away after an 18-month battle with brain cancer. He was 69.
A former All-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference fullback for the
Tigers, Sabol was one of the driving forces behind NFL Films
– which has allowed fans to see a different side of football
for the last half century. Known for his sense of humor and knack
for creativity, particularly in the area of self promotion during
his undergraduate days, he was inducted into the CC Athletics Hall
of Fame as a member of its seventh class in 2011.
Sabol is survived by his wife, Penny, his son Casey, his parents
Audrey and Ed (who is 96) and his sister Blair. His father
started NFL Films in 1962 after winning rights to the
league's championship game, when he put his son to work as a
cameraman.
Father and son received the Lifetime Achievement Emmy from the
National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in 2003 and,
according to the NFL, Steve Sabol won more than 40 Emmys awards and
oversaw 107 Emmys for NFL Films. Under his leadership, which began
in 1985, the company pioneered video techniques such as super
slow-motion, wireless microphones on players and dramatic music
added to replay highlights.
"Steve was the creative genius behind NFL Films' remarkable work,"
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said Tuesday in an email to NFL
personnel. "Steve's passion for football was matched only by his
talent and energy. He was a major contributor to the success of the
NFL, a man who changed the way we looked at football and sports,
and a great friend. His legacy is assured.
"Steve was an incredible visionary. He spent 50 years at the NFL and changed the way we see pro football. So when you're watching the games this week, it's worth remembering just how much Steve contributed to the way we think, see, and love our game."
Shortly after his career at Colorado College, in November 1965,
Sabol was featured in a full-length Sports Illustrated
article entitled "The Fearless Trot from Possum Trot." It stemmed
from a nickname he invented for himself during his playing days,
based on a fictional hometown in Mississippi – just another
spoof for which the Philadelphia, Pa., native achieved notoriety at
an early age. He is best remembered at CC, however, as "Sudden
Death" Sabol.
Sabol confirmed last year, shortly before he introduced his dad at
the Hall of Fame enshrinement ceremony, that he was suffering from
brain cancer. His family has requested any donations be sent to the
Jefferson Foundation for Brain Tumor Research, c/o Lindsey Walker,
925 Chestnut Street, Suite 110, Philadelphia, PA 19107.
