Randall Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 MINNEAPOLIS -- Max McGee, the unexpected hero of the first Super Bowl and a longtime challenge for Hall of Fame coach Vince Lombardi, died Saturday after falling from the roof of his home, police confirmed. He was 75. Police were called to the former Green Bay receiver's Deephaven home around 5:20 p.m., Sgt. Chris Whiteside said. Efforts to resuscitate McGee were unsuccessful. McGee was blowing leaves off the roof when he fell, according to news reports. "I just lost my best friend," former teammate Paul Hornung told the St. Paul Pioneer Press. "[His wife] Denise was away from the house. She'd warned him not to get up there. He shouldn't have been up there. He knew better than that." Inserted into Packers' lineup when Boyd Dowler was sidelined by a shoulder injury, McGee went on to catch the first touchdown pass in Super Bowl history in Green Bay's 35-10 victory over Kansas City in January 1967. Still hung over from a night on the town, McGee caught seven passes for 138 yards and two TDs. "Now he'll be the answer to one of the great trivia questions: Who scored the first touchdown in Super Bowl history?" Hornung said. "Vince knew he could count on him. ... He was a great athlete. He could do anything with his hands." Though an admirer of Lombardi, McGee time and again pushed the tough-as-nails coach to the breaking point. McGee -- remembered for saying: "When it's third-and-10, you can take the milk drinkers and I'll take the whiskey drinkers every time." -- put Lombardi to the ultimate test prior to the first Super Bowl. McGee had caught only four passes for 91 yards during the 1966 regular season and, not expecting to play against the Chiefs, violated the team's curfew and spent the night before the game partying. Reportedly, the next morning he told Dowler: "I hope you don't get hurt. I'm not in very good shape." Dowler went down with a separated shoulder on the Packers' second drive, and McGee had to borrow a helmet because he left his in the locker room. A few plays later, McGee made a one-handed reception of a pass from Bart Starr and ran 37 yards to score. "He had a delightful sense of humor and had a knack for coming up with big plays when you least expected it to happen," Packers historian Lee Remmel said. "He had a great sense of timing." Remmel said McGee once teased Lombardi when the coach showed the team a football on their first meeting and said, "Gentlemen, this is a football." "McGee said, 'Not so fast, not so fast,' " Remmel said. "That gives you an index to the kind of humor that he served up regularly." McGee was a running back at Tulane and the nation's top kick returner in 1953. Selected by the Packers in the fifth round of the 1954 draft, McGee spent two years in the Air Force as a pilot following his rookie year before returning in 1957 to play 11 more seasons. He finished his career with 345 receptions for 6,346 yards -- an 18.4-yard average -- and scored 51 touchdowns and 306 points. After retiring from football, he became a major partner in developing the popular Chi-Chi's chain of Mexican restaurants. In 1979, he became an announcer for the Packer Radio Network with Jim Irwin until retiring in 1998. McGee and wife Denise founded the Max McGee National Research Center for Juvenile Diabetes at the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin in Milwaukee in 1999. According to the center's Web site, his brother fought diabetes in his lifetime, and Max and Denise's youngest son, Dallas, lives with the disease. McGee is survived by his wife, four children and several grandchildren. Funeral arrangements were pending. Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Wolf Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 What a shame. Condolences to the family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nuke'em ttg Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 funny guy...............good read, i knew nothing about the guy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gasface Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 (edited) shows ya how well the nfl treats its retirees that a 75yo has to climb on his own roof to blow off leaves Edited October 21, 2007 by gasface Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted October 21, 2007 Author Share Posted October 21, 2007 shows ya how well the nfl treats its retirees that a 75yo has to climb on his own roof to blow off leaves He probably wanted to. He could have hired a kid to clean up his leaves too, so I doubt it was money related. A lot of older guys want to do something around the house. He and Hornung used to sneak out from curfew often to go drinking. In the SB he wasn't supposed to play but when he had to had a great game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Holy Roller Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 He probably wanted to. He could have hired a kid to clean up his leaves too, so I doubt it was money related. A lot of older guys want to do something around the house] He and Hornung used to sneak out from curfew often to go drinking. In the SB he wasn't supposed to play but when he had to had a great game. As tragic as his death is he died doing what HE wanted to do. The ultimate way to go. Thanks for the memories Max. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Last Plane Out Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 Max in his last moments Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 Max in his last moments That was a pretty lame thing to post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loaf Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 eerie. my Uncle died after falling off his roof. My Aunt left and warned him not to get up there while she was away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irish Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 Max in his last moments Yeah that was pretty much poor timing/usage on that one. Go back to square one and give 'er another go, Champ. eerie. my Uncle died after falling off his roof. My Aunt left and warned him not to get up there while she was away. Yeah that's definitely a goose bumps moment for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulOttCarruth Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 I remember watching the Packer games growing up. Every Sunday we'd turn down the volume on the TV and turn on the radio to hear McGee's broadcast w/ Jim Irwin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted October 21, 2007 Author Share Posted October 21, 2007 I remember watching the Packer games growing up. Every Sunday we'd turn down the volume on the TV and turn on the radio to hear McGee's broadcast w/ Jim Irwin. I can still hear their voices. Little known fact- Max McGee, the famous Green Bay Packer, is most remembered for Super Bowl I where he scored the first touchdown in Super Bowl history. He played in two Pro Bowls and on five World Championship teams. He is also known for his color commentary on the Green Bay Packers Radio Network. But Max would prefer to be known for his contribution to finding a cure for juvenile diabetes and providing a better quality of life. He started The Maxi Fund after his youngest son, Dallas, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of two. The Max McGee Research Center is associated with Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. Together they are committed to establishing an internationally recognized center for diabetes research. The Maxi Fund will provide the means to establish and sustain a state of the art research center dedicated to helping children with diabetes. There are many different areas of diabetes research; however, the main focus of this research center will be to find why and how type 1 diabetes occurs. The main tools used will be functional genetics combined with genetic mapping to identify potential molecular pathway for therapeutic intervention. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaxfactor Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 Max in his last moments Man, that's just f*ked up dude. Sad day indeed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chavez Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 shows ya how well the nfl treats its retirees that a 75yo has to climb on his own roof to blow off leaves Max founded the Chi-Chis chain and sold out for massive amounts of dollars. Of the numerous ex-NFL players who had health and money issues, McGee wasn't one of 'em. The world is a slightly less colorful place today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pope Flick Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 to bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scooby Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 I can still hear their voices. Little known fact- Max McGee, the famous Green Bay Packer, is most remembered for Super Bowl I where he scored the first touchdown in Super Bowl history. He played in two Pro Bowls and on five World Championship teams. He is also known for his color commentary on the Green Bay Packers Radio Network. But Max would prefer to be known for his contribution to finding a cure for juvenile diabetes and providing a better quality of life. He started The Maxi Fund after his youngest son, Dallas, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of two. The Max McGee Research Center is associated with Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. Together they are committed to establishing an internationally recognized center for diabetes research. The Maxi Fund will provide the means to establish and sustain a state of the art research center dedicated to helping children with diabetes. There are many different areas of diabetes research; however, the main focus of this research center will be to find why and how type 1 diabetes occurs. The main tools used will be functional genetics combined with genetic mapping to identify potential molecular pathway for therapeutic intervention. You would think with all the money players are paid now, that there would be more "Max McGee's" in the league. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikesVikes Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 McGee did alot in football and beyond. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chester Posted October 22, 2007 Share Posted October 22, 2007 I remember watching the Packer games growing up. Every Sunday we'd turn down the volume on the TV and turn on the radio to hear McGee's broadcast w/ Jim Irwin. My Dad did the same thing. When I moved to Eau Claire, I started hanging out in the bar that I now work at. They turned down all the tvs and had 4 or 5 boom boxes around the bar playing Max and Jim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piratesownninjas Posted October 22, 2007 Share Posted October 22, 2007 Max in his last moments Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hat Trick Posted October 22, 2007 Share Posted October 22, 2007 RIP max Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted October 23, 2007 Author Share Posted October 23, 2007 Celebration of Max McGee's life By Greg A. Bedard Tuesday, Oct 23 2007, 12:55 PM Services for former Packers great Max McGee, who died Saturday at age 75, will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday at Grace Church in Eden Prairie, Minn. The church seats more than 4,000 for those interested in attending the "Celebration of Life" for McGee. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the Max McGee National Research Center for Juvenile Diabetes c/o Children's Hospital Foundation, M.S. 3050, P.O. Box 1997, Milwaukee, WI 53201. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Swerski Posted October 23, 2007 Share Posted October 23, 2007 That's very sad. Thoughts and prayers go out to his family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc Nasty Posted October 23, 2007 Share Posted October 23, 2007 That's very sad. Thoughts and prayers go out to his family. It's sad to hear this news. I didn't know the guy, but anyone that age that still works around the house is totally Old School. Very unfortunate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51Butkus Posted October 24, 2007 Share Posted October 24, 2007 The world needs more Max McGee's. He added color to the Bear Packer rivalry, and to life around him. Regrets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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