PITTSBURGH — When Franco Harris stepped to the podium to announce the Steelers’ second-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Pat Freiermuth was in his parents’ house in suburban Boston and got a feeling what was coming next … well, sort of.
The Penn State tight end had a feeling Harris was going to announce him as the Steelers’ pick at No. 55 but wasn’t quite expecting to hear what was about to come out of the mouth of the Hall of Famer and architect of the most famous play in NFL history.
“He said ‘Free-er-muth’ or something like that,” Freiermuth (pronounced FRY-er-mooth) said with a laugh inside the Steelers locker room Wednesday. “I always gave him crap about that, and he had fun with it. I remember the first time I met him, he apologized that he pronounced my name wrong.”
Both played at Penn State.
Both drafted by the #Steelers.@francoharrishof was so pumped to announce @pat_fry5!📺: 2021 #NFLDraft on NFLN/ESPN/ABC; Draft-A-Thon on @NFL pic.twitter.com/L3SxExQmFd
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) May 1, 2021
Ever since that day, the two formed a bond that went well past playing football at Penn State, despite nearly a half-century difference in age.
“I just built that relationship through that, and him announcing my pick was a huge honor,” Freiermuth said. “I have learned more about his legacy and his time in Pittsburgh.”
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Harris suddenly died in his home Tuesday night. The news Wednesday morning came three days before the Steelers were to honor him by retiring his number ahead of Saturday’s game against the Raiders, the culmination of a weeklong celebration of the 50th anniversary of the most iconic play in NFL history — the Immaculate Reception.
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Freiermuth has been a Steeler for a year-and-a-half but formed an instant bond with Harris. He was invited into Harris’ home on a couple of occasions and was stunned by the news of Harris’ passing.
“It was tough hearing the news this morning,” Freiermuth said. “We had a great relationship. I was told to follow him and his legacy of how to be a Steeler.”
Harris has been an ambassador to not only the Steelers organization but the league as well. When he would show up to a Steelers practice, players would flock to him, with Freiermuth being one of them.
“He is a big figure everywhere in the state of Pennsylvania,” Freiermuth said. “Every Penn Stater knows Franco Harris, and his legacy is big everywhere.”
Harris’ biggest attribute was his willingness to be there and help people. Freiermuth found that out firsthand just a few days ago.
The tight end hosts a radio segment called “Chalk Talk” with former Steelers offensive lineman Craig Wolfley every Tuesday at Giant Eagle Market District in Robinson Township. It just so happened that Harris was at the location earlier promoting his Immaculate Marinara pasta sauce made by local company DelGrosso.
Despite being late in the evening, Harris stuck around to join Freiermuth and Wolfley for two segments of the program.
Pat Freiermuth with a Franco Harris memory on IG #Steelers #NFL pic.twitter.com/6t5CzoP14I
— Steelers Depot 7⃣🎄🎅 (@Steelersdepot) December 21, 2022
“He stayed an extra 30 minutes to sign autographs and then for the show,” Freiermuth said. “It was late at night, and he could’ve gone home, but he wanted to stay and share the stories with me, Wolf, and the fans. It was a testament to who he was.”
And in typically Harris fashion: “He sure did talk a lot. He loved talking, but that is the kind of guy he was.”
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Players all over the locker room had similar interactions with Harris over the years.
“He was just so friendly to everybody,” tight end Zach Gentry said. “He always came around and made sure that everybody was OK. He still loved it and was a Steeler for life.”
Najee Harris recalled earlier in the year when he was holding an event at Sullivan’s Steakhouse downtown. He turned around, and Franco was there.
“He popped up out of the blue, randomly,” Najee Harris said. “And I mean randomly. It was alumni weekend, and he left alumni weekend to come to my thing. That was hella cool.”
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That’s one reason why players liked Franco Harris and gravitated to him.
“When those guys spent time with him, they realized that he didn’t want anything from them; he just wanted the absolute best for them,” Tomlin said. “That unconditional love, guys feel that, and that’s why they felt about him the way they felt about him.”
During the spring, the Steelers’ media team came up with a video concept to release the 2022 schedule. Harris was a part of it, of course, with the 50th anniversary of the Immaculate Reception highlighted. His main role — before being the key to a twist at the end — was to save the schedule from hitting the ground after Cameron Heyward and Terrell Edmunds were fighting over control of it.
“We did it like three times and we had a good time,” Edmunds said. “He was actually trying to catch it for real. He was trying to set up the shot and they told him he didn’t need to do it. It was a great experience, and it showed he had time for us and the team.”
.@CamHeyward: Schedule Protector 💪
📺 2022 NFL Schedule Release: Tonight at 8 pm ET on @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/z6CNpX51sp
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) May 12, 2022
“He was so into it,” Heyward said. “Franco was giving suggestions and just wanted to be part of it more and more. You can have a guy come in and think, Why he is doing this? Franco fully embraced getting into character and had fun with it.”
Harris was a guest on Heyward’s podcast Tuesday.
‘We are just fortunate enough to be a part of an organization great men were a part of,” Heyward said. “You walk in and see the six Lombardi (Trophies) and you say, Franco is the real reason.”
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“It’s so sad he won’t be here to see his jersey retired, but he will be there in spirit,” Freiermuth said. “This weekend was for him. It still is for him. A Pittsburgh legend. He might not be there in person, but he is going to be there in heaven.”
(Photo of Franco Harris announcing Pat Freiermuth’s selection in 2021: Steve Luciano / Associated Press)
