Ed Gruver - Hell with the Lid Off: Inside the Fierce Rivalry between the 1970s Oakland Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers

The authors capture the tenor of the times and do a fine job of fleshing out the personalities of both the Steelers and Raidersowners, coaches, and players. As a result of Ed Gruvers research and interviewing skills, a reader will learn exactly what the rivalry consisted of. Jim Campbells near-total recall from his up-close and personal position puts the reader right there on the sidelines, in the locker room, at the midweek practices, and practically in the huddleplaces where even a season ticket holder couldnt go. In addition to being very informative, Hell with the Lid Off is simply a fun read.

Joe Gordon, former director of communications for the Pittsburgh Steelers

Ed Gruver and Jim Campbell

Foreword by Andy Russell

University of Nebraska Press | Lincoln

2019 by Ed Gruver and Jim Campbell

Foreword 2019 by the Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska

Cover designed by University of Nebraska Press; cover image is from the interior.

All rights reserved.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Gruver, Ed, 1960 author. | Campbell, Jim, 1937 author.

Title: Hell with the lid off: inside the fierce rivalry between the 1970s Oakland Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers / Ed Gruver and Jim Campbell; foreword by Andy Russell.

Description: Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, [2019]

Identifiers: LCCN 2019010727

ISBN 9781496214676 (cloth: alk. paper)

ISBN 9781496219138 (epub)

ISBN 9781496219145 (mobi)

ISBN 9781496219152 (pdf)

Subjects: LCSH : Oakland Raiders (Football team)History20th century. | Pittsburgh Steelers (Football team)History20th century. | Sports rivalriesUnited StatesHistory20th century.

Classification: LCC GV 956. O 24 G 78 2019 | DDC 796.332/64097309047dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019010727

The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

After decades of being known as the Steel City, Pittsburgh was in something of a funk by the end of the 1960s and into the 1970s. The production of steel was down, and unemployment was rising. In general, Pittsburghers were not feeling so good about themselves.

Probably not too many realized it, but things were about to change, and change for the better.

With the hiring of Chuck Noll and the drafting of Joe Greene in 1969, a firm and winning foundation was being laid. The turnaround was more gradual than immediate, but progress was being made.

After years of being lovable losers, a tag that I know bothered Mr. Art Rooney, we had an 11-3 record in 1972helped immeasurably by rookie Franco Harrisand won our first championship of any kind, the AFC Central.

Our last regular-season win in San Diego set up a game Ill never forget, a hard-fought, hard-hitting game against a team that became our fiercest rival, the Oakland Raiders. We were up, 60, with 1:17 to play, when Raiders QB Ken Stabler snaked his way around our right end for a 30-yard touchdown. George Blandas extra point put us down a point with little time left.

It didnt look good, but we werent about to give up. Down to fourth and 10, we still thought of Chuck Nolls motto: Whatever it takes.

What it took was a tremendous collision between Jack Tatum, John Frenchy Fuqua, and the football to produce what has been called by NFL Films the greatest play in NFL historyFrancos miraculous catch.

The ball, propelled by Tatums impetus, shot back in Francos direction, the left flat. He picked it off his shoe tops and headed for the end zone. When Franco got there, back judge Adrian Burk signaled a touchdown, but not many, if any, were sure what had happened. I, like many of my defensive mates, watched in disbelief. Eventually, it was ruled a legal touchdown and became known as the Immaculate Reception.

It was the start of a Steelers dynasty, even though we lost the AFC Championship narrowly to the Dolphins, who would go on to a perfect 17-0 season. It was also the start of a rivalry with the Raiders that to both Pittsburgh and Oakland is the greatest not only in NFL history but perhaps in sports history as well. After all, what other rivalry routinely resulted in the crowning of a Super Bowl champion? And what other rivalry forced its league to add new rules?

For three straight years, from 1974 to 1976, our AFC Championship Games with the Raiders decided a Super Bowl berth and the eventual Super Bowl champion. Steelers-Raiders games captured the attention and imagination of NFL fans across the nation, from East Coast to West Coast. Our games were violent and the hitting vicious, and we forced the NFL to change the rules of its game, leading to the making of the modern offense-oriented National Football League.

Coach Nolls philosophy was to build through the draft, and we improved markedly in his early years. Perhaps the greatest draft ever was 1974. It yielded four Hall of FamersLynn Swann, John Stallworth, Jack Lambert, and Mike Webster. This was also the year Rocky Bleier emerged at running back.

It was the season too when we won the first of our four Super Bowls in six years. It was my distinct pleasure as captain to present the Super Bowl IX game ball to the Chief, Art Rooneyan experience Ill cherish always. Thinking back over the years, the thought of winning a Super Bowlparticularly prior to Chucks arrivalwas something I could never have realistically dreamed of.

The most important game, to my way of thinking, that led to our Super Bowl era was the 1974 AFC Championship Game that we won in Oakland. Dwight Mad Dog White and Ernie Fats Holmes shut down the Raiders left-handed running game behind Pro Football Hall of Famers Gene Upshaw and Art Shell. But what sealed the deal was Jack Hammer Hams late interception. Before the play Stabler came up to the line and actually winked at me. I inferred that he was telling me he was going to throw a game-winning TD pass, as he had done the previous week against Miami. Ham had a different thought. As history shows we won the game and went on to establish the Steelers first Super Bowl era.

While NFL football was very popular by then, I like to think that our rivalry with the Raiders elevated the game even more.

What the Rooneys meant to all of us cant be overestimated. They truly cared and fostered a family atmosphere and always demonstrated class.

I consider myself fortunate to have played for Chuck Noll, a man I consider the most underappreciated coach in NFL history. Lessons learned from him have helped me as a player and, later in life, in my business career. Im sure many other Steelers feel the same way.

Its been said that the Steelers gave Pittsburgh a reason for getting back its swagger. But Pittsburgh gave the Steelers something, too. The city embraced us unconditionally. The fact that so many from our era have made Pittsburgh home and have had successful postplaying careers is a testament to the two-way street of affection between a city and its football team.

At times Ive reflected on my football journey as akin to the 1967 Sergio Leone spaghetti western The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. I learned from the bad and the ugly and relished the good and would not trade a minute of any of it.

Jim Campbell was there on the Steelers sideline throughout our great rivalry with the Raiders and had a front-row seat for everything from the Immaculate Reception to our Super Bowl victories over Minnesota and Dallas. Coupled with Ed Gruvers meticulous research and insightful writing, the inside, behind-the-scenes look this book provides into our rivalry with the Raiders is both entertaining and informative.