In less than a month, former Steelers trainer Bill Cowher will be on the stage at the Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium with a player he drafted and trained in Troy Polamalu and a player he played in as a kid Donnie Shell has watched as members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2020.
It will be the culmination of the long wait after its 2020 anchoring was postponed due to the pandemic, but he knows it will be all worth the wait.
“When you go through this, you find that all of the people who were part of the process made it possible for you to achieve this,” Cowher said during a Zoom call Tuesday. “For me, it’s the culmination of the work of a lot of people, coaches, players and coaches, family and friends who were on the way there. I think the closer we get and all of this falls.” I just want to enjoy it. I really want to soak it up, have the chance to hang out with the guys I haven’t seen, players, some coaches I haven’t seen. ”
It will be a packed house of former Steelers players and coaches, along with Steelers Nation, when the three are inaugurated on Saturday, August 7th, and the following night when Alan Faneca and Bill Nunn join the Class of . enter 2021.
“I think it’s going to be a special weekend,” said Cowher. “It will be a great start to the 2021 season and Saturday is sure to be a special day, as is Sunday.”
Cowher will also appear on stage alongside Steelers President Art Rooney II, who will act as his host and help him reveal his bust. The decision was easy for him, because the Rooney family had meant to him since his arrival in Pittsburgh.
“I’ve been blessed to have a guy like Dan Rooney and the whole Rooney family, to be honest,” Cowher said. “Coming there at 34 and when I left there I don’t know if I was a better coach than there, but I was a better father and husband because of the Rooney family and the culture that they created.
“I remember going through the interview process with Dan Rooney, he probably called me five or six times when I was in Kansas City and the conversations didn’t last long, they lasted 10 or 15 minutes. But of that 10” in 15 minutes was about family. The more you talk to someone, the more you get a feel for someone. That’s the things. Over the course of my 15 years, Dan went down, Art went down and they asked how are you, how is the family. Let’s talk about the state of the NFL, how can we improve it. He always had a bigger picture in mind than the game we played that week. Yes, that was important. But the whole thing is that we do it together.
“You talk about the mystique of the Pittsburgh Steelers, when you walk through that door you are part of something bigger than you are. That was something every time I did it, it was bigger than what I was . Part of that bigger picture was a core family culture that existed and that started at the top. ”
On Ben Roethlisberger and his criticism:
“I’m sure it just thrives now because everyone thinks it’s done or the Steelers are done. I’ve always said that one of the best things in sport is to do something that nobody believes. It’s one of the greatest achievements. I think Ben is thriving on it right now. He can’t wait to get out there and try to prove it. I would be very surprised if he doesn’t have a great year this year. ”
To, if he misses the coaching:
“I’ve always missed strategy. I’ve missed the camaraderie that you have with the players and coaches. I love the structure of a game, the instant result you get. You win, you lose and then you have to move on to the next I love the game, I miss the game on Sundays, I miss the training, I don’t miss the lifestyle.
“I like the guys I work with. I love talking about games on Sundays. When the season is over, I’ll now have time for other things that you can’t do as a coach. It’s pretty much a full-time job as you have three to four weeks off in the summer. I have so much more balance in my life than ever before. I don’t think I’ve ever come close. “
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