SERBY’S SUNDAY Q&A WITH ... Lee CORSO.
ESPN “GameDay” mainstay and former coach Lee Corso shares his college football expertise with Post columnist Steve Serby.
Q: Of all the mascot heads you’ve worn, which one was the most uncomfortable? A: It was a Gator, Florida Gator. I put him on my head, and he messed up my nose ’cause he was so heavy up front . ... Took all the skin off the top of it.
Q: Have you ever worn one around the house?
A: (Laugh) I’ve been married 65 years (laugh). No, I’ve never done that (laugh). There’s one thing — the way you are at work and then the way you are at home, and I am not that way at home.
Q: The first one you put on was Brutus, for Ohio State. What was your wife Betsy’s reaction?
A: She was amazed. Like everybody else. She was amazed how well it went over. I said, “I think I got a schtick right here.”
Q: She had no idea you were going to do that?
A: Nobody knew I was gonna do it.
Q: She gave you the thumbsup on the mascot head? A: Definitely.
Q: Does she have any favorites? A: She and I went to Florida State together, so I guess she likes me dressed up as a Seminole.
Q: Do you have a Burt Reynolds story?
A: He was so good-looking I used to send him out for bait. He’d go over to the student union and he’d pick up two girls, he’d come back, he took the good-looking one and gave me the other one. His ugly girlfriends were better than anything I could get on my own.
Q: How good of a football player was he?
A: He was a tremendous runner. He hurt his knee. The next year he told me, he said, “Lee, I’m gonna go to Hollywood to be a movie star.” I said, “Ha-ha, yeah, sure, good.”
Q: How come you never tried to become a movie star?
A: I didn’t have what Burt Reynolds had. He had everything. During his career, he was a young Marlon Brando.
Q: Oregon is your favorite venue?
A: I love the Oregon Duck. He’s my favorite . ... He does everything so funny. You can’t describe him. He’s like the San Diego Chicken.
Q: What was your wife’s reaction when you uttered the F-bomb on the show in 2011?
A: Shocked. I came home, and my two little grandgirls, they said, “Congratulations Grandpa, you’re a hero now!” I went all over the country! (Laugh)
Q: What was it like crowd-surfing five years ago at Penn State? A: Scary. Q: Why did you do that? A: ’Cause they told me to do it (laugh). I didn’t want to do it.
Q: Why was it scary?
A: ’Cause those guys might drop me. Being who I am, and picking teams, I have [ticked] off 50 percent of the country all the time.
Q: Which fan base was the most ticked off ?
A: I think Alabama fans, when I picked LSU. They were livid, boy! They were really mad.
Q: Do you have to get extra security?
A: Oh, yeah, I got extra security all the time.
Q: How do you feel about that?
A: (Laugh) One time we went to Auburn, the Alabama-Auburn game. I picked Alabama to beat Auburn. So I walked in, I said, “Where’s my security?” There’s about a 75-year-old woman sitting there and I said, “Where’s your gun?” She said, “I don’t have a gun.” I said, “I ain’t going out there. No way.” So I stayed inside and watched the game.
Q: Can anyone beat Alabama this season?
A: Ohio State can. I think they’ll upset and outscore Alabama for the championship.
Q: Describe Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud. A: He’s sensational. Pure passer. He can get away from the pass rush. He throws the ball straight.
Q: Alabama quarterback Bryce Young?
A: He’s a terrific athlete. I don’t think either one of ’em wins the Heisman. Q: Who do you think wins the Heisman? A: Caleb Williams.
Q: Why him?
A: He’s a great passer, great runner, great leader. He’s the only candidate on the West Coast. He was unbelievable at Oklahoma. He will be almost twice as good at USC with those talented athletes. They’re one of my surprise teams in the nation this year.
Q: Who are some others?
A: Arkansas. Sam Pittman is the coach at Arkansas. He had five upsets last year. He’s a terrific coach. Nobody’s ever heard of him.
Q: Any other surprise schools?
A: Utah will make the final four, I think. Q: So what are your final four picks? A: Utah, Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State.
Q: Thoughts on Notre Dame? A: We had a Thursday night, and I said bad things about Notre Dame. So the next morning, I went to confession. I said, “Bless me Father.” He said, “No absolution, got you.” I said, “What?” He said, “You talked bad about Notre Dame.” I said, “I was only kiddin’.” He said, “Young man, you don’t kid about Notre Dame football.”
Q: Have you ever said, “Not so fast, my friend,” to your wife?
A: No, no, I wouldn’t do that, are you crazy? I’ve been married 65 years, I never did say anything like that. Q: Describe your wife. A: She’s a wonder
ful Christian woman. Guaranteed going to heaven.
Q: Joe Namath?
A: Joe Namath signed with me at the University of Maryland from Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania. He was going to Maryland for sure, he signed, was all set to come to Maryland. I was the quarterback coach. He did not pass the academic test. And we called Howard Schnellenberger down in Alabama. I said, “We have a quarterback, you oughta look at him.”
Q: Why did you call Schnellenberger? A: Because we wanted to get him out of our area (laugh). We didn’t want to play against him.
Q: How do you think that would have impacted your career if you were his quarterback coach? A: Holy mackerel. The funny thing about it, he didn’t come, but a kid name of Dick Shiner, he came. He became our quarterback and was a great player for us at Maryland.
Q: What is the best college football team you ever saw? A: Syracuse. 1959. I was the offensive coach at Maryland. We made our first first down in the fourth quarter and they gave us a standing ovation. They were the best defensive team I think I’ve ever seen.
Q: What do you remember about Jim Brown?
A: He probably was the best big running back ever. In 1956, we went to North Carolina State and I had a great game, and I was named INS Back of the Week. Behind me was Jim Brown and Tommy McDonald. Q: Describe “GameDay” colleague Kirk Herbstreit. A: The best all-around young man on television now. He’s the best in college football right now doing television. Q: What was it like coaching the USFL Orlando Renegades? A: We lost the first five games. The worst thing about it, I didn’t cover the spread one time. Q: Former Ohio State and later NFL coach Paul Brown? A: He was a great man. He was very, very, very good to me. He let me talk to him about football. Q: What’s the most memorable thing that he told you? A: I couldn’t win games on the road. He said, “Come out smoking, throw the ball, and then get ahead 14-0, and then hold on ’cause you’re gonna get beat anyhow.”
Q: Former Ohio State coach Woody Hayes?
A: The time we [Indiana] got ahead of him [Ohio State] 7-6, I called timeout during the [1976] game and said, “We quit.” The referee said, “You can’t quit.” I said, “Yes we can.” He said, “No you can’t.” I said, “OK, forget it, give me a timeout,” and I took the whole team down to the scoreboard and took a picture of it: Indiana 7, Ohio State 6. He said, “Why do you want a picture of that?” I said, “25 years since Indiana played Woody Hayes, it’s the first time we ever been ahead of ’em.” After the game the photographer said, “You want another picture?” I said, “No, 47-7 don’t look too good.”
Q: Former Michigan coach Bo Schembechler?
A: We tied ’em 21-21, 6 seconds to go, he had the ball on the 50-yard line, he threw a little pass out of bounds, which is illegal, you couldn’t do that. The referee didn’t call it. So what happened? The next play of the game he hits Anthony Carter for a touchdown, beat me at Michigan. The officials did not know the rule. I knew it because the week before I did it once, and they gave me a 5-yard penalty.
Q: What was the difference in personality as men between Woody and Bo? A: Woody was kinder. Was more gentle. He used to treat me nice . ... My first meeting with the Big Ten, he got up and made a speech about [Gen. George] Patton . ... Patton was the greatest man that ever lived. So I went to Europe, and I was in Luxembourg, and I found Patton’s grave. So I took a picture of it. Then the next year, I gave it to Woody, he said that he appreciated it, one of the best presents he ever got. He never beat me bad again.
Q: Did you get to know former Penn State coach Joe Paterno at all? A: I knew Joe Paterno for years when I was assistant coach at Maryland and he was assistant coach at Penn State. We were both quarterback coaches . ... Joe was always very standoffish. He was not a man that you could get close to.
Q: Former Nebraska coach Tom Osborne? A: I can’t say enough good things about him . ... I coached against him four times, he beat me badly four times.
Q: Alabama coach Nick Saban?
A: He’s worth every penny they’ve paid him. He’s the best football coach of all time, and let me tell you why: Not because he’s won all those national titles, he has had 21 assistant coaches become head coaches. Q: What makes him so great? A: He thinks and breathes “win” all the time. Q: Who had a bigger salary, you or him? A: Well, per show maybe me. If he gets it per day, I get it per show, I might beat him. Q: How close were you to being the Dodgers’ successor to Pee Wee Reese at shortstop? A: Not at all. ’Cause I wasn’t good enough to be even considered that. Q: But you were offered $5,000 by the Dodgers to sign, right? A: Yeah, but they were wrong, I wasn’t worth it. Q: What was your boyhood dream? A: Be a coach. Q: You knew you couldn’t be a player? A: I wasn’t big enough to be a player.
Q: Why were you called “The Sunshine Scooter” as a QB and returner and on defense at Florida State? A: ’Cause I was quick and fast . ... They couldn’t touch me. I was very, very elusive.
Q: Len Dawson passed away on Wednesday.
A: Len Dawson and I competed in BlueGray game. He was the quarterback of the North, I was the quarterback of the South. I’m the only quarterback in the history of the Blue-Gray game to be shut out — and the head coach was Bear Bryant. Q: Three dinner guests? A: Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ. Q: Favorite movie? A: “Godfather,” No. 1. Q: Favorite actor? A: Marlon Brando. Q: Favorite singer/entertainer? A: Frank Sinatra. Q: Favorite meal? A: Rigatoni.
Q: What does it say about Lee Corso that he is still going strong after suffering a stroke in 2009?
A: That was the toughest thing I’ve ever had to do. I couldn’t talk for about a month or so, and I was really low. I was tough, but I had some very good people. I had very strong religious feelings about getting well. I just knew I would get well. I probably prayed enough. Q: That’s an example to me of toughness and courage and perseverance. A: It’s nice that somebody else’ll say that. Q: Any regrets? A: Yes. Q: And? A: I won’t talk about ’em (laugh). I keep ’em to myself.
Q: What’s it like today being Lee Corso?
A: It’s a slower, more patient, aging Lee Corso. I’m not bragging, but I had all kinds of comebacks to all the guys. Since my stroke, I’ve had a hard time comprehending what I read, or anything like that. I have problems talking, it makes it difficult sometimes. Q: But what’s it like being so beloved? A: I have no idea I am beloved. Q: You are, trust me. A: Thank you for saying it. I appreciate it.