Johnny Unitas: Football Hall of Famer

The man with the Golden Arm, John Constantine Unitas, also known simply as Johnny U, was born in 1933 and inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979. But his road to glory was not an easy one.

Raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Johnny Unitas's father died when he was only five years old. So his mother took over the family coal business, and worked as a bookkeeper on the side to support her family.

By the time Johnny was 12, all he wanted to do was play football. Later he joined the high school football team as quarterback and quickly made a name for himself.

But Johnny was small for football. Too small, said the coaches of the college teams he wanted to play for, which is why they didn't show much interest in him. But the man with the Golden Arm did not give up, and eventually the University of Louisville offered him a scholarship. He ended up gaining 50 pounds and adding two inches to his height during his time in college.

Playing for the Louisville Cardinals, Johnny U set many records and demonstrated he was an exceptionally talented quarterback. During his freshman year, he threw 99 passes, 46 of which were caught for a gain of 602 total yards. At one point in his college career, Johnny even threw the ball under his legs where it was caught 15 yards later. Unitas played so hard with the Cardinals that by the time his senior year rolled around numerous injuries had caught up with him and he couldn't play much. Years later, the University of Louisville retired his football number, 16, although he wore the number 19 throughout his professional football career.

In 1955 the Pittsburgh Steelers chose Unitas as a 9th round pick in the college draft. But they didn't let him play for even a single minute during any of their preseason exhibition games, and ended up cutting him from the team. Probably the biggest mistake the Steelers ever made.

Johnny's dream seemed to be ending. He went to work for a tiling company. Then he took a job as a construction worker in New Jersey.

But Johnny Unitas still heard the game of football calling his name.

He began playing semi-professional ball with the Bloomfield Rams and was paid only six dollars per game. Many times he played on fields covered with trash and debris.

The Colts heard about Johnny Unitas playing semi-pro football and they offered him a tryout. Immediately impressed by his skill, they offered him seven thousand dollars to join their team. He accepted.

From 1956 to 1960 Unitas set a record for throwing touchdown passes in forty-seven consecutive games. He received MVP awards in the years of 59, 64, and 67. He often played with serious injuries - in the famous 1958 Colts versus New York Giants game, he played with broken ribs. They beat the Giants in that game, 23 to 17, and many people said it was the greatest football game they had ever seen. It was one of the first games televised by NBC, and the first that went into overtime. Today the Giants vs Colts is credited as being the primary catalyst for the incredible popularity football now enjoys in the United States.

Unitas retired in 1974. He played 17 seasons in the NFL, throwing a total of 5,168 passes, out of which 2,830 were completed, and 290 of those scored touchdowns. He also scored 13 touchdowns on his own while rushing.

Johnny Unitas was not the prototypical prima donna with an abundance of talent and skill. He was a player with only a basic level of aptitude for the game, but one that he pushed to the absolute limits for the benefit of his team; plus he had an incredible work ethic and an indomitable will to win, which helped the Colts achieve numerous victories.

At the end of his career, Johnny U's right hand was so badly damaged it was almost nonfunctional, since his thumb and middle finger had been broken so many times during games.

In 2002 he passed away from a heart attack, leaving eight children from two wives.

And Johnny U's record of 47 consecutive touchdown passes still stands to this day.

No quarterback believes it will ever be beaten.