February 21, 2007 6:35 AM

My childhood goes on the auction block

Unitas helmet, first Colts contract on auction block

BALTIMORE ‚Äö√Ñ√Æ Johnny Unitas was in the midst of a Hall of Fame career when he walked off the field and handed his helmet to a young member of the Baltimore Colts Marching Band. The white helmet, with a blue horseshoe on each side and the numbers 1 and 9 on the back separated by a blue stripe, became a treasured item in John Ziemann’s personal memorabilia collection. And now, it’s gone. The helmet will go to the highest bidder at a sports memorabilia auction in Exton, Pa. on Friday and Saturday. Also up for auction: The first contract Unitas signed with the Colts, a sterling silver tea service presented to the quarterback after the Colts won the 1959 world championship, and the belts Unitas received in 1959 and 1964 as a finalist for the S. Rae Hickok Professional Athlete of the Year Award. But the prized piece is the helmet, a relic from the 1960s which could fetch between $20,000 and $30,000.

When I was a kid, the only thing I wanted more than to be a point guard at the University of North Carolina was to to be an NFL quarterback…and Johnny Unitas was my idol. He was the reason I played quarterback all through school. The teams I played on were horrible and I took one helluva pounding, but I worked at it until I could throw the same sort of tight, picturesque spiral that Unitas made look so easy.

I wanted to be like Johnny Unitas. I wore #19, tried to copy his throwing motion, wrote letters to him. I may have even gotten a response, but it’s been so many years now that I honestly don’t remember (though I did once get a letter from Charles. S. Schulz…something about a restraining order and a Glock, if memory serves). Unfortunately, none of it worked quite the way I wanted it to. I was a decent schoolboy quarterback, but I wasn’t destined for the NFL. My admiration for Unitas never waned, though. Johnny U played the game the way it was supposed to be played- a tough man playing a tough man’s game, though it ultimately took a terrible toll on his body- one he spent the rest of his life paying.

Now Johnny U’s helmet is going up for auction, and I want it. Sadly, there’s no way I can possibly afford to pay $20k-$30k for a football helmet, even one that’s a revered symbol of my childhood. ‘Course, if any of y’all have some spare change lying around and you feel like brightening my day….

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on February 21, 2007 6:35 AM.

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