And Their Children Shall Bring Them Together . . . : THE Largent-Byrd DUEL : Troubled Births Play on Their Minds More Than Record
Their paths are about to intersect again on a highly visible stage. But it is in a more private and intimate setting where their lives really meet and assume a special character.
Against the Chargers Monday in the Kingdome, Seattle wide receiver Steve Largent will attempt to break the National Football League record for catching a pass in consecutive games. The record is 127 games, shared by Largent and Harold Carmichael.
Defensive back Gill Byrd of the Chargers will be one of the opponents trying to contain Largent.
Largent has fared well against San Diego, with 62 catches for 1,008 yards and 12 touchdowns in 15 games. Two years ago, he burned the Chargers for three touchdowns in a game. The longest reception of his career, 74 yards, occurred against San Diego in 1977, the year his consecutive game streak began.
“It’s possible but not probable that we could stop him,” Byrd said. “But it really doesn’t matter to me as long as we win the game.”
Records often receive more attention than they deserve. Winning football games sometimes gets too much emphasis, too. Both Largent and Byrd have been forced to confront larger matters, and have come away with a richer perspective on their lives.
Last November, Largent’s wife, Terry, gave birth to a child with spina bifida, which leaves the spinal cord exposed and requires surgery. The child’s prospects for a normal life aren’t known yet.
Byrd also has dealt with a troubled birth.
His son, Gill Jr., was born Sept. 9, 1984, the day before the Chargers played the Seahawks in Seattle. The child was three months premature, weighed 1-pound 15-ounces and faced an uncertain existence for many weeks.
“For a baby that weighs under two pounds, there are real questions about whether it will live,” Byrd said.
After nearly three months in the hospital, the infant was up to five pounds and was allowed to go home. Life has gone smoothly since for Gill Jr.
“He’s a real terror now,” the father said. “He’s still about three months behind other kids his age in some areas, but he’ll catch up eventually. He plays with footballs around the house, but I don’t think he knows much about the game yet.”
There is another Byrd on the way. In fact, Marilyn Byrd was due to deliver last Monday but is now four days past due. Something about Charger trips to Seattle seems to affect her delivery.
The Byrds are hoping for a girl, but tests indicate that they probably will be the parents of another boy, who would be named after a biblical character, Jairus. There is no suspicion that any abnormalities will be present.
The problems with the births of their sons has, of course, deeply affected both Largent and Byrd, making them more cognizant of what counts most in life.
Largent is involved in at least five Seattle-area community organizations, including the Children’s Orthopedic Hospital and the Spina Bifida Foundation. He has commissioned a painting, reproduced on the team’s media guide. Lithographs of the painting sell for $225, with proceeds donated to the children’s hospital.
When Largent’s son, Kramer, was born last November, the player initially concealed the birth defect. He said nothing about it during the week of practice preceding a game against New England, in which he caught 8 passes for 136 yards.
After the game, however, he snapped at a reporter.
“Raymond Clayborn (the New England defensive back who had covered Largent) didn’t look so tough,” the writer said, or words to that effect.
“Well, if you think it’s so easy to get open, you go out there and try it,” Largent said testily.
Exchanges such as this take place routinely in pro football locker rooms. But no one could recall the usually reserved and polite Largent ever being sarcastic or short in an interview.
The next day, Largent held a news conference in which he described the details of his son’s problems.
Largent seems uncomfortable with the circumstances surrounding his impending record.
“I’ll be glad when all the hype is over,” Largent said. “Because of all the requests for interviews in the last few weeks, I feel I’ve really shortchanged my family. I’m suffering from overexposure. Frequently I get asked if I’d rather have spent my career in a big city like New York or Los Angeles, where the exposure would be greater than in Seattle. My answer is no, not at all. Exposure is not important to me.”
A close family life appears to be of much greater importance. Largent seemed irritated Thursday when, in the course of a telephone hookup that included writers all over the West, someone asked about a photograph of Largent’s father attending a recent game.
“My parents were divorced when I was 6 years old,” Largent said. “My father only sees me play when we’re on the East Coast. He won’t be here Sunday. My mother is the one who supported me from the time I was 6. She lives in Oklahoma City and watches our games on television (via satellite dish).”
Largent then spoke about his son’s future.
“We still don’t know what he will and won’t be able to do,” Largent said. “There was an initial shock period after he was born. It really brought me back to reality. But now we’ve dealt with it and accepted it, and we’re just taking it a day at a time.”
Largent, 32, is in his 11th pro season. It appeared that he might never have the chance to take the games one at a time as required by one of the oldest cliches on the books.
He joined the Seahawks in 1976 after a preseason trade with the Houston Oilers.
“Actually, I had been placed on waivers by the Oilers, but they reclaimed me and traded me,” Largent said. “I was driving back to my home in Oklahoma City when the trade happened. I figured my career might be over. But Jerry Rhome, the receivers coach then at Seattle, gave me another chance.”
Largent visited Rhome, now the quarterback coach of the Washington Redskins, before a game last week in Washington. Rhome was coaching at Tulsa when Largent played there as a collegian.
It was last week that Largent moved into a tie with Carmichael, the former Philadelphia Eagles receiver, with receptions in 127 straight games.
“The Redskin players congratulated me on tying the record,” Largent said. “I thought that was a real classy thing. Of course, it probably helped them to have class in that they beat us, 19-14.”
Largent seems likely to find the Chargers equally classy. They surely regard him as a worthy fellow.
“He’s had great consistency in his career, and I really admire that,” said San Diego receiver Charlie Joiner, who needs only 19 yards to set an NFL record for career yardage. The record is held by Don Maynard (11,834 yards).
Largent entered the 1986 season with 624 receptions and is on course to overtake Joiner, who is No. 1 on the all-time list.
“If he keeps his average of more than 60 catches a year, he’ll probably pass me next season,” said Joiner, who is uncertain whether he will play in 1987. “Somebody’s got to break my record, and Steve is really a good guy.”
Byrd, who shares Joiner’s sentiments, said he won’t concentrate on stopping Largent just to prevent a record.
Charger Coach Don Coryell said he doesn’t expect the Seahawks to force a pass to Largent just to get the record out of the way early in the game.
“I’m sure he’ll catch a pass in the normal course of the game,” Coryell said. “He’s a lot like Charlie--smart, clever, a great pattern runner with good hands. I guess the only difference is Largent is a little younger and quicker.”
Charger Notes
Guard Sam Claphan, who suffered a back injury when putting on his socks before last week’s game against the Raiders, is being held out of contact work this week, Coach Don Coryell said. It’s possible that Claphan will be able to play at Seattle. . . . There’s no question about the participation of quarterback Dan Fouts, who has a broken nose. “You can be sure he will play,” Coryell said. “Dan may not practice much, but he has a history of playing exceptionally well with limited practice. You can bet he will be really pumped up.”