PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – He didn’t pick the number for those who wonder, but rookie tight end Connor Heyward saw a pair of players who wore number 83 go into the Steelers Hall of Honor on Sunday.
“It means a lot to me,” Heyward said. “I know the people that came before me and who wore it. They left the jersey in a better place and hopefully I can do the same. I’m just trying to be half as good as them right now.”
“I know the significance of it, trying to pass that on to the guys behind me.”
The first player to make the number significant was Buddy Dial back in 1959, but he only wore it for one year. Wide receiver Louis Lipps made it big in the ‘80s. The first-round pick had 39 receiving touchdowns and averaged 16.8 per catch as a Steeler. He also had three punt return touchdowns.
Lipps started the big reaction from the crowd with that number. Fans would yell ‘Lou’ and, honestly, he thought he was being disrespected.
“When I first heard it, I thought they were booing me,” Lipps said. “At that time in Three Rivers I was facing the big screen. They had the ‘L’ with all of the ‘O’s and I’m like that’s what they are doing, they’re saying Lou.”
“That’s what got me going. I don’t think there are too many, if any, teams that have fans like Pittsburgh. You see it not only on the home games, but on the road. Other teams upset there are more Steelers fans than their fans.”
After he retired he saw the reaction for number 83 reach a new fan high when the Steelers drafted Heath Miller in the first round and he got that number.
“I kind of like it,” Lipps said of Miller following him up with a Hall of Honor career. “He rented that jersey from me, he didn’t miss any payments”
The chants went from ‘Loooou’ to ‘Heeeeeath’. The modest Miller didn’t play to the crowd to get that reaction, it just happened organically. He really appreciates it more now than he did as an active player.
“When you are removed from the situation a little more you realize how special it was, the connection with the fans and how much they appreciated my play,” Miller said. “That’s why I played, to make the city proud and play for my teammates.”
This past weekend, both of those 83s joined a list of esteemed Steelers.
“It’s huge, it’s pretty special,” Miller said. “It means a lot the history of the Steelers organization. To be thought of in that regard to join some of the other great players that have played here before is pretty special.”
“I played with a bunch of them-Lambert, Brown, Shell, Webster, Stallworth,” Lipps said. “I played with those guys. They showed us how it was supposed to be done. That gave us something to shoot for.”
Now Heyward has something to shoot for, as if living up to his brother wasn’t enough.
“I know wearing this right now I will have high expectations,” Heyward said. “I like high expectations, I’ve had them my whole life. I’m used to it. I will accept it. Hopefully I will leave this jersey in a better place when I am done.”