Most people today know Merril Hoge as an analyst talking about all the current events in football, but once upon a time, he was an iron man running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Chicago Bears, embodying the tough nature of both those cities. However, a terrifying string of concussions almost left Hoge with permanent brain damage, so he was forced to retire. This is heartbreaking for a number of reasons, as Hoge was living out his childhood dream and doing what he loved, only to have it taken away from him at the snap of a finger. For many people, bouncing back from this would be almost impossible. According to Hoge, he couldn’t have done it alone.
In a recent interview on the Ovationz YouTube channel, Hoge went into detail about how depressed he was after his injury and how he found the strength to continue moving forward. Hoge explained that counselors and therapists weren’t helping him because they couldn’t understand his situation, but remembering some wise advice from Head Coach Chuck Noll provided the spark to light Hoge’s fire.
“I had a great leader, a great mentor, one of the greatest head coaches in NFL history that is the greatest man I ever met, who gave us great counsel about not just football, but about life,” Hoge said. “He used to say, ‘Men, football is not your life’s work. I don’t care how good you are, how long you play, you’re not gonna play it longer than you do play it.’ When I heard this my rookie year, I’m back there going, what? No, I think I’m gonna play this a long time. And he’s in his like [his] 30th year in the NFL as a head coach, Chuck Noll, and then I played one game and I knew what he was talking about.”
This isn’t the first time a former player has said that Noll preached that their lives would be about more than football, and it seems like a good thing he did, at least for Hoge’s sake. His career ended in 1994, but he managed to get into broadcasting in 1996, and ended up working at ESPN until 2017. Hoge’s NFL dreams may have been over, but like Noll said, his life had more to it. Stories like this one are just another example of why Noll was the perfect man to drag the Steelers out of the gutter.
Hoge also explains how, while it was Noll’s words that encouraged him, it was actually former Steelers’ receiver and Super Bowl MVP Lynn Swann who helped start him on his journey on broadcasting, offering to let Hoge shadow him while he was working for ABC. In that same interview, Hoge expressed his gratitude to Swann for reaching out
“That was an initial step, and I’ve told Lynn many times I just appreciate his generosity and genuine kindness, and that helped me so much at a critical time,” Hoge said. “That’s why I’m really sensitive to that. I try to do those things when I’m aware of them with other people, where that might be the thing they need, just an extended hand or arm.”
The funny part about that story is that Swann and Hoge never even played together. In fact, it wasn’t even close, as Swann retired after the 1982 season and Hoge was drafted by the Steelers in 1987. There was no bond of brothers that many teammates have. Swann probably knew Hoge, but the two of them had never shared a locker room. It was simply Swann reaching out to a fellow Steeler, providing an opportunity for that something more beyond football that Noll talked about.
Noll’s advice clearly had an effect on Hoge, and it had to impact Swann too, probably resulting in him giving Hoge his break into a career after his playing days. Now, it seems Hoge is happy to return the favor to others in need like he once was. It’s a chain of kindness that provides hope for the future. Brain injuries can be life-altering, and many football players have unfortunately felt those kinds of ramifications before, but Hoge was lucky enough to recover and create a respectable life for himself. Not many players get that chance, so it’s good to see people like Hoge and Swann willing to offer it.
