I hated it when I played football and the coach yelled out something about meeting up with the Linebackers. Those guys were nuts and they were all big, fast and loved hitting. Count on a few brain cells moving from one side of your head to the other when you practiced with the linebackers.
When you lined up against them, they always had a little evil smile on their faces because they knew they were going to hurt you. The big difference between you and them was they actually seemed to like pain, while you considered yourself somewhat normal.
It wouldn’t have taken much imagination to look across at the guy you’d be going up against with the grass stuck in his helmet and a grin reminiscent of the most evil movie bad guy and imagine Tim
Rossovich.
Back in 1967, Tim Rossovich was an All American defensive end/outside linebacker for the national champion USC Trojans. Many legends survive about the looniness of this very tough individual, and they’d be enough to scare many sane human beings. I’ve never really been considered all that sane, but I’m pretty sure I’d give Tim Rossovich the right of way on any given city sidewalk. The man looked scary.
If the name sounds familiar at all for not football fans, or just younger fans, he is the much older brother of actor Rick Rossovich. The younger Rossovich is considered a hunk and was one of the main characters in the movie Top Gun years ago and played in many other movies like Roxanne, Navy Seals, the Terminator, and many more. He also starred in regular television roles and guest appearances.
After football, older brother Tim also acted. He was generally cast as a villain and he looked the part. Another connection that Tim Rossovich had was his college roommate which was super star actor Tom Selleck.
The 1967 USC football team was loaded across the board with All Americans. The most famous player on that team was running back O.J. Simpson. But, left offensive tackle Ron Yary was the very first pick in the next NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings and he was so talented and injury free that he was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Some thought he was maybe the best offensive tackle the game had ever seen, and I won’t argue that.
Five members of that USC team were taken in the first round of the 1968 NFL Draft and the following season, Simpson won the Heisman Trophy and was the first player selected in the 1969 draft.
USC beat crosstown rival, UCLA, with Rossovich and another defender sacking Heisman Trophy winner Gary Beban as time ran out to save the game. Winning the Pac 8, the Trojans went on to the Rose Bowl to beat a surprising Indiana and win the national championship.
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Supposedly, Rossovich at least once ate some glass. I can’t imagine it tasting anything like a chocolate cake, but he was a fire breather and very intense. He was much like the tough guys of the time period such as Mike Ditka, Dick Butkus, Bubba Smith and Ray Nitschke. Those guys would stick their heads through a wall if the ball carrier was on the other side.
Today, players beat their wives, murder somebody, or deal cocaine. Back then, they ate glass, punched walls, set themselves on fire and just fun and crazy things. The game, just like society, has changed a lot since the late 1960’s, or early 1970’s. Looking back, I’m not sure that’s such a good thing.
Rossovich set himself on fire and ate glass, but he wasn’t just crazy off the field. He was a tireless worker and he loved to hit. He went after it on every play and was very fanatical about it all. He would almost have to be pulled off the field when practice was over and worked as hard, or harder,
than anyone else on the team. Tim Rossovich gave it everything he had.
Drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles, Rossovich had an All Pro season in 1969. But, injuries kept him from becoming the star that he wanted to be.
He played for the Eagles for 4 seasons and then the San Diego Chargers for 2 more seasons. There was a new start up league at the time called the World Football League which would fail just like the other future leagues. But, quite a few NFL stars left to play in the WFL including Rossovich. He played a couple of seasons for the Philadelphia Bell of the WFL and that league wasn’t around long. Rossovich got one more year in the NFL. The 1976 season, he spent with the Houston Oilers, a couple of seasons before they drafted Earl Campbell in the 1st round and became a contender.
When his playing days were over, he joined his 12 years younger brother in Hollywood. He never had any huge roles, but had the perfect bad guy face and body, much like former boxer Randall Tex Cobb. He also got to join his old buddy, Tom Selleck, on the set of Magnum P.I.
I first wrote about Tim Rossovich back in 2014 and since then he has been arrested for domestic violence. I’m no expert, and I don’t know the details, but I would guess the cause would be CTE. Rossovich is in his 70s now and his physical style of play may have finally caught up with him.
In spite of the recent bad news, I’m still pulling for a guy like Rossovich. He’s old school and the kind of guy that got me interested in football back in the day.