By Laurie Willis
Livingstone College
CHARLOTTE ó Former Pittsburgh Steelers great Donnie Shell, who won four Super Bowls with the team, didn’t mince words Friday night before a packed audience in Grimes Lounge on the campus of Johnson C. Smith University.
Shell was the keynote speaker at The Commemorative Classic 2009 Hall of Fame Team Dinner, the formal kickoff for today’s game between Livingstone College and Johnson C. Smith University. On a snowy day on Dec. 27, 1892, Livingstone and Smith played in the first black college football game, with the Golden Bulls defeating the Blue Bears 5-0 in a defensive struggle.
Shell, who starred in football and baseball at South Carolina State University, told players from both squads to put God first and never give up.
Shell wasn’t drafted to play in the National Football League but instead went to the Pittsburgh Steelers’ training camp as a free agent. He made the team but sat on the bench for three years before becoming a member of the famed “Steel Curtain” and starting for 11 consecutive years.
Shell also made it to five consecutive Pro Bowls.
“First of all I’d like to say I thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and give him all the praise for who I am and whose I am,” Shell said.
Shell said he believes one key difference between historically black colleges and other schools is the amount of nurturing that occurs.
“You get more than an education when you come to a black college,” Shell said. “You get nurtured and you get mentored. I really needed that when I went to a black college in South Carolina.”
Shell encouraged the players to listen to their coaches, to work hard and to stay focused on why they’re in college. There were plenty of times when he stayed in his room and studied instead of going out with the guys, he said. He admitted not being happy when he didn’t get drafted but said he was determined to make it in the NFL.
“They were not going to out-work me or be a better student of the game,” he said.
Shell also encouraged the coaches to realize the important role they play in student athletes’ lives. “Coaches, you have an awesome responsibility, the ability to influence these young men and women who are in athletics, he said. “You have a chance to mold them and help them be what God intended them to be, so don’t take that responsibility lightly.”
Livingstone College President Dr. Jimmy R. Jenkins and Johnson C. Smith University President Dr. Ronald L. Carter poked fun at each other about which team would win today’s game, which begins at 1:30 p.m. at Alumni Memorial Stadium on Livingstone’s campus.