Back in the 70s I used to be a big fan of the Minnesota Vikings and
of the big four called the Purple People Eaters...The lineup of Carl
Eller, Jim Marshall, Alan Page, Doug Sutherland (who replaced Gary
Larsen) the front four, Matt Blair, Jeff Siemon and Wally Hilgenberg at
linebacker, and Bobby Bryant, Nate Wright, Jeff Wright and Paul Krause
who in the mid 70s dominated the NFL till playoff time and they never
did win the big game. The thing I remember most was that these Vikings
played a long long time.
Wally Hilgenberg was a Iowa Hawkeye and later became a mainstay for
Minnesota, back when the Vikings played outdoor at the old Metropolitan
Stadium which is now the Mall Of America. Back when real Vikings played
out doors in blizzards, twenty below temps, humid nights in september
and the brightest sunshine. None of this Baggie dome BS that happen
around in the early 80s.
Wally died of the dreaded Lou Gehrig disease at age 66. Yet another
icon of my childhood is no longer around. He will be missed.
