Fansided

NFL Q&A: 49ers great Randy Cross

By Andrew Hammond

Football: NFC Playoffs: San Francisco 49ers QB Joe Montana (16) with Randy Cross (51) during game vs Chicago Bears at Candlestick Park.San Francisco, CA 1/6/1985CREDIT: Richard Mackson (Photo by Richard Mackson /Sports Illustrated/Getty Images)(Set Number: X30952 TK2 R11 F17 )
Football: NFC Playoffs: San Francisco 49ers QB Joe Montana (16) with Randy Cross (51) during game vs Chicago Bears at Candlestick Park.San Francisco, CA 1/6/1985CREDIT: Richard Mackson (Photo by Richard Mackson /Sports Illustrated/Getty Images)(Set Number: X30952 TK2 R11 F17 ) /
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CANTON, OH – AUGUST 07: Fans and media look on as Hall of Fame executive director David Baker announces the cancellation of the game between the Indianapolis Colts and Green Bay Packers due to poor field conditions at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium on August 7, 2016 in Canton, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
CANTON, OH – AUGUST 07: Fans and media look on as Hall of Fame executive director David Baker announces the cancellation of the game between the Indianapolis Colts and Green Bay Packers due to poor field conditions at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium on August 7, 2016 in Canton, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Hammond: Speaking of the Hall of Fame, the next day they had some issues with paint on the turf and it was a complete mess and they had to cancel the game. Outside of this and the issue at the Vet with the Eagles, have you ever seen a game get cancelled due a field being in such bad shape?

Cross: Well, you always complained about certain types of places. You complained about Candlestick, you complained about Philly, you complained about Houston and the old Astrodome was a nightmare. I once did a preseason game for the Chargers doing their games and they just didn’t play it. They came out to warm up and the coaches came out and were like, we’re not playing on this and they cancelled that game.

I don’t know the exact circumstances for what happened in Canton but I know when I was on that field Saturday night till about 11:30-midnight or so whenever (Brett) Favre finished. It was covered, there were boards over it—there were boards all over the entire field. So if they painted something over it before, that whole field was getting smushed.

Hammond: We’re coming up on the 35th anniversary of “The Catch” and aside from the play itself, what do you remember from that drive? What stands out to you?

Cross: We were confident, very confident. They (Dallas) were in Nickel and they didn’t think we could run the ball on them. What people forget about that drive is how many runs we had that drive. We ran our two-guard sweep both right and left a couple of times and we ran a reverse with Freddie Solomon and got a big chunk of yards. We ran the ball against their Nickel a lot, I know talking to Mike Ditka in later years he said that they were screaming and arguing on the sidelines to get out of the Nickel and they never did.

That’s one of the things I remember is that we knew we could do it. We knew we could run against them and we pulled it off.

Hammond: Is it true, that in the huddle before the drive started you just puked, ralphed all in the huddle?

Cross: Yeah, I had been coming down with something flu-like the day before so I wasn’t holding much down most of the game so whenever I drank during the game it would make it’s way back up on the sidelines or on the field. There was no way I wasn’t going to not play.

Hammond: What was the reaction to guys in the huddle? Biggest drive franchise history and you’re sitting there blowing chunks?

Cross: The initial reaction is that I had more room around me. Fred Quillian took a step back, Keith Fahnhorst took a step back, the guys on the other side of the huddle, they all took a step back—and then Fred was like, lets move it up a few steps (Laughs).

Next: Wrapping up

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