"I'd Croak in a Month"

25 years ago today, the greatest football coach ever kept his word. He'd told people for a long time that he'd "croak in a month" if he retired, and 28 days following Bama's win over Illinois in the Liberty Bowl, Bear Bryant died of a heart attack. There's no way to overstate his impact on the game, on his players, or on those of us who grew up worshipping from afar.

He was, as his autobiography put it, nothing but a winner. I still miss him. (Nobody like Keith Jackson left either.) He left the game as the all time winningest major college coach. And if he'd had the extra 3 or 4 games a year they've had, Bowden and Paterno would still be chasing his mark.

We will, as they said of Patton, never see his like again.

Paul Bear Bryant (1913-1983) RIP