Obituary: One of the great Eagles, Steve Van Buren, dead at 91
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Obituary: One of the great Eagles, Steve Van Buren, dead at 91
Will Bunch
STEVE VAN BUREN, the slashing Hall of Fame running back who led the Eagles to their first two NFL championships in the late 1940s, died Thursday from pneumonia in Lancaster, Pa. He was 91.
Considered by many the greatest Eagles player of all time, Van Buren took an unlikely path to pro football from a small Caribbean island off Honduras to revolutionize the position of running back in the era after World War II.
The Louisiana State University graduate scored the only touchdown in the fabled "Blizzard Bowl" NFL title game of 1948, when the Birds beat the Chicago Cardinals for the first of their only three championships. The following year, he rushed for 196 yards to lead the Eagles to their second championship, over the Los Angeles Rams in a California monsoon.
"On the field and off, as a player, a leader and a man, Steve Van Buren embodied the finest characteristics of our city and our sport," said Eagles chairman and CEO Jeffrey Lurie. "He was a friend and an inspiration to generations of fans, and the model of what an Eagle should be."
Van Buren, survived by three of his daughters and his brother, former Eagle Ebert Van Buren, had lived in a nursing home outside of Lancaster in recent years. Several years ago, he was admitted into the NFL's 88 Plan for ex-players coping with dementia, which may have been caused by the many hits he took over his 8-year career.
When Van Buren arrived in Philadelphia in 1944 as a first-round draft pick from LSU, the team had never finished above fourth place in its history. In short order, the running back was the key factor in leading the Eagles to three straight division titles and the back-to-back NFL championships in 1948 and 1949.
Nicknamed "Wham-Bam" for his quick and punishing running style, he captured the NFL rushing title four times and retired in 1952 as the league's all-time rusher unto that time, with 5,860 yards and 77 TDs. five-time All-Pro, he was selected to the NFL's 75th Anniversary Team in 1994, and was the first Eagles player elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
He remained in the Philadelphia area after his retirement, living a quiet, low-key lifestyle despite continuing to hold a number of all-time team records. Van Buren lived long enough to see several of his records eclipsed in the 2011 season by running back LeSean McCoy.
In a meeting with a Daily News reporter in January of this year in his nursing home room, where the NFL Network was on the TV in the background, Van Buren had a firm handshake and occasionally lapsed into the Spanish of his early childhood as he fondly recalled some of ex-teammates. He told relatives that his favorite current Eagle was Michael Vick, perhaps because the quarterback's slashing style reminded him of his own bruising style.
"Watch those old films and you know that Steve Van Buren was something special," said head coach Andy Reid. "He was special in person, too, humble about his own accomplishments and encouraging to others. His memory will be with Eagles fans for as long as this team takes the field."
"Steve Van Buren is one of the all-time Eagles," said Eagles president Don Smolenski. "He made his mark on the field, in the city of Philadelphia, and in the record books of the NFL. We honor the passing of one of our great ones."
Under legendary head coach Greasy Neale, Philadelphia finished the 1948 regular season with a 9-2-1 record and took on the Cardinals in the championship game with a foot of snow covering Shibe Park. Van Buren scored the game's only touchdown on a 5-yard run, while the defense limited the Cards to just 6 total first downs.
Ironically, Van Buren nearly missed the game - going back to sleep when he looked outside his home in suburban Penfield and thinking the game would be postponed. Awakened by a frantic call from Coach Neale and now snowed in, the NFL star hopped a trolley and then two subways to Shibe Park, walking the last mile to arrive just before kickoff.
The Eagles continued their dominance in 1949 with an 11-1 record in the regular season and a victory over the Rams in the championship game on a rain-soaked Los Angeles Coliseum field. Van Buren again led the Eagles as he rumbled for 196 yards on 31 carries.
The Eagles of that era were lovingly called "the duffel-bag dynasty" and adopted by the city's working-class fan base. Players like Hall of Fame end Pete Pihos, quarterback Tommy Thompson and young Chuck Bednarik were a "Greatest Generation," who had served in World War II and returned home trying again to settle into a regular life.
Van Buren didn't fight in the war because of his poor vision, and his path was an unlikely one. The descendent of real-life Caribbean pirates, he moved to New Orleans when he was 10 after his mother died and his father left. He discovered football as a way out of the Great Depression.
One of a kind. May he rest in peace...— phoenix phlash- RIP to the greatest Eagle of all time (or at least tied with Concrete Charlie for greatest). I wish I had known that he frequented Philadelphia Park, as I would have loved to have met him. He retired nearly 20 years before I was born, but I have seen a lot of clips of him on the NFL Films History of the Eagles DVD and a lot of nice tributes today. He just seemed like a great guy--humble, put the team first, and preferred to talk about others rather than to talk about himself. He led the team to two of its three championships but never made a big deal about it. He took a trolley home after the 1948 game, just as he had gotten there--this despite the fact that the fans had just carried him off the field on their shoulders!
I made sure to get tickets to the 2007 game where the 75th Anniversary Eagles team was announced and will never forget seeing Steve waving to the crowd from a box. I love that he was a big Eagles fan right up to the end. That was probably important to him to get to that event, even though he was 86 at the time and living in a nursing home.
Thanks for a great obit, Will Bunch. And everyone should also check out Ray Didinger's tribute on the CSN Philly site as well.
To the Van Buren children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren: your dad/grandpa/great-grandpa will never be forgotten in this town! He was a heck of a football player and an even better human being. God bless all of you at this time of your loss.— steveinphilly - Too bad most of today's players are not humble like VAN BUREN. Today it is all about "ME" and who can be the coolest. When you're good at what you do, there is not need to pat yourself on the back or draw attention to yourself; stay humble and you'll get the accolades that you deserve.— oneway
- Could have never made it in today's game. No rap sheet, body art, posse, steroids, or cocaine habit. Probably didn't even know how to tweet to all his boyz yo, much less make it rain.— dasher
- You mean Steve was never arrested for rape, assault, cruelty to animals, or other felonies? .....and they called him a pro football player? Must have been in civilized times.— Jack73
- One of the two greatest Eagles of all time......Steve Van Buren and Chuck Bednarik. They will never be matched......never!— Bigbirch
- Steve Van Buren was one of the early "greatest" running backs in the history of the NFL. He was tough minded, both as a player and as a man.— BEMiller
- As a kid I attended Steve Van Buren day at Shibe Park.They gave him a 1950 Ford .Van Buren was the kind of player that could play in any era,and, in fact ,had good speed which gave him the combination of speed and power that made him such a great runner.A great football player is a great football player.He was very much like John Riggins who was successful with a lot of black players in the league.— gardner
- Great Man. The sad part is the eagles were going to call him to play this year.— Tyrone Biggums
- He played when no black players were in the league. He was timed in the 40 with a calendar he was so slow compared to today's players.— FlyersLosersFor38Years
- EVERY PLAYER in the league was slow and small as contrasted to today's players. Real integration of the NFL did not begin until the 1949 draft, but there were a few black players. The anti-black player movement among owners was led by George Preston Marshall of the Washington Redskins--speaking of racist attitudes! — BEMiller
- We all know that your comment shows you need help from a professional in the field of mental health.— psubrian
- You all know he wouldn't even be able to make a division III team today I hope.— FlyersLosersFor38Years
- This was when the Eagles were a great team. That is what a dynasty looks like.— mario1239
- That which separates him and too many players today is HUMILITY and plain speaking...not to mention the drug and thug mentality and lifestyle of so many pros these days.— joedog
- RIP #15— TVGuy22
- His is a wonderful story. I did not know he was descendant from pirates. You could not make it up any better. Happy trails Steve.— johnny eagle
- Van Buren was simply GREAT and even better, humble. Rest in peace and may you enjoy entering into the love of God.
Anybody that goes off about Mike Vick in these comments under a great player's obit has serious personal problems.— psubrian - RIP to an Eagle great.
an outstanding career and a life well lived.— ekw555 - I remember being a kid with Holmesburg Boys Club in 1962 going to our Annual banquet and Mr Van Buren was a quest speaker. He signed my program and I still have it to this day. Rest in peace sir.— RichH
- He made his reputation on the field. The NFL can take a page from Van Buren's play book. A great HOFer who schooled his contemporaries for 8 solid years. Van Buren is a classic legendary old school smash mouth football hero.......— SocialReject
- my now-deceased WWII veteran dad adored Steve Van Buren for his tough, hard-nosed play and also admired him for the man he was. Just as @Bud Dry mentioned above, my dad also saw Mr. Van Buren at the track on occasion and exchanged pleasantries with him more than a few times.
My dad would be very sad today to hear of Mr. Van Buren's passing. Perhaps those two gentlemen will get the chance to exchange pleasantries again in the after-life.
RIP, kind sir!— advantasux - Think of Steve Van Buren.............Then think of Michael Vick...... Then think of day and night.... Heaven and Hell. Right and wrong... Good and evil......Class and classless..... True Eagle and fraud.......Not too hard to figure out who is who.— sackvicknow
- RIP to the GREATEST Eagle that ever played!!!— MIKEZ
- I met Steve two times. I have an autograph and his picture. A football star of stars.— TheShadowKnows
- Rip— Jay Grace 69
- My brother loved Steve. I still have a picture he had of Van BUren in his LSU uniform. My brothe always wore his # whatever sport he played. RIP— mike l
- RIP Honduran Hurricane. Great obit by Mr. Bunch for a great Eagle.— dglass1
- A great football player and an even greater guy. Steve liked to play the ponies and I used to sit near him at Philadelphia Park. One day I asked him if he was ever bitter about the money being made in football these days especially by guys who couldn't carry his jock. He said " No, it wouldn't matter how much money I made, I'd blow it all at the track anyway ". A modest guy. All class. I loved him.— Bud Dry
- He was of the greatest generation that made our country great and played when men were men. It is all so sad what our country has degraded into. My world war two dad and my 82nd airborne D-Day fighting father in law will welcome Steve Van Buren into heaven. God bless him and may he rest in peace.— moremaui
- Well said Will Bunch... RIP— JW79
- This comment has been deleted.— GrindHouse
- Actually, if you read some of the other stories on philly.com in regards to Van Buren, he's a fan of Vick's.
- R.I.P.— lonewolf 10
- well said— Old German
