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Post by jessielee on May 17, 2019 13:37:06 GMT
Mark Harmon Named 2019 NFF Gold Medal Recipient
IRVING, Texas – Former UCLA quarterback Mark Harmon has been named the 2019 recipient of the National Football Foundation Gold Medal in recognition of his exceptional accomplishments, unblemished reputation and for reflecting the values of amateur football, the NFF and College Football Hall of Fame announced Thursday.
The award is the highest and most prestigious bestowed by the NFF. Harmon will join a list of recipients that includes seven presidents, four generals, three admirals, one Supreme Court Justice and fellow Bruin Jackie Robinson during the 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 10 at the New York Hilton Midtown in New York City. Included in the ceremonies will be a celebration of the 150th anniversary of college football.
"As we prepare to celebrate the 150th anniversary of college football, Mark Harmon captures exactly what we hope to inspire in future generations of young football players, making him the perfect recipient for the NFF's highest honor," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "An NFF National Scholar-Athlete at UCLA in the early 1970s, Mark took that same relentless drive to succeed, applying it to his career as an actor and unequivocally becoming one of the most successful stars of his generation. He has earned this honor many times over, and we are extremely proud to add his name to the esteemed list of past NFF Gold Medal recipients."
A native of Southern California, Harmon joined the UCLA football program in 1972 after two seasons at Pierce Junior College. During his two years under head coach Pepper Rodgers, Harmon and the Bruins posted a 17-5 record. Coming off an eighth-place finish in the Pac-8 in 1971, UCLA upset two-time defending national champion Nebraska in the 1972 season opener with Harmon at the helm of the offense.
Offensive coordinator Homer Smith's wishbone offense allowed Harmon to rush for 1,504 yards and 14 touchdowns while passing for 845 yards and nine scores. Teaming with running backs Kermit Johnson and James McAlister, Harmon helped UCLA to the nation's top rushing attack in 1973. As a team, the Bruins set school records with 4,403 total yards gained, 400 yards per game and 56 rushing touchdowns.
Off the field, Harmon majored in communications and graduated cum laude with a 3.45 grade-point average. He earned Second-Team CoSIDA Academic All-America honors and the NFF Scholar-Athlete Award.
Following his time at UCLA, Harmon pursued a career in acting. He earned his big break on NBC's St. Elsewhere and had continued success in such television shows as Reasonable Doubts, Chicago Hope, Moonlighting and The West Wing. Harmon recently signed on for the 17th season of NCIS in the lead role of Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs. The show, on which Harmon is an executive producer, is the most-watched scripted show on American television today. He was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Oct. 1, 2012.
Harmon has also done charitable work with Saving Bristol Bay, Stand Up To Cancer, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Kids Wish Network, Clothes Off Our Back, Entertainment Industry Foundation, Oklahoma Kidz Charities Foundation, Oklahoma City Indian Clinic and The Children's Center OKC.
"Having achieved the highest levels of success, Mark Harmon has always remained humble and focused on the things that really matter in life, which is hard work, perseverance and teamwork," said NFF Awards Committee Chairman Jack Ford. "His success on the gridiron as a student-athlete and his subsequent icon status in film and television make him exceptionally well-qualified as our 2019 Gold Medal recipient. We look forward to welcoming him back to the NFF's stage in December, poetically 46 years after his being honored as an NFF National Scholar-Athlete during an event when another famous actor, John Wayne, accepted the NFF Gold Medal."
uclabruins.com/news/2019/5/16/football-harmon-named-2019-nff-gold-medal-recipient.aspx
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Post by jessielee on May 17, 2019 13:40:41 GMT
Mark Harmon Named 2019 NFF Gold Medal Recipient
On Dec. 10, the NFF will present its highest honor to Harmon in recognition of his roots as a football scholar-athlete and subsequent accomplishments as a leader in the field of entertainment.
IRVING, Texas (May 16, 2019) – The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced today that former UCLA quarterback Mark Harmon has been named the 2019 recipient of the NFF Gold Medal in recognition of his exceptional accomplishments, unblemished reputation and for reflecting the values of amateur football. He will be honored for his achievements during the 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 10 at the New York Hilton Midtown in New York City, which will also celebrate the 150th anniversary of college football. "As we prepare to celebrate the 150th anniversary of college football, Mark Harmon captures exactly what we hope to inspire in future generations of young football players, making him the perfect recipient for the NFF's highest honor," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "An NFF National Scholar-Athlete at UCLA in the early 1970s, Mark took that same relentless drive to succeed, applying it to his career as an actor and unequivocally becoming one of the most successful stars of his generation. He has earned this honor many times over, and we are extremely proud to add his name to the esteemed list of past NFF Gold Medal recipients." The highest and most prestigious award presented by the National Football Foundation, the Gold Medal recognizes an outstanding American who has demonstrated integrity and honesty; achieved significant career success; and has reflected the basic values of those who have excelled in amateur sport, particularly football. First presented to President Dwight D. Eisenhower at the NFF Annual Awards Dinner in 1958, the Gold Medal boasts an impressive list of past recipients, including seven presidents, four generals, three admirals, one Supreme Court Justice, 29 corporate CEOs and chairmen, actor John Wayne and baseball immortal Jackie Robinson. Harmon will become the 65th recipient of the NFF Gold Medal. (See below for the full list of past recipients.) "Having achieved the highest levels of success, Mark Harmon has always remained humble and focused on the things that really matter in life, which is hard work, perseverance and teamwork," said NFF Awards Committee Chairman Jack Ford. "His success on the gridiron as a student-athlete and his subsequent icon status in film and television make him exceptionally well-qualified as our 2019 Gold Medal recipient. We look forward to welcoming him back to the NFF's stage in December, poetically 46 years after his being honored as an NFF National Scholar-Athlete during an event when another famous actor, John Wayne, accepted the NFF Gold Medal." Harmon was born and raised in Southern California; the son of actress Elyse Knox and Heisman Trophy winner Tom Harmon, a 1954 College Football Hall of Fame inductee from Michigan. He attended The Harvard School (now known as Harvard-Westlake) in Los Angeles, playing football, baseball and rugby. On the gridiron, he mostly took the field as a running back and safety, only appearing in four games at quarterback. He broke his elbow as a junior, and did not play varsity football as a senior. Not recruited out of high school, Harmon headed to Pierce Junior College in Woodland Hills, California, and he quarterbacked the team to a 7-2 record in 1971, earning All-America laurels. His performance earned him multiple scholarship offers, including Oklahoma in an effort led by Barry Switzer, the offensive coordinator at the time and a future College Football Hall of Fame coach, to recruit him. Harmon opted to stay in his hometown of Los Angeles, playing for UCLA head coach Pepper Rodgers and assistant coaches Homer Smith, Lynn Stiles and Terry Donahue, also a future College Football Hall of Fame coach. Playing alongside future College Football Hall of Fame inductees Randy Cross and John Sciarra, Harmon helped orchestrate a UCLA turnaround, quarterbacking the Bruins, which had finished 2-7-1 at eighth-place in the Pac-8 in 1971, to a combined 17-5 record in 1972 and 1973. In his first game ever as a Bruin, which opened the 1972 season, Harmon led an underdog UCLA to a dramatic 20-17 win against two-time defending national champion Nebraska, snapping the Huskers' 32-game-unbeaten streak.
A Wishbone-T quarterback who could run, pass, fake and mix plays, Harmon rushed for more yards and touchdowns than he did passing, amassing 1,504 yards rushing and 14 touchdowns versus passing for 845 yards and 9 touchdowns during his tenure in Westwood. The offensive coordinator Homer Smith's wishbone offense forced Harmon to make multiple decisions in very short time periods, distributing the ball to running backs Kermit Johnson and James McAlister. The combination created the top running game in the nation in 1973, and UCLA set school records for total yards gained (4,403), average yards per game (400) and rushing touchdowns (56). A Communications major who aspired to become a doctor, Harmon excelled in the UCLA classrooms, carrying a 3.45 GPA and graduating cum laude. His accomplishments earned him Second Team CoSIDA Academic All-America honors as well as an NFF National Scholar-Athlete Award, which led to his trip to New York City where he was honored at the NFF Annual Awards Dinner the same night that John Wayne accepted the NFF Gold Medal. "In today's society, the scholar-athlete is indeed a rare breed," Harmon said in responding for the NFF Scholar-Athlete Class in 1973. "Not only does he excel on the field, but he competes in the classroom as well…. As we gather here tonight to pay our respects to the men who made the great American game of football what it is today, we hope that one day in the future some of us from the Class of '74 might be fortunate enough to carry on the great tradition that has been passed down by the distinguished men in this room. If we do, it is because our universities gave us the chance and the game of football has given us the principles." After UCLA, Harmon declined professional football offers to instead pursue acting. He worked in advertising, as a shoe company rep and as a carpenter between acting gigs and appearing in Coors beer commercials. His hard work eventually paid off with a big break on NBC's St. Elsewhere and the leading role of Dr. Robert Caldwell. His success continued on NBC's police drama Reasonable Doubts starring as detective Dickey Cobb and CBS's Chicago Hope where he appeared as Dr. Jack McNeil. He also had memorable arcs on the hit shows Moonlighting and The West Wing before landing the lead role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs, a special agent with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, on CBS' global favorite NCIS series, which has become part of television history, approaching its 400th episode and recently inking a deal for its 17th season. The most-watched-scripted show on American television today and consistently ranked among the five highest-rated TV shows each year, NCIS is a TV juggernaut, attracting more than 15 million viewers each week throughout most of its run. In 2011, Harmon became an executive producer on NCIS, and in 2014 an idea he co-developed became the spinoff NCIS: New Orleans which premiered on CBS with Harmon as an executive producer alongside Gary Glasberg. His big-screen credits include Freaky Friday, Wyatt Earp, The Presidio, Summer School and Stealing Home. He has worked with Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Caine, Sean Connery, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jodie Foster, Allison Janney, Karl Malden, Patricia Arquette and Denzel Washington among countless other Hollywood notables. Harmon has received numerous accolades and award nominations during his career, including being honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Oct. 1, 2012, but he has always remained humble with an appreciation for the efforts of others. Quietly giving back, Harmon's charitable work includes Saving Bristol Bay, Stand Up To Cancer, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Kids Wish Network, Clothes Off Our Back, Entertainment Industry Foundation, Oklahoma Kidz Charities Foundation, Oklahoma City Indian Clinic and The Children's Center OKC.
From his time as a quarterback at UCLA until now, as an executive producer and star of the CBS hit series NCIS, Harmon has always treated teammates and production crews with familial respect and loyalty.
"I look at the show as a team," Harmon said during a previous interview. "I've always been a team guy. I'm not in [acting] for the personal part of this, and I wasn't as an athlete either. It's about the work and we all work together." Harmon will be honored during the 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 10 at the New York Hilton Midtown in New York City. Harmon will accept his award alongside the yet-to-be-announced recipients of the NFF Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football Award, NFF John L. Toner Award for excellence in athletics administration and NFF Chris Schenkel Award for excellence in broadcasting. In addition to the presentation of the NFF Major Awards, the 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner will provide the stage for the induction of the 2019 College Football Hall of Fame Class; the presentation of the 2019 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards; and the bestowing of the 30th NFF William V. Campbell Trophy® to the nation's top football scholar-athlete. The 2019 College Football Hall of Fame Class includes Terrell Buckley (Florida State), Rickey Dixon (Oklahoma), London Fletcher (John Carroll [OH]), Jacob Green (Texas A&M), Torry Holt (North Carolina State), Raghib "Rocket" Ismail (Notre Dame), Darren McFadden (Arkansas), Jake Plummer (Arizona State), Troy Polamalu (Southern California), Joe Thomas (Wisconsin), Lorenzo White (Michigan State), Patrick Willis (Mississippi), Vince Young (Texas) and coaches Dennis Erickson (Idaho, Wyoming, Washington State, Miami [FL], Oregon State, Arizona State) and Joe Taylor (Howard, Virginia Union, Hampton, Florida A&M). On Oct. 30, the NFF will announce the members of the 2019 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class, who will vie as finalists for The William V. Campbell Trophy®. They will be honored at the NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 10, where one will be named the recipient of the Campbell Trophy® as the nation's top football scholar-athlete.
footballfoundation.org/news/2019/5/15/general-mark-harmon-named-2019-nff-gold-medal-recipient.aspx
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Post by jessielee on May 17, 2019 13:43:45 GMT
"Hollywood" Mark Harmon Wins Top Honor From National Football Foundation
Left to right: NFF President George Murphy, Tom Harmon, Mark Harmon and John Wayne. At 1973 NFF dinner awarding Wayne with Gold Medal
Former UCLA quarterback led epic 1972 upset over Nebraska running the least glamorous offense ever
“Hollywood” is always looking for a twist so here’s one:
The most glamorous transfer quarterback in UCLA history had blond hair and stood tall (6-foot-4) in the pocket.
Golden boy had a god-like name, threw honey-dripped spiral passes and went on to win three Super Bowls for the Dallas Cowboys.
His name was Troy Aikman. He was a country hick from Oklahoma.
One of the least glamorous transfer quarterbacks in UCLA history was, on Thursday, named 2019 Gold Medal Recipient by the National Football Foundation.
His name is Mark Harmon. He WAS born in Hollywood (close enough, Burbank), but at UCLA ran a Homestead Act offense (the Wishbone).
The NFF honor is a huge deal, awarded first to Dwight Eisenhower (1958) and also to John F. Kennedy (1961), John Wayne (1973), Jackie Robinson, Archie Manning and many others.
The 2019 winner has maintained a low profile in a high-profile world. He has done good work and good deeds without ever bringing undo attention to himself.
Mark Harmon is legitimate “Hollywood.”
Yet, I’ll bet you Chip Kelly’s salary that most students on the Westwood campus today have no idea Harmon once played quarterback at UCLA.
There is also irony in knowing the most enduring football-playing star to emerge out of UCLA was a B-actor in his own huddle as part of the least “Hollywood” offense ever devised.
Harmon ran the Wishbone, hardly a break-out vehicle for a future leading man.
Imagine Clark Gable playing Sam Drucker’s role on Green Acres.
As a teenager in 1972, though, I was mesmerized by UCLA’s powder blue mystique (mostly in basketball) and distinctly recall Mark Harmon’s short football burst in Westwood.
He was only a celebrity then as the done-nothing-yet son of Tom Harmon, the football All-America out of Michigan, Ole 98.
UCLA football entering 1972 was still reeling from Tommy Prothro’s departure in 1970 to the L.A. Rams.
Pepper Rodgers, who took over for Tommy, went 2-7-1 in his first year.
Harmon was a Juco transfer from Pierce College more known as a runner than a passer.
Rodgers, preparing for the 1972 home opener against national champion Nebraska, sprung a surprise.
Pepper hit Nebraska with his own version of a ground-hugging offense, the Wishbone.
Rodgers had stolen this sneak-attack plan from Alabama Coach Bear Bryant, who literally forced Texas Coach Darrell Royal teach him the Wishbone and then used it to surprise USC in the 1971 opener.
With Harmon at the helm UCLA, as 18-point home underdogs, pulled off a shocking upset, snapping Nebraska’s 32-game winning streak.
That 20-17 win, orchestrated by Harmon, remains one of the most defining moments in UCLA grid history.
Dan Jenkins, covering for Sports Illustrated, somehow foresaw what was to come.
“And there he was,” Jenkins wrote of Mark Harmon, “in his very first major college game, becoming a hit TV Series. A Star is Born.”
Jenkins could not have possibly imagined Harmon becoming, in fact, a bigger on TV than in football.
Harmon and that UCLA team, and that Nebraska game, have faded into distant memory.
Let’s be real Harmon was, at best, the third-most famous guy in his huddle. The backfield was led by tag-team runners James McAlister and Kermit Johnson, “The Blair Pair” from Pasadena Blair High.
Bruce Walton, Bill’s brother, was on the offensive line.
Harmon played two years at UCLA before embarking on a long, steady and successful acting career.
It is hard to turn on a television without seeing his face in some current or rerun.
He has endured despite never really fitting the Hollywood stereotype. He has remained an unassuming actor and willing option-offense operator.
Harmon had more rushing yards at UCLA (1,504) than passing yards (854 total in 22 games).
In a 2012 L.A. Times look-back story on that 1972 Nebraska upset, Harmon recounted a Cornhusker standing over him after making a tackle.
“Where’s your surfboard, California boy?” the guy said.
Harmon recognized the player.
“I looked at him and said ‘Aren’t you from Glendale?’”
He was and his name was Mark Heydorff—the two have been friends for years.
I don’t know Harmon personally but have always admired his acting professionalism and off-screen humility.
He has never seemed overly enamored with his fame, wealth, good looks, family name, or good fortune.
What a concept in the today’s United States of Kardashians, right?
In 1996, though, with no cameras rolling, Harmon pulled two teenagers out of a burning car in Brentwood.
“Mr. Harmon broke out the car windows and pulled the boys to safety,” a fire department spokesman reported at the time. “The youths owe their lives to the action of Mr. Harmon.”
Harmon didn’t want hero-credit then. He just did what he always did—he acted.
Gold Medal Recipient is the highest honor the NFF bestows. It recognizes an outstanding American who has demonstrated integrity and honesty; achieved significant career success; and has reflected the basic values of those who have excelled in amateur sport, particularly football.
Hard to argue, really, with Harmon receiving this award.
Just don’t expect him to brag about it—or UCLA to ever bring back the Wishbone.
collegesportsmaven.io/tmg/chris-dufresne/hollywood-mark-harmon-wins-top-honor-from-national-football-foundation-IftkvyzxqEqThtIIgZnZtg/
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Post by mchnelson on May 28, 2019 15:09:17 GMT
$800 a ticket if anyone wants to attend. 1900 available.
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Post by Llyan (Admin) on May 28, 2019 18:48:12 GMT
$800 a ticket if anyone wants to attend. 1900 available. It would take me years to save money for something that trivial.
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Post by nas on May 28, 2019 22:00:30 GMT
hear, hear, NewBe!
but, I’m sure there will be plenty of folks in LaLa Land who will shell out the $$$ for the occasion, so they won’t miss us... 😉
nas
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Post by pdsmith777 on May 28, 2019 22:05:14 GMT
$800 a ticket if anyone wants to attend. 1900 available. I wonder if the producers, or CBS, will purchase two or three tables so the cast and some crew can be in attendance?
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Post by tuna1 on May 28, 2019 23:26:43 GMT
I'll only buy a ticket if MH wears that tux to the event.
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Post by kaschu32 on May 29, 2019 2:10:13 GMT
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Post by mchnelson on May 29, 2019 5:53:04 GMT
My first thought on that picture was “Little Lord Fauntleroy”. Not a good look, even in the 70s.
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Post by jessielee on Nov 26, 2019 16:16:54 GMT
2019 NFF Gold Medal Profile: Mark Harmon11/22/2019 11:18:00 AM By Steve Richardson, FWAA
Editor's Note: Mark Harmon will officially accept the NFF Gold Medal, the organization's highest honor, during the 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by ETT on Dec. 10 in New York City. The event will be live streamed on ESPN3 starting at 8:30 p.m. ET and can be watched via this link.
UCLA quarterback Mark Harmon arrived in New York 46 years ago for the National Football Foundation Annual Awards Dinner without a tuxedo. All he carried off his transcontinental flight from Los Angeles was a business suit, prompting a bit of panic when he learned about the preferred attire. Selected as a 1973 NFF National Scholar-Athlete, Harmon was designated to respond on behalf of the class, and he needed to rent a tuxedo. He walked across the street from the Waldorf Astoria and rented a dove grey tux with a frilly shirt hanging in the front window. Then he went to the dinner where everybody else was wearing black tuxedos. He stood out rather prominently. "John Wayne (who was presented the Gold Medal that night) started calling me 'Rebel,'" Harmon recalled. "All night he called me, Rebel. The autograph on the event program—I still have it— he wrote: 'To The Rebel: May the wind always be at your back. -John Wayne.'' Tonight, Harmon returns for the 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner now at the New York Hilton Midtown to become the 65th recipient of the NFF Gold Medal. He will stand out for different reasons. He is famous outside of football now as star and executive producer of the consistently top-rated television show, NCIS. Back on the NFF dais for the first time since he was a collegian, Harmon displays a humbleness about the award. "The very first person I thought of (when told he would be the recipient of this award), was Terry Donahue," Harmon said. "Terry recruited me. I thought of him, my dad, and UCLA teammate/roommate John Sciarra and just how much this organization means to them. Everything that this recognition defines. It's not that it doesn't mean the same to me, just that my own reaction to this honor coming in my direction really made me think of my time with all of them." At the 1973 dinner, Harmon was accompanied by his father, Michigan halfback Tom Harmon, the 1940 Heisman Trophy recipient and a 1954 College Football Hall of Fame inductee. Harmon's UCLA coach Pepper Rodgers was scheduled to be at the dinner, but in Los Angeles Rodgers jumped on a flight to Atlanta to accept the Georgia Tech head football coaching position. UCLA Offensive Coordinator Homer Smith, back in Los Angeles, probably meant more to his success as a triple option quarterback. "Out on the practice field, that first day with him, there was a patch of Astroturf," Harmon said. "On it were painted footsteps. Those footsteps were the correct foot placements for the read option. Those were Coach Smith's footsteps. Every step we took was like a dance step and that is how we learned the angles of that offense. It has always seemed appropriate to me that the footsteps I was trying to emulate, were his. I still use that work ethic all the time. It remains a coaching point in the back of my head, and it is something I still use every day. "My job as an option quarterback was to get the ball to the guy who could do the most with it. And I am still doing that. I do that every day here on set. I look at it as my job as an actor to pass the ball. To get the ball off my hands and into other people's hands. Sometimes you carry it yourself. You drop your helmet and you take the tough yards up inside. That is what I always loved about the game and I learned that on the field." Mark Harmon grew up in Southern California where he probably had more success as a baseball player than a football player. He also excelled in rugby. Harmon says his dad never pressured him to play football. His dad's Heisman Trophy was always sitting on a desk in his office. But football had balance in the Harmon household and his dad never pushed any sport. His mother Elyse Knox was always "just, Mom" but she was also an accomplished actress and appeared in more than 40 films. Said Harmon: "I do get it, the assumption that Dad was a Heisman recipient, so he put a football in my hands. Or that Mom was a successful actress, so somehow that path is expected. It wasn't like that at all". His mother and father met by chance when his dad was on his way to San Francisco to play in the East-West Shrine Game. He stopped in Hollywood to do Bing Crosby's Radio Show. Part of that included lunch and a studio tour. His mother was an actress at Columbia where Crosby's show was broadcast. She was assigned to be the tour guide that day for Tommy Harmon. "Mom certainly did not follow sports at the time, and she did not know a football from a hockey puck," Harmon said. "Dad loved that about her, that with all the press he had received, she knew very little about him. The story goes that early on they went to dinner at Jay Berwanger's home, a Heisman recipient. A few days later they went to dinner with another Heisman recipient, Les Horvath. On the way back from that second dinner Mom said 'I don't know what the big deal is about this Heisman Trophy. Everybody's got one.' Dad loved that story, and he loved her. "My dad was an exceptional man who led an exceptional life. He was the youngest in a large family. He worked hard. He was a multi-talented, four-sport athlete. He came from Rensselaer, Indiana, and the steel mills. I think I have some of that and there is a blue-collar approach to most things I do. I know I didn't forget that on the football field, or on any athletic field. Or in the classroom or with what I am doing now." Mark Harmon took the junior college route to UCLA. He had played only two years of high school football and had one of those cut short with an injury. Lightly recruited for any sport, he attended Pierce Junior College in Woodland Hills, California. "I really didn't play a lot of football going into college," Harmon said. "I didn't have a lot of experience and I certainly had very little experience at the quarterback position. So, I didn't know if I could compete. I just knew what I wanted to try and do. That's one of the reasons I went to Pierce. I was really chasing a dream." His tenacity earned him junior college All-America status, and he joined a couple of Pierce teammates at UCLA, which was coming off a losing season (2-7-1) in 1971. In junior college, he had become a promising triple option quarterback, drawing interest from a number of schools, including Stanford and Oklahoma. He visited Norman and vividly remembers sitting alone with then-offensive coordinator Barry Switzer, a 2001 Hall of Famer. A graphic of the Sooners' wishbone offense was behind Switzer. "'So, I am supposed to explain our offense to you,'" Harmon recalled Switzer saying. "He leaned back and drew a directional arrow to the right and then another directional arrow to the left and said: 'We go Bone right and Bone left and we pitch the ball to (Greg) Pruitt and we score a touchdown. Let me tell you something: If you come to Oklahoma, we will win the National Championship. If you don't come to Oklahoma, we will win the National Championship.' That made me laugh and we are friends to this day. I love the guy." Harmon chose UCLA because of his academic major. At the time he was looking to go into medicine; however, that changed to communications. In his first UCLA game in 1972, he quarterbacked the Bruins to a 20-17 upset victory over defending National Champion Nebraska, ending the Cornhuskers' 32-game unbeaten streak. "There wasn't anybody on that UCLA team that didn't think we could play with them," Harmon said. "Part of that was all of us just being young but I was one of a dozen or so transfers who came into UCLA. I always thought that we had some players. It was about trying to keep a lid on Johnny Rodgers because every time he touched the ball you held your breath. We needed to have ball control and to take advantage of turnovers…the outcome was special certainly because we weren't supposed to be in that game." During Harmon's two seasons at UCLA, the Bruins compiled a 17-5 record as he distributed the ball to running backs Kermit Johnson, Wendell Tyler and James McAlister when not passing or running it himself. In 1973, Harmon's senior season, the Bruins led the nation in rushing and set school rushing records that still stand. "(Harmon) was an incredible ball-handling quarterback," said quarterback John Sciarra, a teammate of Harmon's at UCLA and a 2014 College Football Hall of Fame inductee. "Outside of being smart and running the team and leadership, mechanically Mark Harmon was the best quarterback I have ever been around. He could run The Wishbone as well as anybody." Upon graduation, Harmon had no intention of pursuing professional football. Carrying a 3.45 GPA and graduating cum laude, he had several options. He started taking acting classes and held a number of jobs to make ends meet. He worked in advertising, as a national shoe company rep, as a broadcaster and as a carpenter before appearing in Coors beer commercials. Harmon's big break came with Flamingo Road which then led to St. Elsewhere when he was cast in the leading role of Dr. Robert Caldwell. His success continued with the police drama Reasonable Doubt starring as detective Dickey Cobb and on Chicago Hope as Dr. Jack McNeill. He chillingly portrayed Ted Bundy in the TV movie The Deliberate Stranger and charmed with his performance of Freddy Shoop in the feature film, Summer School. Other feature credits include The Presidio, Stealing Home and Wyatt Earp. Harmon also had memorable guest roles on the HBO mini-series From the Earth to the Moon, and hit shows Moonlighting and The West Wing before landing the lead role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs, a former Marine sniper and Special Agent with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service on the global favorite NCIS. Today, NCIS is the most-watched-scripted show in the world, a TV juggernaut attracting more than 15 million viewers each week. In 2014, an idea Harmon co-developed with EP Gary Glasberg became the spinoff, NCIS: New Orleans which premiered on CBS. The original NCIS is currently in its 17th season and will pass its 400th episode this year.
Through it all, family remains an important aspect for Harmon. Married to actress, producer Pam Dawber for 32 years, the couple have two sons; Sean, an actor/stuntman, and Ty, a graphic artist. "No one is in control of an acting career," Harmon said. "You work and you wait to be asked to show your stuff. And then you hope to be ready when you get your chance. No one knows when that chance will come, or if it will." footballfoundation.org/news/2019/11/22/football-2019-nff-gold-medal-profile-mark-harmon.aspx
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Post by sukismom on Nov 26, 2019 20:44:39 GMT
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Post by jessielee on Dec 11, 2019 15:58:52 GMT
62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by ETT Provides Historic Culmination of 150th Season of College FootballPictured (Clockwise from Top Left): The 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by ETT's highlights included Gold Medal recipient Mark Harmon, Campbell Trophy® Presented by Mazda recipient Justin Herbert (Oregon), Coach Joe Taylor responding on behalf of the 2019 College Football Hall of Fame Class that included Vince Young (Texas).
NEW YORK (Dec. 10, 2019) – The New York Hilton Midtown's Grand Ballroom played host to an all-star cast of history's greatest football legends and the sport's most promising student-athletes during tonight's 62nd National Football Foundation (NFF) Annual Awards Dinner Presented by ETT.
The star-studded 2019 College Football Hall of Fame Class Presented by ETT took center stage at the event during its formal induction, and 12 of the game's current-leading student-athletes collected $223,000 in postgraduate scholarships as members of the 2019 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class Presented by Fidelity Investments.
The festivities began with Oregon's Justin Herbert being declared the recipient of the 30th William V. Campbell Trophy® Presented by Mazda as the top football scholar-athlete in the nation and receiving a $25,000 postgraduate scholarship. The evening culminated with poignant speeches from celebrated actor and former NFF National Scholar-Athlete Mark Harmon, who accepted the 2019 NFF Gold Medal, and from Hall of Fame inductee Coach Joe Taylor responding on behalf of the 2019 Class.
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A packed house of 1,700, including more than 80 current collegiate head coaches and 40 returning Hall of Famers attended the event, which took place for the third year at the New York Hilton Midtown. Charles Davis, a current game analyst for the NFL on FOX and former University of Tennessee standout safety, entertained the crowd as the emcee for the annual celebration, which lived up to its historic role of bringing the college football community together at the end of the regular season to pay tribute to the game and its greatest legends. This year's dinner was especially momentous with a special tribute to the 150th anniversary of college football.
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NFF Vice Chairman and TV personality Jack Ford presented the Gold Medal, the organization's highest and most prestigious award, to Mark Harmon. The famed actor stars as Leroy Jethro Gibbs on CBS' global favorite "NCIS" series, which is consistently ranked among the five highest-rated TV shows each year. Harmon had equal success as the quarterback at UCLA, leading the Bruins to a combined 17-5 record in 1972 and 1973 while earning a prestigious NFF National Scholar-Athlete Award. "John Wayne was the Gold Medal recipient in 1973 when I last attended this event [as an NFF National Scholar-Athlete]," Harmon said. "John Wayne, the former Marion Morrison, The Duke, Sergeant Stryker, the 'Sands of Iwo Jima and we were excited to get an opportunity to meet him…Dad [Hall of Famer and Heisman Trophy recipient Tom Harmon] was a broadcaster and a producer and he worked hard. He did the local news two shows a day, seven days a week. He also did his national radio show broadcast. Mom worked hard too, raising a growing family with family needs. In that family, values mattered. Kindness mattered. Taking responsibility mattered. No one was more important than anyone else. You work hard in everything you do. There was no failure, as long as you tried your best. "I was that kid, always outside, always with a ball, any ball, always looking for someone to play catch with, anyone to play catch with, kind of like a golden retriever. I was never the strongest, never the tallest, the fastest or the smartest in anything I tried to do, but I loved to compete and I loved sports. Always loved sports, any sport. I had big dreams, but that's really all they were. Sometimes people doubting you or telling you that you can't do something becomes incentive to prove them wrong. "I paid specific attention to the little things, those small parts of anything that some people with more talent either ignored or took for granted."
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footballfoundation.org/news/2019/12/10/62nd-nff-annual-awards-dinner-presented-by-ett-provides-historic-culmination-of-150th-season-of-college-football.aspx
Note: For those who want to watch it, according to the site "Within the next 24 hours, a replay of the event can be watched on ESPN3 by clicking here."
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Post by jessielee on Dec 11, 2019 16:05:58 GMT
Mark Harmon To Be Recipient of NFF's Highest HonorUCLA quarterback Mark Harmon (1972-73) will be honored on Tuesday by The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame as the 2019 recipient of the NFF Gold Medal in recognition of his exceptional accomplishments, unblemished reputation and for reflecting the values of amateur football. He will be honored for his achievements during the 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner to be held at the New York Hilton Midtown in New York City, which will also celebrate the 150th anniversary of college football. "As we celebrate the 150th anniversary of college football, Mark Harmon captures exactly what we hope to inspire in future generations of young football players, making him the perfect recipient for the NFF's highest honor," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "An NFF National Scholar-Athlete at UCLA in the early 1970s, Mark took that same relentless drive to succeed, applying it to his career as an actor and unequivocally becoming one of the most successful stars of his generation. He has earned this honor many times over, and we are extremely proud to add his name to the esteemed list of past NFF Gold Medal recipients." The highest and most prestigious award presented by the National Football Foundation, the Gold Medal recognizes an outstanding American who has demonstrated integrity and honesty; achieved significant career success; and has reflected the basic values of those who have excelled in amateur sport, particularly football. First presented to President Dwight D. Eisenhower at the NFF Annual Awards Dinner in 1958, the Gold Medal boasts an impressive list of past recipients, including seven presidents, four generals, three admirals, one Supreme Court Justice, 29 corporate CEOs and chairmen, actor John Wayne and baseball immortal Jackie Robinson. Harmon will become the 65th recipient of the NFF Gold Medal. "Having achieved the highest levels of success, Mark Harmon has always remained humble and focused on the things that really matter in life, which is hard work, perseverance and teamwork," said NFF Awards Committee Chairman Jack Ford. "His success on the gridiron as a student-athlete and his subsequent icon status in film and television make him exceptionally well-qualified as our 2019 Gold Medal recipient. We look forward to welcoming him back to the NFF's stage in December, poetically 46 years after his being honored as an NFF National Scholar-Athlete during an event when another famous actor, John Wayne, accepted the NFF Gold Medal." Harmon was born and raised in Southern California; the son of actress Elyse Knox and Heisman Trophy winner Tom Harmon, a 1954 College Football Hall of Fame inductee from Michigan. He attended The Harvard School (now known as Harvard-Westlake) in Los Angeles, playing football, baseball and rugby. On the gridiron, he mostly took the field as a running back and safety, only appearing in four games at quarterback. He broke his elbow as a junior, and did not play varsity football as a senior. Not recruited out of high school, Harmon headed to Pierce Junior College in Woodland Hills, California, and he quarterbacked the team to a 7-2 record in 1971, earning All-America laurels. His performance earned him multiple scholarship offers. Harmon opted to stay in his hometown of Los Angeles, playing for UCLA head coach Pepper Rodgers and assistant coaches Homer Smith, Lynn Stiles and Terry Donahue, also a future College Football Hall of Fame coach. Playing alongside future College Football Hall of Fame inductees Randy Cross and John Sciarra, Harmon helped guide UCLA to a combined 17-5 record in 1972 and 1973. In his first game ever as a Bruin, which opened the 1972 season, Harmon led an underdog UCLA to a dramatic 20-17 win against two-time defending national champion Nebraska, snapping the Huskers' 32-game-unbeaten streak. A Wishbone-T quarterback who could run, pass, fake and mix plays, Harmon rushed for more yards and touchdowns than he did passing, amassing 1,504 yards rushing and 14 touchdowns versus passing for 845 yards and 9 touchdowns during his tenure in Westwood. Utilizing offensive coordinator's Homer Smith's wishbone along with running backs Kermit Johnson and James McAlister, the Bruins created the top running game in the nation in 1973, and UCLA set school records for total yards gained (4,403), average yards per game (400.3-led the nation) and rushing touchdowns (56). A Communications major who aspired to become a doctor, Harmon excelled in the UCLA classrooms, carrying a 3.45 GPA and graduating cum laude. His accomplishments earned him Second Team CoSIDA Academic All-America honors as well as an NFF National Scholar-Athlete Award, which led to his trip to New York City where he was honored at the NFF Annual Awards Dinner the same night that John Wayne accepted the NFF Gold Medal. "In today's society, the scholar-athlete is indeed a rare breed," Harmon said in responding for the NFF Scholar-Athlete Class in 1973. "Not only does he excel on the field, but he competes in the classroom as well…. As we gather here tonight to pay our respects to the men who made the great American game of football what it is today, we hope that one day in the future some of us from the Class of '74 might be fortunate enough to carry on the great tradition that has been passed down by the distinguished men in this room. If we do, it is because our universities gave us the chance and the game of football has given us the principles." After UCLA, Harmon declined professional football offers to instead pursue acting. He worked in advertising, as a shoe company rep and as a carpenter between acting gigs. His hard work eventually paid off with a big break on NBC's St. Elsewhere and the leading role of Dr. Robert Caldwell. His success continued on NBC's police drama Reasonable Doubts starring as detective Dickey Cobb and CBS's Chicago Hope where he appeared as Dr. Jack McNeil. He also had appearances on the hit shows Moonlighting and The West Wing before landing the lead role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs, a special agent with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, on CBS' global favorite NCIS series, which has become part of television history, approaching its 400th episode and its 17th season. In 2011, Harmon became an executive producer on NCIS, and in 2014 an idea he co-developed became the spinoff NCIS: New Orleans which premiered on CBS with Harmon as an executive producer alongside Gary Glasberg. His big-screen credits include Freaky Friday, Wyatt Earp, The Presidio, Summer School and Stealing Home. He has worked with Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Caine, Sean Connery, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jodie Foster, Allison Janney, Karl Malden, Patricia Arquette and Denzel Washington among countless other Hollywood notables. Harmon has received numerous accolades and award nominations during his career, including being honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Oct. 1, 2012. Harmon's charitable work includes Saving Bristol Bay, Stand Up To Cancer, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Kids Wish Network, Clothes Off Our Back, Entertainment Industry Foundation, Oklahoma Kidz Charities Foundation, Oklahoma City Indian Clinic and The Children's Center OKC.
uclabruins.com/news/2019/12/9/football-mark-harmon-to-be-recipient-of-nffs-highest-honor.aspx
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Post by jessielee on Dec 11, 2019 16:07:36 GMT
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