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10 things I learned about Harry Carson

Here are 10 things I learned about Harry Carson from his autobiography, 'Captain for Life: My Story as a Hall of Fame Linebacker.'

9. Origin of Gatorade sideline showers

West Virginia head coach Dana Holgorsen gets a Gatorade bath from offensive linesman Tyler Rader (l.) and linebacker Hunter Bittner at the Orange Bowl NCAA college football game on Jan. 5. By Lynne Sladky/STF/AP

  • By Ross Atkin, Monitor staff writer

The prankish practice of pouring a bucket of Gatorade over the winning coach’s head began with the Giants in 1985. The idea was nose tackle Jim Burt’s way of getting back at head coach Bill Parcells, who had tormented him by suggesting during a week of practice that Washington Redskins’ center Jeff Bostic was going to outplay him on Sunday.

With the game winding down, and the Giants up 17-3, Burt wanted to extract an ounce of revenge by “getting” Parcells but was concerned that it not leave him in trouble with the demanding coach. So Burt recruited Carson, “one of Parcells’s guys,” to help him hoist the Gatorade bucket for the surprise, celebratory dousing.

There’s an interesting epilogue here: When the Giants were invited to the White House in 1987 after their first Super Bowl victory, President Reagan pulled his own practical joke on Carson by pouring a bucket of popcorn over his head. Noticing the bucket was still half full, Carson turned the tables on the president and showered him with the remaining popcorn.

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Mark Sappenfield
Editor

Dear Reader,

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