It was smack-dab in the middle of the Roaring Twenties. “Yes Sir, That’s My Baby” and “Sweet Georgia Brown” were the latest popular songs.
Paul Newman, B.B. King and Jack Lemmon were born in 1925.
So was Marv Levy. The legendary Buffalo Bills coach continues to thrive as he celebrates his 100th birthday this weekend with ceremonies at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.
The NFL — only a few years older than Levy — had 20 teams in 1925, including the Buffalo Bisons. Player rosters were capped at 16 men per team. The league has changed dramatically, and Levy has kept up.
“I’m totally overwhelmed getting ready to head to Canton,” Levy told me in a brief conversation earlier this week.
“We’re being ultra-swamped with family, et cetera,” he said, “but I’m going back to celebrate my 100th.”
Friday night, Levy will attend the annual Gold Jacket Dinner where he will be serenated with “Happy Birthday” by fellow Hall of Famers. Saturday, he’s scheduled to be the first Hall of Famer introduced to the crowd by Chris Berman.
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Marv Levy, the only coach to lead his team to four straight Super Bowls, holds up his Hall of Fame ring he received during halftime of the Bills-Panthers game at Ralph Wilson stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., Sunday Dec. 9, 2001. (AP Photo/Don Heupel) -
Marv Levy, head coach for the Buffalo Bills, follows third quarter action against the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl XXVIII at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Ga., Sunday, Jan. 30, 1994. The Cowboys won 30-13 for their second straight win, as the Bills lost a record fourth straight Super Bowl. (AP Photo/Bill Sikes) -
Buffalo Bills head coach Marv Levy talks with reporters Wednesday, Jan. 23, 1991 in Tampa. Levy missed Tuesday’s Media Day activities, the first time a coach has not participated in the annual Super Bowl event. Levy said he and his coaches were working on their game plan and time got away from him. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) -
FILE–Buffalo Bills head coach Marv Levy, right, chats with quarterback Jim Kelly (12) as they leave the field after the Bills’ 31-9 win over the Carolina Panthers Sept. 10, 1995, at Rich Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y. Kelly is expected to retire Friday Jan. 31, 1997. (AP Photo/Bill Sikes, file) -
FILE – In this Dec. 30, 1995, file photo, Buffalo Bills head coach Marv Levy, left and Miami Dolphins head coach Don Shula speak at midfield after the Bills beat the Dolphins in Shula’s final game as head coach, at Rich Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y. Shula, who won the most games of any NFL coach and led the Miami Dolphins to the only perfect season in league history, died Monday, May 4, 2020, at his home in Indian Creek, Fla., the team said. He was 90.(AP Photo/Bill Sikes, File) -
Former Buffalo Bills coach Marv Levy is introduced during a benefit flag football game billed as “The Final Showdown: Kelly vs. Marino,” where former Bills quarterback Jim Kelly led a collection of former Bills greats against former Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino and a group of former NFL players Sunday, July 21, 2002, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/David Duprey) -
Former Buffalo Bills recent Hall of Fame receiver Andre Reed stands along his former head coach Marv Levy, his wife Fran Levy, and former Bills running back Thurman Thomas, as they pose for a photo before an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, Sept. 14, 2014, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Gary Wiepert ) -
Former Buffalo Bills coach Marv Levy holds his bronze bust after enshrinement into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio Saturday, Aug. 4, 2001. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan)
Levy’s first head coaching job came in the college ranks at New Mexico in 1958, at 33 years old. His collegiate career took him to Cal and William and Mary.
He was an NFL assistant coach in Philadelphia, Los Angeles and Washington before getting a head coaching gig with the CFL’s Montreal Alouettes in and 1973, and then the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs in 1978. He came to the Bills in 1986 at age 61, and went on to win four AFC titles and six division crowns.
He never won a Super Bowl and that will always stay with him. But he should be remembered for more than that.
As I wrote in my book, “If These Walls Could Talk”:
“…with the passage of time, fans and football historians have come to develop a deeper appreciation of that impressive streak. It’s damn hard to get to one Super bowl, let alone two, three, or four straight, And if we are going to blame Levy for not winning any of them, then we also need to praise him for instilling the will in his players to keep fighting to get back.”
As he looks back, Levy remembers people. This week he recalled fond memories of baseball Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg, who recently died at age 65. He remembers losing out in a recruiting battle for Sandberg when he coached at Cal. They reconnected years later in Chicago.
“We became close friends here in Chicago,” Levy said. “We became co-owners of Harry Caray’s Restaurant among many others. He was at my Hall of Fame induction; I was at his Hall of Fame induction. He was a great guy.”
That’s Marv Levy. He doesn’t care about Sandberg’s Gold Glove Awards or All Star appearances. Levy’s lack of Super Bowl titles and NFL recognition are not important.
Marv Levy is 100 years old with thousands of friends and countless admirers. That’s worth celebrating.
John Murphy, the longtime Voice of the Bills and former News 4 sports director, now writes columns for WIVB.com. Find more of his work here.