LLT
08-05-2012, 05:44 AM
Sunday, August 05, 2012
By Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
CANTON, Ohio -- In the moment of his greatest professional honor, Dermontti Dawson stood on a stage at pro football's grandest shrine and said he always tried to live by one mantra: To do everything with a purpose, passion and, most importantly, honor.
And he said he learned a lot of that from the player he replaced with the Steelers -- Hall of Fame center Mike Webster.
"Mike taught me how to be a true professional, whether he knew it or not," Dawson said. "I observed him and saw how he approached each and every day -- he was the first one in the weight room, first one in the meeting room, and he wrote down each and every word.
"Mike was a leader because he led by example. I tried to emulate everything Mike did. Even today, I still try to lead by example and be like Mike. Thank you for playing and living with honor. We miss you."
Dawson joined his late teammate, mentor and role model Saturday night in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, a fitting honor for a player who replaced Webster as a starter in 1989 and became one of the best in National Football League history.
On a night in which four players with ties to Western Pennsylvania were inducted, Dawson was the object of greatest affection for the pro-Pittsburgh crowd that has become something of annual ritual at Fawcett Stadium -- just beyond the steps of the Hall of Fame where so many other Steelers were inducted.
"All right, Pittsburgh family," Dawson shouted as he was greeted with a standing ovation and loud cheers when he was introduced.
Read more: http://old.post-gazette.com/pg/12218/1251894-66.stm#ixzz22fRQ8kDb
By Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
CANTON, Ohio -- In the moment of his greatest professional honor, Dermontti Dawson stood on a stage at pro football's grandest shrine and said he always tried to live by one mantra: To do everything with a purpose, passion and, most importantly, honor.
And he said he learned a lot of that from the player he replaced with the Steelers -- Hall of Fame center Mike Webster.
"Mike taught me how to be a true professional, whether he knew it or not," Dawson said. "I observed him and saw how he approached each and every day -- he was the first one in the weight room, first one in the meeting room, and he wrote down each and every word.
"Mike was a leader because he led by example. I tried to emulate everything Mike did. Even today, I still try to lead by example and be like Mike. Thank you for playing and living with honor. We miss you."
Dawson joined his late teammate, mentor and role model Saturday night in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, a fitting honor for a player who replaced Webster as a starter in 1989 and became one of the best in National Football League history.
On a night in which four players with ties to Western Pennsylvania were inducted, Dawson was the object of greatest affection for the pro-Pittsburgh crowd that has become something of annual ritual at Fawcett Stadium -- just beyond the steps of the Hall of Fame where so many other Steelers were inducted.
"All right, Pittsburgh family," Dawson shouted as he was greeted with a standing ovation and loud cheers when he was introduced.
Read more: http://old.post-gazette.com/pg/12218/1251894-66.stm#ixzz22fRQ8kDb