Temple Wildcats to Honor ‘Mean’ Joe Green by Retiring His Number

Friday night's game at Wildcat Stadium will be a special one for Temple native Charles Edward Joseph Greene, who you may know better as "Mean" Joe Greene from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

"Mean" Joe Greene played 13 years in the NFL and won four Super Bowls in six years with the Steelers. Greene was part of the "Steel Curtain" Steelers defense that rose to fame in the 70's.

25 News KXXV reports that Temple ISD will retire Greene's number 75 during a ceremony at Wildcat Stadium this Friday night at 7:15pm. Following the ceremony, Temple will host Harker Heights.

I, like so many others in the 70's, grew up a Dallas Cowboys fan. It seemed like there were only two teams to cheer for in those days: either the Cowboys or the Steelers. Since my family and I are Texas natives, being a Cowboy fan was automatic. Hating the Steelers was also automatic, until this...

Yep, the Coke commercial. Although I still hated the Steelers, "Mean" Joe Greene would be come the only exception.

Then there was this classic scene from Smokey and the Bandit II

Green was born in Elgin, Texas but grew up in Temple where he played football at Dunbar High School for the Dunbar Panthers, as they would be known.

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Greene would go on to attend college at North Texas State University, aka Mean Green, hence the nickname. "Mean" Joe Greene would be drafted by the Pittsburg Steelers as  their fourth pick in 1969.

Greene's career speaks for itself, as he has been inducted into Pro Football Hall of Fame, the College Football Hall of Fame, the Texas Sports Hall of Fame, and the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame.

Back in 2015, Greene was honored at Temple Hight School with the Hometown Hall of Famer plaque. We recorded his speech, where he talked about his days in Temple and how he got his nickname. Check out that story HERE.

Greene's number 75 is only one of two numbers ever retired by the Steelers, and his jersey will be the first retired by Temple ISD.