[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 7 (Tuesday, January 11, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H33-H36]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     PAYING TRIBUTE TO JOHN MADDEN

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. Brown of Ohio). Under the Speaker's 
announced policy of January 4, 2021, the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Swalwell) is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority 
leader.


                             General Leave

  Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on the subject of the Special Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to one of 
our Nation's most beloved and revered sports figures, John Madden. 
Since his passing in late December, words such as ``legendary'' and 
``iconic'' have deservingly been used to describe John Madden.
  Residents of Pleasanton and the Tri-Valley region I represent in 
California's 15th Congressional District had the privilege of knowing 
John as a devoted and down-to-earth husband to Virginia, father to Mike 
and Joe, and a fixture at his grandchildren's games and throughout the 
community.
  John Madden was simultaneously a larger-than-life Hall of Fame coach 
and broadcaster but also someone you could hang with and have a cold 
Miller Lite with at the Outback Steakhouse in Dublin after his 
grandson's football game, bump into at Ace Hardware on a Saturday 
afternoon looking at power tools, or join for ham and eggs after mass 
on a Sunday morning at Vic's All Star Kitchen on Main Street in 
Pleasanton.
  While our Nation mourns his passing at the age of 85, the loss is 
particularly felt in the Tri-Valley community we share.
  Whether you were from an older generation of fans that simply knew 
him as ``coach''; my generation of fans that connected with him as 
``John'' from his years in the broadcast booth, hosting SNL, and 
starring in commercials; or the younger generation who simply knew him 
as ``Madden'' from the video game, it can be stated that few if any 
individuals have had a greater impact on football and popular culture 
in the last 50 years.
  It is rare to find someone who connected with so many generations 
over so many different mediums. In fact, New England Patriots head 
coach, Bill Belichick, recently marveled at his success at coaching, 
broadcasting, commercials, video game planning, and real estate, 
stating that while most of us make an impact with one successful 
professional career, John Madden had five of them.
  It doesn't appear that Coach Belichick was aware of Madden's 
proficiency as a restaurant owner, grape grower, and almond farmer. For 
those scoring at home, that is actually--boom--eight successful careers 
that John Madden had.
  Yet, in the end, as NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell stated, Madden 
``was football.'' That was his passion. Simply put, John Madden made 
football and the NFL what it is today.
  Hired by the Oakland Raiders in 1969 at the age of 32 as the league's 
youngest coach, Madden was on the sidelines during a transformational 
time in the NFL. He posted a 103-32-7 regular-season record, which is 
still the highest winning percentage for a coach with 100 or more games 
coached in NFL history.
  Despite their reputation as free-spirited renegades, Madden's teams 
never had a losing season in his 10 years at the helm, and he led them 
to a Super Bowl victory in 1977. Beyond the numbers, many of Madden's 
games actually have names. Whether it was the ``Immaculate Reception,'' 
``Ghost to the Post,'' ``Sea of Hands,'' or ``Holy Roller,'' never has 
one coach been involved with so many instant, iconic classics of a 
golden era of football. Madden never hid his emotions on the sidelines 
and is featured in many of the game's lasting images.
  After retiring from football in 1978, Madden quickly became one of 
the greatest ambassadors the sport of football has ever known. He moved 
to the broadcast booth to become the most popular commentator in all of 
professional sports.
  Madden would describe his teaming with his longtime broadcast partner 
Pat Summerall ``like the day that peanut butter met jelly.'' He won 16 
Emmys sharing his insights, humor, and love for the game of football 
while working for every major network. He also lent his name to the 
popular football game ``Madden NFL,'' which ranked among the top-
selling titles of all time.
  During that time, it would be hard to argue that any person did more 
for the growth of the popularity of football. Players and fans knew 
that if Madden was calling their game, it was the biggest and best game 
of the week.
  Madden's enthusiasm for football through the television set inspired 
passion, while his voice also literally taught the game of football to 
millions of kids through their video game controller.
  Despite many of the other descriptors of John Madden, one that I like 
to use is ``teacher'' because I don't feel that anybody has taught the 
game of football to more people over the years in his capacity as 
coach, broadcaster, and video game producer than John Madden.
  John Madden was that rare communicator who was both a teacher and 
entertainer. He innovated both the telestrator and the yellow ``line to

[[Page H34]]

gain'' for first downs that is standard for every broadcast today.
  Madden also educated audiences about the intricacies of football and 
communicated in a straightforward manner and plain language that 
everyone could easily understand. He never overcomplicated things, but 
his analysis touched the football novice as much as the die-hard fan 
just the same.
  He was truly authentic. I can tell you, what you saw on TV is what 
you would see in real life.
  Like any great teacher, Madden was in a never-ending quest to learn 
about his subject and to perfect his craft. Whether it was analyzing 
freshman football games that his son coached at Foothill High School, 
watching game film, attending his grandson's practices, talking to 
coaches, facilitating production meetings, his preparation was 
unparalleled. He had a lot of time to prepare as he traveled the 
country to and from games coast to coast, first on Amtrak trains and 
later the Madden Cruiser bus.
  John Madden loved people, and the people loved John Madden. John 
Madden stopped throughout 48 of the continental United States at a 
number of diners, drive-ins, and dives before that was even a TV show, 
and he shared his story and countless meals with hundreds and thousands 
of Americans.
  Speaking of meals, Madden became a part of every American families' 
Thanksgiving tradition as he would broadcast a game every year from 
1980 to 2009. He literally termed the meal ``turducken,'' a combination 
of turkey stuffed with duck stuffed with chicken.
  Even as his health declined in recent years, he would still raise 
money at home to support high school football programs throughout his 
hometown region of the Tri-Valley as well as various local charities 
through the annual Madden-Mariucci Bocce Tournament. He also continued 
to advocate for measures to increase safety in the game of football 
that he loved so much, with a focus on youth football.
  Whether you talk about his coaching career, broadcasting career, 
video games, or various commercials, his greatest legacy to those who 
knew him was that he achieved national fame but remained one of us. He 
stated at his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction in 2006 that he never 
worked a day in his life and that he was one of the luckiest men alive.

  But the lucky ones are all of us who had the privilege of laughing, 
learning, and sharing his passions for football and life.
  The first time I met John Madden was about 10 years ago. We were at a 
barbecue in a friend's backyard. He said to me: Eric, things are pretty 
screwed up back there in Congress.
  He didn't use the word ``screwed.'' I looked at him and said: Coach, 
I will try to do better.
  He said: Do better. Just try to find the deals.
  Things have been pretty tense around this place over the last 10 
years, but I am happy that I am about to yield right now to my friend, 
Rodney Davis of Illinois, a Raiders fan.
  Coach, I don't know how many deals we can find right now, but Rodney 
and I have a deal today that we think you are the greatest. We think 
you have inspired millions. The game of football and the country is 
better because you coached it, and you taught all of us.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rodney 
Davis), my Republican friend.
  Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend and 
colleague from California. It was 10 years ago when we all came in as 
brand-new freshmen. One of the first questions I asked any of my 
colleagues from the State of California when I got here was: Are you a 
Raiders fan?
  Today, we are all Raiders fans, but just so everybody knows, he is a 
49ers fan. That is okay.
  As my friend says, there is a lot of disagreement in this place. He 
and I don't agree on a lot of issues that are coming in front of this 
institution during this week or the upcoming weeks or, frankly, the 
past few years. But we are here all together to celebrate the life of a 
man who had an impact on all of us in this great Nation, especially on 
a young Raiders fan who became that Raiders fan when I lived in the 
State of Iowa.
  Anyone who knew me as I was growing up knows that there is only one 
football team that I root for, and that is the Oakland Raiders, then 
the Los Angeles Raiders, then the Oakland Raiders, and now the Las 
Vegas Raiders.
  Most people in this country know John Madden as that broadcaster. 
This is the guy who actually broadcast professional football games on 
every single television network. What a feat that is. People knew him 
for being afraid to fly and driving a bus, talking about food, and 
writing with the little scribbler pen on the screen. What they don't 
know about John Madden is that his life was football before he became 
that broadcaster.
  He helped make my life about football because, one day on January 9, 
1977, my family, as I was 7 years old, sat down to watch the Super 
Bowl. It was the first football game I had ever watched in my life.

                              {time}  1500

  Now, many people who know me are not going to be surprised by this. 
Everybody else in my house was rooting for the Vikings, so I had to be 
obstinate and say: I guess I am going to root for the Raiders.
  What I saw in that game was something that I still have never 
forgotten. I didn't know who John Madden was, but I learned about what 
he meant to that team. All I knew was there was a great team led by a 
great quarterback, Ken Stabler, whom John Madden allowed to call his 
own plays.
  Madam Speaker, can you imagine that in today's day and age, allowing 
the quarterback to call their own plays?
  Bill Belichick probably is having a seizure right now thinking about 
that. There is no way they are going to let people call their own 
plays. But John Madden believed in his players, and those players 
believed in him. They went out there, and they did their job that day.
  I was hooked, watching Jack Tatum knock Sammy White's helmet off in 
an incomplete pass. I knew when I got to play football, I had to play 
defensive back. That was the coolest thing I had ever seen in my life. 
Ever since that day, there were Raider shirts, Raider pajamas, and 
Raider helmets. I actually still have my first one that I used to use 
in grade school, and it still has No. 30 on the back because my hero 
growing up was Mark van Eeghen, the fullback for the Raiders.
  My good friend and colleague Burgess Owens, who played on the next 
Super Bowl team, not for Coach Madden, but for Coach Flores, actually 
has promised me a chance to meet Mr. van Eeghen, so I am going to take 
him up on that. But to hear Burgess talk about stories of being a 
Raider, it is what John Madden, Al Davis, and the Al Davis family built 
and the entire Raiders organization built that made players want to 
come to Oakland and be a part of that winning atmosphere.
  John Madden helped create that winning atmosphere. Players like Ken 
Stabler, Mark van Eeghen, Burgess Owens, Jack Tatum, George Atkinson, 
Otis Sistrunk, Dave Casper, Fred Biletnikoff, Cliff Branch, you name 
it, Madam Speaker, they were there, and they created that atmosphere.
  But they needed a leader, and that leader in the 1976 season leading 
up to January 1977 was none other than John Madden, a great coach, a 
Hall of Famer. And from what I hear--because I never had the great 
chance to meet him--he was just a great person.
  As time has worn on, I have gotten to know people in the Raiders 
organization, and they epitomize the same values John Madden did. When 
you look at what is happening right now with the leadership of Mark 
Davis; the president of the team, Dan Ventrelle, my good friend; and so 
many others, they are taking that same John Madden attitude. We saw 
what happened on Sunday when they willed themselves through great 
players and great leadership into the playoffs.
  I know John Madden's family lit the flame that day in honor of Al 
Davis, and that flame was also lit that day in honor of John Madden. I 
am so glad the Raiders had a victory. I wish them well.
  Go Raiders. This week, beat the Bengals. And let's never forget the 
impact of John Madden.
  Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from Illinois for that 
very personal tribute. I grew up the only 49ers fan in an all-Raiders 
household, so there is a lot of influence there on me, and rightfully 
so.

[[Page H35]]

  

  Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. SWALWELL. I yield to the gentleman.
  Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Weren't the Raider fans Republicans, 
too?
  Mr. SWALWELL. Yes, of course. And I was the only Giants fan in an 
all-A's household, the only 49ers fan in an all-Raiders household, and 
the only Democrat in an all-Republican household, so outnumbered in 
every way. But my mom and dad loved John Madden in the way you just 
described him because of what he taught all of us.
  I thank the gentleman for coming down with his helmet, and I think we 
are all rooting for a Raiders win this weekend.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to my colleague from the Central Valley of 
California, who I believe will tell us that Mr. Madden had almond 
orchards in his district.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Costa).
  Mr. COSTA. Madam Speaker, I thank my good friend and colleague Eric 
Swalwell, Rodney Davis, and Jerry McNerney. I think we are all here to 
celebrate a life well-lived.
  Coach John Madden had such an extraordinary career in so many 
different areas that I think reflected, with all of that fame and all 
of that success, a common touch, a common touch that we honor today.
  I don't think there is anything difficult about being a Raider fan 
from California and being a 49er fan because the Raiders played in the 
AFC and the 49ers played in NFC. I think we have had a good run here 
for many decades because of those two incredible franchises. The same 
could be said for the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland A's.
  But as a kid, John Madden was a hero of mine. He actually started in 
a very humble way playing at Cal Poly. Cal Poly's program was a smaller 
collegiate program in those days.
  Sadly, there was a plane crash in 1961 that took place. Madden was 
able to avoid that disaster. I think that probably brought about his 
fear of flying for the rest of his life. But he never forgot Cal Poly, 
and he continued to support the university as he supported so many 
worthwhile causes, whether it was athletics in Pleasanton and East Bay 
or whether it was other important efforts.
  As my friend noted, I don't know whether his record will ever be 
topped, with 103 victories, 32 losses, and 7 ties, a regular-season 
record, and the youngest coach to win a Super Bowl.
  What a lot of people don't realize, Madam Speaker, unless you are 
from California, is the San Joaquin Valley that I have the honor and 
privilege to represent has always had a large group of Raider Nation 
fans there. Tom Flores, who was born in Fresno and raised in Sanger, 
the first Hispanic quarterback in the NFL, was succeeded by Daryle 
Lamonica, who was at Clovis and was a quarterback for the Raiders.

  I think the Raiders have something that they really focus on, and 
they want their quarterbacks from the valley because Derek Carr is a 
Fresno State guy and, of course, had that great victory Sunday. We hope 
that continues through the post-season.
  I was talking to Coach Flores, who was just inducted into the Hall of 
Fame--long overdue. Coach Flores was a valley guy. After he quit, after 
he retired as quarterback, he came back to the Raiders and coached as 
an assistant coach with Tom Flores. He talks about what kind of 
atmosphere Coach Madden had in the Raiders organization, and the 
players loved him. He said that when you have assistant coaches, you 
have rivalries, and you have coaches who want to then move on to become 
their own head coach. But he said that Madden had a great way. They 
would sometimes argue a difference on a game plan, but Coach Flores 
said that, in his opinion, Coach Madden, over the years and decades 
that he played in the NFL and coached, was a great game-day coach. In 
other words, the players not only trusted and had faith in him, but 
when they developed the plan to go out on that field on that Sunday 
afternoon, as the dynamics were changing and shifting, Madden's focus 
on the ability to be flexible and to make those adjustments were a 
large degree of his success as a head coach.
  From one Hall of Fame head coach to another Hall of Fame head coach, 
I think that is an incredible compliment, and it reflects both on Coach 
Tom Flores and Coach John Madden.
  I would be remiss if I didn't talk about the person who I think a lot 
of people know today, and that is Coach Madden, the man with a common 
touch. In his multitude of successes, he got involved in valley 
agriculture and got to know a number of my good friends in Merced in 
the area where he farmed grapes and almonds. Dan Fiahlo and a lot of 
the folks there used to love to get together with Coach Madden as well 
as with Dominic Mercurio from Cafe Fina on Fisherman's Wharf in 
Monterey.
  What did these gentlemen all have in common?
  First of all, Coach Madden would be a guy you would be attracted to 
because of his larger-than-life personality. But they loved the common 
touch. They loved the ability to grow things that people could consume, 
whether it be almonds or whether it be grapes, and the appreciation of 
the hard work it took to put that food on America's dinner table every 
night. So the love of food, for people who understood Coach Madden, was 
really part and parcel with his friends.
  There was a card game for 27 years that Dominic Mercurio and Dan 
Fiahlo and others participated in, a legendary card game apparently 
that one could only hope to be a part of. Of course, both Danny and 
Dominic loved to cook and were great barbecue extraordinaires, and 
Coach Madden would hang out at Cafe Fina where he first got to know 
Dominic for his legendary chowder, which developed into a regular 
fixture, so when Coach Madden was inducted in 2006, he asked 
restaurateur Dominic Mercurio of Cafe Fina, Danny Fiahlo, and their 
team if these folks would come back to do the barbecue. You have 
thousands of people for the Hall of Fame induction in August, but 
Madden had his plan, and they fed over 500 people.
  And Coach Madden says: Look, we are going to do it this way.
  He is giving instructions.
  Everybody who comes, whatever they are going to eat, there is going 
to be a multitude of foods. There has to be enough for everybody, 
whether you want chicken, whether you want brisket, sausages, whatever.
  What they did was, after they fed everybody, they had an abundance of 
food left over that they gave to the charities, to the churches.
  But that is what Coach Madden did in all the things that he was a 
part of. If there was stuff left over, you give it back to other people 
who need it most.
  I think that there are a lot of reasons why we honor Coach Madden 
here today and his incredible, celebrated career, but the common touch, 
the fact that whether he was in Los Banos, California, or in the upper 
crust, one might say, of Carmel-by-the-Sea, he was still the same 
person. He was Coach John Madden, whom you would love to have breakfast 
or lunch with, talk about football, talk about other things that were 
important, important to communities and neighborhoods, as he related to 
you as a Representative.
  I am honored today to celebrate the life of an American who made a 
difference, who made a difference in so many different ways. He touched 
so many people in so many different ways because he knew people, and he 
liked people. That was evident in terms of any capacity that you ever 
came across John Madden with.
  We celebrate that larger-than-life legend today. We see him as a role 
model who impacted people throughout California and throughout not only 
the professional football league and other professional sports but his 
understanding of collegiate sports because he came from that. His 
understanding that and making changes and protecting collegiate 
athletics was something that John Madden knew well.
  I thank Congressmember Eric Swalwell for allowing me to give my own 
thoughts about a person whom I will remember.
  I can only close by saying one thing: Coach Madden, God bless you, 
and thank you for all you have done. Go Raiders.
  Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California 
(Mr. McNerney), who is my colleague from the bay area who represented

[[Page H36]]

Coach Madden for many years before redistricting changed the districts 
in 2012. Jerry McNerney is my neighbor and friend.

                              {time}  1515

  Mr. McNERNEY. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for allowing me to 
speak today.
  Madam Speaker, I rise and join my colleagues in honoring the late Pro 
Football Hall of Fame Inductee, John Madden.
  John Madden was a giant in the world of football who brought an 
appreciation and an understanding of the game into the homes of 
Americans.
  Selected in the 21st round of the 1958 NFL draft, Madden suffered a 
severe knee injury during his rookie training camp, ending his pro 
football playing career when it was just getting started.
  Undeterred by his injuries, Madden's love for the game of football 
propelled him to pursue a coaching career. In 1969, he was hired as the 
head coach for the Oakland Raiders, making him the youngest head coach 
in the NFL, with only 1 year of coaching experience.
  Now, somebody saw something to promote him to head coach in just 1 
year of coaching. As head coach, he amassed an incredible record of 103 
regular season victories, with only 32 losses in 10 seasons. That gave 
him the second-highest winning percentage for NFL coaches.
  Madden's ferocious will to win would not be denied in Super Bowl XI, 
the first Super Bowl championship for the silver and black.
  While already a legendary Hall of Fame head coach, John Madden 
cemented his legacy as an icon of the sport from the broadcasting 
booth, becoming the first sports analyst to have worked all four of the 
``Big Four'' U.S. television networks, and earning an incredible 16 
Emmy awards.
  With a career in professional football spanning 4 decades, very few 
have transcended generations the way John Madden has, and his legacy 
will live on forever in the memories of players, fans, friends, and 
through the memories made by millions who played the best-selling 
Madden NFL Football game.
  On a personal note, I had the privilege of meeting John Madden and, 
yes, he was kind, he was personable, and it is true, we all ate very 
well that day.
  Not everyone gets to make a difference to so many people in this 
life, and John Madden was one of those people.
  Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, it is very evident from the tribute 
today across the aisle, and across California, that we grieve Coach 
Madden's loss, but we have all tremendously benefited as a country 
because he so humbly coached, and because when he interacted with 
everyday Americans, he treated everyone with respect, and he treated 
everyone the same.
  So to the Madden family, we grieve with you. And to Coach, rest in 
peace, to a great coach.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________