It’s no secret that playing professional football can be both a blessing and a curse.
Some players experience great wealth and fame and a select few are immortalized forever in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
For a large majority of players, however, the game means long-lasting physical pain or crippling disability.
The effects of CTE in former NFL players have been well documented as have athletes not receiving adequate disability coverage from the league.
Then there are stories such as Steve McMichael.
Happy 66th birthday to Chicago Bears legend Steve McMichael. pic.twitter.com/dZGS6sg7vM
— Bears History (@ChiBearsHistory) October 17, 2023
McMichael is best known for his career with the Chicago Bears from 1981-1993.
During that time, “Mongo” used his 6’2, 270-pound frame to crush opponents as a defensive tackle.
He was part of a Bears defense that suffocated their foes into submission and led the franchise to a Super Bowl victory.
Years later, McMichael was diagnosed with ALS and his condition quickly turned a former brute into a shell of what he used to be.
Despite his debilitating disease, McMichael has stuck around long enough to learn that he is a 2024 inductee into the Hall of Fame.
McMichael and his family’s greatest wish now is that he remains alive long enough to make the induction ceremony.
This is the incredible story of Steve McMichael.
All-around Athlete
Stephen Douglas McMichael was born on October 17, 1957, in Houston, Texas.
Before he was two, Stephen’s parents separated and divorced.
His mother later remarried oil executive E.V. McMichael and Stephen took his last name.
The family, including Steve’s three siblings, moved to Freer, Texas soon after.
With a population of under 3,000 people, there wasn’t much to do in Freer and Steve threw himself into sports.
At Freer HS in Texas, Steve McMichael lettered in six sports as a senior — baseball, basketball, football, golf, tennis and track.
In his 3 yrs. of varsity, his teams were 30-3-2. https://t.co/pQkBUQh7LH
— High School Football America (@HSFBamerica) February 9, 2024
While attending Freer High School, McMichael played football, basketball, baseball, tennis, track, and golf.
“He was cut from a different cloth,” said Tommy Roberts, McMichael’s high school football coach. “He was a terror in the making. You could see it coming. He was just young. They hit as a pup, they’ll hit as a dog.”
On the diamond, McMichael played catcher and batted a spectacular .450 average as a senior.
That got him noticed by MLB teams such as the Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Cardinals.
Gridiron Menace
As much as he loved baseball, McMichael couldn’t help but shine on the gridiron as well.
Even in high school, McMichael was big and the-then 6’3, 220-pounder played receiver, running back, kicker, and spent time on the defensive line.
Steve McMichael played at Freer HS in Texas #txhsfb #playfootball https://t.co/fzQn6yPcDu
— High School Football America (@HSFBamerica) February 9, 2024
He had 22 receptions for 464 yards, ran the pigskin 84 times for 585 yards, and booted seven field goals and 29 of 30 extra points, all in his final year.
Those stats brought McMichael All-South Texas and All-State honors for his play on both sides of the ball.
“It was fun to be a part of bringing him along,” said Roberts. “Steve had a mean streak on the field. He wanted to get to the ball and hurt whoever had it in their hands. He had no pain. He would just throw that aside. He was just brutal and he took no mercy on anybody on the football field.”
In 1992, McMichael was inducted into the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame.
McMichael Becomes a Longhorn
Freer might have been a small town, but McMichael’s play and ability as an athlete were giant.
Several dozen colleges offered him a football scholarship.
Almost all of them had no chance as McMichael already knew where he wanted to go.
“Freer was way off the beaten path, but they (college recruiters) would all come through and they wouldn’t stay long,” Roberts recalled. “It was pretty well cut and dried where Steve was going. He wanted to play at Texas.”
Sure enough, McMichael joined the Longhorns in 1976 which coincided with head coach Darrell Royal’s final season.
The defensive tackle didn’t play much during the ‘Horns 5-5-1 season.
That season also marked the shocking murder of his stepfather.
In 1977, McMichael received more playing time and was even Texas’s backup kicker.
Old pic of defensive lineman Steve McMichael (star with the Bears in the NFL) filling in as kicker for the Longhorns in 1977. Note the shoelace to pull up the toe and tie behind the calf! @UniWatch pic.twitter.com/auNLxZLy6M
— Mike Barnes (@MikeBarnesMedia) July 3, 2018
Coach Fred Akers’ first year saw the Longhorns go 11-0 and running back Earl Campbell won the Heisman Trophy.
Texas was then crushed by Notre Dame in the Cotton Bowl, 38-10.
“Bam-Bam” Becomes an All-American
During his junior year in 1978, McMichael became the force of nature that was his mark in the pros.
While pounding ballcarriers during the year, Texas went 9-3 and beat Maryland, 42-0, in the Sun Bowl.
“Steve was an interesting guy,” college teammate Glenn Blackwood said in 2021. “We had so many nicknames for him —Manimal, Bam Bam, McNasty. They called him ‘Mongo’ when he was with the Bears.”
McMichael was an All-Southwest Conference selection and a Consensus All-American.
Looks like the #Longhorns aren't going to make the #CollegeFootballPlayoff. Soo many have asked who my fav UT player ever is. Yes, I met Earl Campbell and held his Heisman, and of course saw Vince Young win the Natl Championship.
But there is only one Steve McMichael. #HookEm pic.twitter.com/a5K8pzUdta
— Billy Krumb (@ClubhouseCancer) December 3, 2023
As a senior in 1979, McMichael repeated as a Consensus All-American and All-Conference while confirming his reputation nationally as a take-no-prisoners defender.
“Steve was extremely intense. He was just a little bit off-center,” Blackwood said, chuckling. “And that made him this guy that you really didn’t want to mess with. He had one thing on his mind, and that was to annihilate the guy in front of him. That made our life easier in the secondary.”
Texas went 9-3 again in ‘79 with a defense that allowed less than nine points per game but lost to the Washington Huskies in the Sun Bowl.
In 1979, the cover of Dave Campbell's Texas Football was Steve McMichael, #UT #Longhorns #TeamMongo #SteveMcMichaelShouldBeInTheHOF #SteveMcMichael #MongoMcMichael https://t.co/mYPGJIwilz pic.twitter.com/AhRqIJhJrG
— Ms McMichael (@bluebutterflysm) June 13, 2023
After the season, McMichael was a finalist for the Outland and Lombardi awards.
He was also named the Longhorns’ team MVP.
Weeks later, McMichael played in the Hula Bowl for college All-Stars and was named co-MVP along with Oklahoma running back Billy Sims.
McMichael ended his college career as the Longhorns all-time leader in sacks (30) and tackles (369).
He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2010 and has also been added to the Texas Athletics Hall of Honor.
Third-Round Pick
McMichael wasn’t selected in the 1980 NFL Draft until the New England Patriots took him with the 73rd overall pick in the third round.
Right from the start McMichael wasn’t a good fit with head coach Ron Erhardt.
“I came to practice like the wild man I was portraying at the University of Texas,” McMichael recalled in 2016. “Nobody appreciated it. That’s why they weren’t winning.”
The Pats went 10-6 during the season, but McMichael only saw time in six games and made five combined tackles total.
“He didn’t really do that great with the Patriots,” Blackwood said. “The reason he didn’t do great is because the (defensive) system they had and the personality of the team really didn’t fit Steve.”
It probably didn’t help that McMichael liked to party when he wasn’t on the field.
Steve McMichael was smaller than the average tackle, but he thrived in Buddy Ryan’s system because of his strength and quickness.
"Thank God New England got rid of me. I'm really proud to be a Bear."
He's No. 18 on our ranking of the 100 best Bears.https://t.co/qqFmfA34VL pic.twitter.com/btXWVIKByc
— Chicago Tribune Sports (@ChicagoSports) August 19, 2019
That eventually led to his release by New England before the 1981 season.
“I would fight in practice and I would stay out all night in the Combat Zone,” McMichael said, referring to an adult entertainment district in Boston. “But if you can perform, go experience life, young man. The coaches called me up. They said, ‘Steve, we think you might be able to be a second-stringer in the league, but we think you’re the criminal element, so get out.”
McMichael Finds a Home in Chicago
Not long after the Pats cut McMichael loose, the Chicago Bears signed him.
He arrived after Brad Shearer, a former Longhorn teammate who played for Chicago, sustained a season-ending injury and recommended the organization sign McMichael.
Team owner George Halas brought him in primarily to back up defensive tackle Alan Page who was playing his final year of football.
One of the first orders of business when McMichael arrived was to meet with Halas one-on-one.
“The first thing Halas tells me up in his office is, ‘Son, I’ve heard what kind of (expletive) you are in practice. Don’t change,” McMichael said.
Now with the full backing of “Papa Bear” McMichael didn’t let up an ounce.
Steve McMichael Details His Incredible First Meeting With George Halas #Bears https://t.co/65t0Hma8tD pic.twitter.com/8uYg1qtOwL
— ✶ Sports Mockery ✶ (@sportsmockery) June 7, 2019
That same year, the Bears drafted linebacker Mike Singletary from Baylor in the second round and safety Jeff Fisher from USC in the seventh round.
Chicago’s defensive unit already had defensive end Dan Hampton, linebacker Otis Wilson, strong safety Gary Fencik, and free safety Doug Plank.
As good as those players were, they couldn’t help the team slide to 6-10 in head coach Neill Armstrong’s final year.
In 1982, Halas hired former Bears tight end Mike Ditka to be his new coach.
Before the season began, the Bears drafted BYU quarterback Jim McMahon to pair with Walter Payton on offense.
The ‘82 Players Strike didn’t help the team as they won only six games.
1985 Bears
In McMichael’s first two years in the Windy City, he never started a game but contributed 19 tackles and 2.5 sacks combined.
Finally, in 1983, he started 10 games and bagged 8.5 sacks.
“…when he went to Chicago, it fit him to a T and he flourished,” said Blackwood. “He became a great player for them. He was surrounded by some tremendous talent. They had some great athletes.”
The Bears continued to build and drafted Dave Duerson and Richard Dent that year and Chicago won eight games.
Wilber Marshall and Ron Rivera joined the team in the 1984 draft and “Mongo,” as McMichael was called by Hampton and his teammates, had 16 starts and 10 sacks.
“Thank God New England got rid of me,” McMichael said. “Some teams, they want you to have a certain image. Other teams, like this one, they just want you to get down and dirty. I’m really proud to be a Bear.”
Ditka’s group went 10-6 and advanced to the NFC Championship game before losing to San Francisco.
Then, in 1985, the franchise put together a season that is still talked about today by NFL fans.
OTD 1985#Packers #Bears
William Perry catches a TD
Dan Hampton
Steve McMichael safety
16-10 #Bears
pic.twitter.com/nNMjalvdvC— Old Time Football 🏈 (@Ol_TimeFootball) November 4, 2023
During the draft that year, Chicago added Clemson defensive tackle William “The Refrigerator” Perry in the first round.
The Bears defense was a brutal unit under coordinator Buddy Ryan, who shaped his “46 defense” (named after Plank’s number) to the talents of his group.
Ryan’s unit was ranked first in the NFL and only gave up 198 total points all season as Chicago went 15-1.
“This is what I say about a pack of wild dogs: when one of them is mean, they’re all going to be mean,” McMichael said.
McMichael was responsible for 44 tackles, a safety, and eight sacks and was selected to his first All-Pro team.
McMichael gets Cranky Before Super Bowl XX
In the playoffs, the Bears sent home the Giants and Rams by a combined score of 45-0.
Chicago then prepared to face McMichael’s first team, the Patriots, in Super Bowl XX.
In one of the final meetings with the defense before the big day, Ryan, their beloved coach, told his troops he was leaving after the season to become the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles.
The announcement sent a shockwave through the players and prompted McMichael to pick up a chair and throw it into a chalkboard.
.@ChicagoBears legend Steve McMichael is now a Pro Football Hall of Famer. He is responsible for so many wonderful memories for #Bears fans, like this one in Super Bowl XX. Congratulations Mongo. 🐻⬇️ pic.twitter.com/ciNUdVzva1
— Jason Krump (@JasonKrump) February 9, 2024
The chair impacted with such force that it was impaled, where it remained.
As if Chicago needed any more motivation to win, the Patriots didn’t stand a chance and limped back to Massachusetts with a 46-10 loss.
McMichael Carries On
After their Super Bowl victory, the Bears believed there would be several more.
For the next six years, the team put together great regular seasons (except in 1989 when Chicago won only six times) but lost in the playoffs.
In 1988 and 1990, the franchise advanced to the NFC title game only to fall short both years.
McMichael continued to play well and was recognized as a Pro Bowler after the 1986 and 1987 seasons.
During the ‘88 season, Mongo had a team-high 11.5 sacks, the most of his career, and made a career-best 108 tackles in 1989.
WE LOVE MONGO!
STEVE MCMICHAEL – FOREVER #ChicagoHistory. pic.twitter.com/6DQ2IzN9tF
— Chicago History ™️ (@Chicago_History) February 11, 2023
By 1991, most of McMichael’s old buddies, including Hampton, were gone.
That just led him to step up and become a leader of the defense.
In three games alone during the ‘91 season, McMichael was credited for winning each game single-handedly.
During one victory against the New York Jets, McMichael tore the ball from running back Blair Thomas and recovered it.
Everyone remembers Cap Boso and his face full of grass. No one remembers Steve McMichael ripping the ball right out of Blair Thomas’ hands to make that Boso play possible. pic.twitter.com/TCUpeAnjHw
— Oracle of Humboldt Park (@FifthFeather) February 9, 2024
McMahon then threw the game-winning touchdown a minute later.
“Before, we had a lot of leaders on defense,” said then-Bears defensive coordinator Vince Tobin. “Now, he’s put himself in a position of, ‘I’ve been here this long. I’ve got to make the plays to lead the defense.’”
Of course, being a leader didn’t mean McMichael let up on his hijinks.
He was always pulling a prank or acting like a goofball and Bears fans witnessed his antics firsthand during his half-hour television show on WMAQ-TV.
As each 30-minute program began, McMichael would greet viewers as, “My Mongo-loids.”
One Final Season in Green Bay
McMichael played two more years in Chicago and netted 10.5 sacks in 1992.
Then, before the 1994 season, second-year Bears head coach Dave Wannstedt told McMichael that he wanted to go younger.
The Bears weren’t going to pay the defensive tackle his $1 million salary in ‘94 and countered with $300,000.
That’s when McMichael said goodbye and signed a $450,000 one-year deal with division rival Green Bay.
When @chicago_history goes wrong:
Steve McMichael left Chicago to play for Green Bay in 1994 🚫⚠️🏈🤬#ChicagoHistory #Chicago #NFL #Bears #Packers #Football #ChicagoBears #BearDown pic.twitter.com/iJ5k2yTczD— Chicago History ™️ (@Chicago_History) July 13, 2018
By the time he arrived in Wisconsin, Ming the Merciless (another nickname bestowed by Bears teammates) had 92.5 sacks in his career.
It was the most among defensive tackles since the NFL began keeping track of the stat in 1982.
“I feel like I’ve been reborn in Green Bay,” McMichael said. “The people in this town revere the game. They’re like rabid dogs. I feel young again. It doesn’t matter which side of the Packer-Bear rivalry I’m playing on, as long as I’m playing in it.”
McMichael was especially animated to face his old team before the Packers met Chicago during their two regular season games.
“We expect a very fanatical effort out of Ming,” said then-Bears defensive end Alonzo Spellman. “He’s always fired up for a game, but this is another level.”
“I don’t know exactly what to expect, but you know he’ll be fired up,” said linebacker Ron Cox. “Last year against Minnesota, Ming was (upset) and he started biting a Coke can on the sideline. Bit right through it. His mouth was bleeding but he kept right on chewing. Incredible.”
With McMichael leading the defense, the Packers easily defeated Chicago in both games with a 73-9 combined score.
McMichael Retires
Green Bay went 9-7 and advanced to the divisional round before losing to Dallas.
After the season McMichael retired after 15 years.
During his career, McMichael had 847 total tackles, three safeties, 95 sacks, 17 fumble recoveries, 13 forced fumbles, and two interceptions.
He was a Super Bowl champion, two-time Pro Bowler, and five-time All-Pro.
Since retiring, McMichael has been placed on Pro Football Reference’s 1980s All-Decade Team and selected as one of the Top 100 Greatest Bears of All-Time.
Mongo Becomes a Pro Wrestler
McMichael may have been done with football, but Mongo was not ready not stop competing.
Shortly after leaving the NFL, McMichael joined former New York Giants terror Lawrence Taylor as an “enforcer” for LT before a WWF Wrestlemania event.
McMichael then joined the World Championship Wrestling (WCW) as a commentator with a gift of gab.
“It was just something I wanted to keep in my life,” Mongo told Wrestling Inc. on the WINCLY podcast. “Football was gone in my life. Entertaining people and the roar of the crowd? Man, there’s nothing like that. Go out and entertain the crowd and give them what they want? Man, you’re over.”
Mongo later challenged legendary wrestler Ric Flair to a match after Flair flirted with McMichael’s then-wife, Debra.
Flair teamed with his partner, Arn Anderson, and McMichael had former NFL pass rusher Kevin Greene in his corner.
On this day in 1996, at WCW's Great American Bash, Steve McMichael turned on partner Kevin Greene to join the Four Horsemen. #IYO: Would Mongo's partner Greene made for a better Horseman? pic.twitter.com/3dAlLoy9lJ
— WrestleMedia (@wrestlemediaca) June 16, 2018
During the match, McMichael “betrayed” Green with a suitcase full of cash from Flair to be a new member of the fabled “Four Horsemen.”
McMichael then took the briefcase and bonked Greene on the head.
Mongo continued to wrestle for the next few years and even won the WCW heavyweight U.S. title over Jeff Jarrett.
McMichael is Diagnosed with ALS
By 2007, McMichael had long left the squared circle and got back into football.
That year he was hired as the head coach of the Chicago Slaughter, an indoor football team that McMichael coached through the 2013 season.
Ten years ago I was in the locker room getting sprayed with champagne by Steve McMichael when the Chicago Slaughter went undefeated and won the CIFL arena football title. Arena Bowl XXXII is on right now. Just a cool memory that popped into my head. Here is a neat photo I took. pic.twitter.com/W8IFH4oAbp
— Tim Froehlig 🏀🥎⚾️🏈🏐🏒⚽️🍕 (@TFroehlig) August 12, 2019
In 2009, the Slaughter went 14-0 and won the Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL) championship.
Then, in 2021, McMichael shared that he was diagnosed with ALS, a condition that has afflicted the likes of Steve Gleason and Tunch Ilkin.
“I’ll tell you what,” Roberts said that year, “I will say this: Steve’s temperament will handle his situation better than anybody else walking. He’s got a rough hand in front of him, but you’ll never hear him whine. He’s going to face it head-on. If there’s a possibility of it (ALS) being whipped, he will be the one to do it.”
The disease has reduced a hulk of a man down to a shell of his former self, but Mongo is still cantankerous.
I am so happy for Steve McMichael the Bears legend who made it to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. McMichael has ALS any many think he hung on just to hear the great news. Steve, you are a great man and my prayers 🙏 are with you and your family. Many of your legions of fans want… pic.twitter.com/0sZyOty5gN
— Matthew Nichol (@MatthewNichol5) February 11, 2024
Although by 2024 McMichael is only able to communicate electronically, he still makes sarcastic remarks, usually with his second wife, Misty, by his side laughing.
For the past three years, McMichael has battled, hoping and praying to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame before he died.
There have been a few close calls, but he has hung on, waiting for the call.
Steve McMichael's courageous battle with ALS continues to be an inspiration as he prepares to enter the Pro Football Hall of Fame this summer. pic.twitter.com/0dIqzeFW43
— Pro Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) February 11, 2024
Thankfully, that happened on January 24, 2024, when his former teammate and friend Richard Dent called.
“I’ve gotten the privilege to call you guys …” Dent began, and a yelp from Misty caught in her throat. “… to let Steve know that he’s now in the Class of 2024,” Dent said.
With good news in hand, the hope now for the McMichaels’ is that Steve will stay alive long enough and be able to travel to Canton, Ohio on August 3, 2024, for the induction ceremonies.
As McMichael has shown more times than not, it’s not a good idea to count him out.
References
https://talkoffametwo.com/state-your-case/state-your-case-steve-mcmichael
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-10-05-sp-3114-story.html
https://www.burntorangenation.com/2009/12/7/1189774/steve-mcmichael-tough-guys-get
https://www.texasfootball.com/hof-steve-mcmichael?ref=search
https://texassports.com/sports/general/roster/steve-mcmichael/1644
https://vault.si.com/vault/1994/10/31/steve-mcmichael
https://www.chicagobears.com/news/mcmichael-reflects-on-year-with-pats-17499807
https://wgntv.com/news/former-chicago-bear-steve-mongo-mcmichael-reveals-he-is-battling-als/
https://footballfoundation.org/hof_search.aspx?hof=2243
https://www.profootballhof.com/players/steve-mcmichael/
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/M/McMiSt00.htm
NEXT: The Life And Career Of Jay Cutler (Story)