Editor’s note: In the Colorado Classics series, The Denver Post takes a weekly look at individuals who made their mark on the Colorado sports landscape and what they are doing now.
Critics of John Ralston’s term as Broncos coach had a catchphrase that claimed his clipboard was empty.
But upon further review, Ralston’s trademark accessory wasn’t empty. A closer look reveals the clipboard’s contents were instrumental in getting the Broncos to their first Super Bowl.
Ralston’s legacy from his term at the helm of the Broncos from 1972-76 was his draft choices. The list reads like a lineup that could go right to the Super Bowl.
“We had the fifth pick of the draft my first year and we took tight end Riley Odoms,” Ralston said recently as he tested his memory from his office at San Jose State that allows him to stay in touch with football. “Winning boils down to picking real good players in the draft. You have to build with a solid base of good players out of the draft.”
Ralston reeled off a list of first- round draft choices over those four years who became a who’s who of the Broncos. Running back Otis Armstrong was taken in 1973 with the ninth pick of the draft. Linebacker Randy Gradishar (1974), defensive back Louis Wright (1975) and guard Tom Glassic (1976) followed.
Ralston’s drafting expertise didn’t stop in the first round. Defensive end Barney Chavous, guard Paul Howard and linebacker Tom Jackson were drafts picks in 1973. Offensive tackle Claudie Minor was a Denver draft pick in 1974 and nose tackle Rubin Carter, defensive back Steve Foley and wide receiver Rick Upchurch were picked in 1975.
All played key roles at the Louisiana Superdome in the Broncos’ first Super Bowl, which they lost 27-10 to the Dallas Cowboys on Jan. 15, 1978.
But Ralston wasn’t with them in New Orleans. His knowledge of how to put a team together didn’t always transfer to victories on the field. After a 9-5 season in 1976, a group of Denver players gave a vote of no confidence in their coach and Ralston was fired, with an overall 34-33-3 record.
Red Miller was hired and the 1977 Broncos went 12-2 before beating the Pittsburgh Steelers 34-21 at Mile High Stadium in a playoff game. Then the Broncos beat the Oakland Raiders 20-17 in the AFC championship game, also at Mile High.
“It would hurt anybody,” Ralston said of his dismissal from the Broncos. “Losing a job in that business happens to about everyone. There’s no bitterness.”
Miller, in Ralston’s estimation, completed the puzzle that put the Broncos on the map. Miller traded Steve Ramsey, Ralston’s quarterback, to the New York Giants for quarterback Craig Morton.
“Red did a great job in putting the right quarterback into the mix,” Ralston said.
Ralston no longer carries a clipboard. While he spends most of his time fundraising for San Jose State, Ralston also watches hundreds of game tapes of California high school and junior college games seeking possible recruits for the Spartans.
Without saying directly, Ralston is always looking for another Merlin Olsen. He coached Olsen at Utah State and calls the former NFL star the best player he ever coached.
Ralston also participates in the Master Coaches Survey, which he hopes someday might become part of the formula used in the Bowl Championship Series standings. His fellow Master Coaches Survey voters include Don James, John Robinson, Vince Dooley, Bill Mallory and George Welsh.
Ralston, 79, looks back 66 years to when he was 13 and living in Michigan as the time he decided he wanted to be a coach.
“I don’t know why I decided that,” Ralston said. “I was living in a small mining town and everyone looked up to the high school coach. Maybe that was it, but I never wanted to do anything else. I tell everybody that I haven’t worked a day in my life.”
Ralston’s coaching stops didn’t all end in disappointment. After guiding Utah State (1959-62), Ralston coached nine years at Stanford, and his teams won Rose Bowl games against Ohio State and Michigan.
“The two Rose Bowl victories probably are the high point, but nothing compares to losing a son,” Ralston said, looking back some 20 years when illness claimed his son, Larry.
Ralston remains loyal to his former Denver players despite his firing by the Broncos, saying Gradishar and several others belong in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He looks at road victories toward the end of his last season as Denver’s coach as indications the Broncos were moving toward the Super Bowl.
“It was unbelievable how many fans would meet us at the airport when we returned from some of those games,” Ralston said. “But there was a lot of pressure to win. I probably didn’t do as good a job as I should have. Being honest with myself, I probably should have stayed at Stanford.”
Irv Moss can be reached at 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com.
