Author Bower Yousse and Freddie Steinmark

BILLY SCHOTT REMEMBERS FREDDIE STEINMARK

Bower, as you know, Freddie was always a big brother to me, and his influence still surfaces in my life almost daily. When I’m asked what my greatest moment was as a Texas Longhorn football player, it’s putting the first points on Freddie’s scoreboard on the night it was dedicated to his memory of my first field goal attempt as a Longhorn. “Big Fred” had told me before the game that he hoped I’d do just that (as if I wasn’t nervous enough…????), and when Coach Royal sent me in, I knew I had to deliver for my team, but also my great friend and his family. A cherished moment I’ll carry with me…until I see Freddie again.????????????????????????

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Bower Yousse is the coauthor of Freddie Steinmark: Faith, Family, Football forthcoming from University of Texas Press. A close friend and teammate of Freddie Steinmark as a teenager, Bower Yousse is a former award-winning creative executive with Young & Rubicam and other advertising agencies. Outside of the advertising industry, Bower is a successful freelance copywriter and producer. He has written several screenplays, magazine articles, and novel-to-screenplay adaptations.

Bower is working closely with the upcoming film about Freddie Steinmark, “My All American” starring Robin Tunney, Aaron Eckhart, Sarah Bolger, and Finn Wittrock to be released October 2015.

Freddie Steinmark started at safety for the undefeated University of Texas Longhorns in 1969. In the thrilling “Game of the Century,” a come-from-behind victory against Arkansas that ensured Texas the national championship, Steinmark played with pain in his left leg. Two days later, X-rays revealed a bone tumor so large that it seemed a miracle Steinmark could walk, let alone play football. Within a week of the Arkansas game, his leg was amputated.

A gritty, undersized player, Steinmark had quickly become a fan favorite at Texas. What he endured during the Longhorns’ memorable 1969 season, and what he encountered afterward, captivated not only Texans but the country at large. Americans watched closely as Steinmark confronted life’s ultimate challenge, and his openness during his battle against savage odds helped reframe the national conversation surrounding cancer and the ongoing race for a cure.

Written with unfettered access to the Steinmark family and archives, Freddie Steinmark: Faith, Family, Football is the exploration of a brief but full life, one that began humbly but ended on a grand stage. It is a fitting tribute to a legendary Longhorn whose photograph, emblazoned with the word “Heart,” flashes on the Freddie Steinmark Scoreboard’s Jumbotron prior to each home football game in UT’s Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium at Joe Jamail Field.