The Steelers are celebrating their 50th training camp at Saint Vincent College this summer. As a part of that celebration, we will be sharing training camp memories from players, coaches, staff and fans, leading up to the start of the 2015 Steelers Training Camp.
Ron Johnson – CB – 1974-84
Fifty years of Steelers football at Saint Vincent College.
"Training camp was great. It was almost in a secluded place. You would get 10,000 fans out there sitting up on the hill. It was a beautiful camp.
"It was the most competitive thing I have ever done. To be out there with John Stallworth, Lynn Swann, Jim Smith and Calvin Sweeney, those were just some of the receivers we had to battle against to win those jobs to be a part of the Pittsburgh Steelers organization."Donnie Shell – SS - 1974-87
(Photo above)
"I have to think back to my rookie year. I barely made it. That was the year we had the strike and we had to go for six weeks with two-a-days.
"It's a nice setting. It's a great place to be for it. It's a great place to go out and prepare for the season. There is a lot of solitude there and it was a chance to concentrate and get ready for the season." Greg Lloyd – LB – 1988-97
"I think hot, don't bother me, don't talk to me. Let me get up this hill. Let me get some water. Oh my gosh, it's hot in this dorm. I still have a long walk. There is nothing nice about training camp. The practice part is the best part of it. If you could just go to practice and back to your room it would be great."
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Craig Bingham – LB – 1982-84, 87* "Training camp was forever and a day ago and I want to keep it that way. It seemed like it went on forever and a day. Training camp now for these kids, they didn't have two-a-days like we did. I roomed with Walter Abercrombie and we had two fans. We had two pay phones on the floor and one general television. The atmosphere was something we can all say we had to go through it together so you dealt with it and moved on. * ** "Two-a-days were very intense. I remember coming in and we got weighed in and I weighed in at 227 and a week later I was 204. If that gives you any indication of what we were going through at the time. I remember Jack Lambert getting upset with Mike Merriweather and I because at the end of a couple of practices we would just go out and run. He thought, well I can't repeat what he thought. You know Jack."Moon Mullins – G/OT – 1971-79"Training camp under Chuck Noll was scary because I had to go across from Joe Greene most of the time and he was a pretty nasty individual back in those days.
"My first experience we had to do the Oklahoma drill the first day of practice. I was a tight end in college and there was a group of us out there being filmed, offense vs. defense. They randomly called an offensive name and a defensive name and unfortunately for me I got called with Joe Greene my first time out. I thought I might get cut before my first practice. I figured Joe was going to kill me. I said give it your best shot. I came off the ball and hit him pretty good and the running back went through. A lot the guys on the offense were going crazy because I handled Joe Greene. I turned around because you only had to do it once. I was walking back to the group of offensive guys and everyone got quiet. I see this big hand come around and grab my facemask and say you aren't done rook, we are going to do it one more again. I said I know I am going to die now.
"I sort of neutralized him. I think I gained a little respect. I was apprehensive thinking I might have to go a third time. Joe made his own rules. We got through it and Joe and I became close friends. During my time with the Steelers I had to go against Joe Greene every day."
