Cookie stays home while his teammates celebrate titles

[The_Philster]

"People should work harder to understand those who don't conform." - Cookie Gilchrist in Sports Illustrated, 1964
Oh, people have tried. Jack Kemp and Booker Edgerson, his old Bills teammates. Larry Felser and Jim Peters, who covered the team in those years. They've tried to get Gilchrist to let go of his resentment, to make peace with his past, to give Buffalo fans a final chance to honor him.

The Bills celebrated their championship teams this weekend. They had a carnival for the kids, a showing of the Houston Oilers comeback game, the unveiling of a third jersey. Former players from the AFL champs and the Super Bowl teams came for the occasion. Kemp and Edgerson were there...more

[Jan Reimers]

What a shame. Cookie wasn't treated very well by the Bills, who unceremoniously dumped him - as much for his attitude as anything - but after 40 plus years, you'd think he and the Bills could patch things up.

[TheGhostofJimKelly]

As Chris Rock says, "nobody is more racist than an old black man."

[Dozerdog]

What a shame. Cookie wasn't treated very well by the Bills, who unceremoniously dumped him - as much for his attitude as anything - but after 40 plus years, you'd think he and the Bills could patch things up.

Whoa there!

The only reason Cookie Gilchrist was - as you call it -unceremoniously dumped by the Bills was beacause he walked out on his team DURING A GAME!

The Bills, who in 1964 were undefeated at 9-0 and playing the Patriots, were struggling in a tough game. Down 14-13 just before trhe half, Cookie refused to go into the game - claiming Saban "Didn't give me the ball enough".
He quit on his team. The Bills suffered their first loss, 36-28

Saban cut him the next day- but Kemp - realizing they needed him for a championship- talked both parties into patching it up- at least for the remaining part of the season. Of course, Saban dealt him to Denver in the offseason for FB Billy Joe.

http://www.billszone.com/mtlog/archives/2004/07/14/patriots_36_bills_28_nov_15_1964.php

Curious, that you were so hard on Ruben Brown for being a "quitter'' when he rebelled against the abortion of a coaching staff in his spat with Kevin Gillbride and Gregg Williams.

Was Ruben "unceremoniously dumped'?

Would anyone want him back after this? With all the money he's making, and the (undeserved) Pro Bowl recognition, you would think that the big baby would have enough pride and integrity to go out and play.

I wouldn't have this classless quitter back under any circumstances.

http://www.billszone.com/fanzone/showpost.php?p=447106&postcount=10

[G. Host]

Cookie citing TO is all I need to hear - "me, me, me" and "contracts mean nothing". I used to hear about Cookie and wonder but no more.

[Jan Reimers]

Dozer -

Forty-plus years kind of takes the edge off things like this. In forty years - when I'm 100 - I'll probably take a kinder view of Ruben as well. Seriously, I don't hold grudges the same way that some people do.

[sdbillsfan2]

I may be one of the older folks here but ........I do remember Cookie ! He and so many others from those Bills teams of those early days are probably the reason I'm an avid Bills fan today. More times then not ,I would listen to Van Miller doing the games on the radio.
I remember as a kid calling for LaMonica to come in when Jack Kemp was having an "off" day. Talk about a trade that I hated ,that was one person I really hated to see go.
There were names like "Golden Wheels" and Sestak, Even Paul Maguire was a character in his Playing days. I can go on and on with the list of Player who lit the fire of my being a Bills fan ,but I definitly will always thank Cookie and the rest of them for what they did.
What ever happened in the days past is over..Nothing can be done to change those things. But one thing is for certain ....Cookie, among the others of that generation have made me a Bills fan. They gave a young man a tranfusion of Bills blood that runs thru my heart and soul to this day.
So to Cookie and Every other Bills player who went out on the field and fought every Sunday...............I say "Thank you "

[LifetimeBillsFan]

I may be one of the older folks here but ........I do remember Cookie ! He and so many others from those Bills teams of those early days are probably the reason I'm an avid Bills fan today. More times then not ,I would listen to Van Miller doing the games on the radio.
I remember as a kid calling for LaMonica to come in when Jack Kemp was having an "off" day. Talk about a trade that I hated ,that was one person I really hated to see go.
There were names like "Golden Wheels" and Sestak, Even Paul Maguire was a character in his Playing days. I can go on and on with the list of Player who lit the fire of my being a Bills fan ,but I definitly will always thank Cookie and the rest of them for what they did.
What ever happened in the days past is over..Nothing can be done to change those things. But one thing is for certain ....Cookie, among the others of that generation have made me a Bills fan. They gave a young man a tranfusion of Bills blood that runs thru my heart and soul to this day.
So to Cookie and Every other Bills player who went out on the field and fought every Sunday...............I say "Thank you "

Thank you for so eloquently expressing my experiences and feelings as well. Superb post!!!

[BuffaloRanger]

Does cookie still have the pink cadillac with the words "Looky! Looky! Here's come's cookie!" written backwards in the front so you could read it in your rear view mirror?

"It's impossible for you to even comprehend the full magnitude of my contribution, not only to the Bills or Toronto Argonauts, but the economy of America," he said.

He is the patron saint of every whiney, "me first" athlete in sports today. What a POS.

[Jan Reimers]

Still a great Bill, but a worse attitude than Bruce Smith - and that's saying something!