REEL FACE: | REAL FACE: |
Finn Wittrock
Born: October 28, 1984 Birthplace: Lenox, Massachusetts, USA | Freddie Steinmark
Born: January 27, 1949 Birthplace: Denver, Colorado, USA Death: June 6, 1971, Houston, Texas, USA (cancer) Position: Safety |
Sarah Bolger
Born: February 28, 1991 | Linda Wheeler
Born: August 6, 1949 Birthplace: Colorado, USA |
Aaron Eckhart
Born: March 12, 1968 Birthplace: Cupertino, California, USA | Darrell Royal
Born: July 6, 1924 Birthplace: Hollis, Oklahoma, USA Death: November 7, 2012, Austin, Texas, USA (complications from Alzheimer's disease) |
Rett Terrell
| Bobby Mitchell
Born: June 3, 1949 Birthplace: Seattle, Washington, USA Position: Offensive Guard |
Juston Street
Born: August 27, 1985 Birthplace: Travis, Texas, USA | James Street
Born: August 2, 1948 Birthplace: Longview, Texas, USA Death: September 30, 2013, Austin, Texas, USA (heart attack) Position: Quarterback |
Brent Anderson
Born: July 29, 1965 Birthplace: Panorama City, California, USA | Mike "Iron Mike" Campbell
Born: May 9, 1922 Birthplace: Memphis, Tennessee, USA Death: June 16, 1998 (complications from lymphoma) |
Richard Kohnke
Birthplace: New Orleans, Louisiana, USA | Tom Campbell
Birthplace: Texas, USA Position: Defensive Back |
Yes. The My All American true story reveals that Freddie was indeed a standout player. As stated in the movie, he was an All-Southwest Conference safety in 1969. "He started his sophomore year, junior year, which is unheard of at Texas," says former teammate Tom Campbell, "and he would have started as a senior. They amputated his leg." -Jeremy Epstein Tom Campbell Interview
Despite being selected for the Denver Post's Golden Helmet Award as the premier high school football player/student in Colorado, not a single major college football program recruited the gritty 5'9" scatback. That was until University of Texas coach Darrell Royal watched film of Steinmark and decided to take a chance on him. "I didn't get to the University of Oklahoma until I was 25 years old because of the war," Coach Royal told Steinmark on the day Steinmark committed to UT. "I was just about your size. I quarterbacked the Oklahoma Sooners to a national championship one year. On defense, I broke the record for interceptions. I don't care how big you are." -TexasCoopPower.com
Yes, and as in the movie, the real Bobby Mitchell credits his friendship with Freddie Steinmark as the reason he made it through the loss he felt when his brother died. "We were both in high school together," Mitchell said during a Texas Gameday interview. "We were recruited by Darrell Royal. We were roommates for three years and we lived in the athletic dorm. My parents couldn't afford for me to visit them or them come to visit me, so Freddie was more like my family, and that period was filled with a lot of triumphs and a lot of tragedies at that time. When I lost my brother, he was a helicopter pilot in Vietnam, Freddie was my family, and without him I don't think I could have made it. So he had a huge impact on my life."
Yes. Freddie Steinmark had dated his blonde-haired, blue-eyed girlfriend, Linda Wheeler, since the eighth grade when they both attended Wheat Ridge High School in Colorado. They went to the University of Texas together and could often be seen strolling the campus by each other's side.
Yes. Both President Richard Nixon and Texas Congressman George Herbert Walker Bush were on hand at Razorback Stadium for the celebrated December 6, 1969 showdown between the University of Texas Longhorns and the University of Arkansas Razorbacks. Freddie Steinmark, who would have his leg amputated six days later, played through the pain and helped his team come back from a 14-0 deficit after three quarters to win 15-14. The much talked about game was dubbed the "Game of the Century." -DenverPost.com
Yes. In our research into the My All American true story, we learned that Freddie confessed his pain to Coach Darrell Royal three days after the "Game of the Century" against Arkansas. Coach Royal sent him for x-rays. A possible tumor was discovered at the tip of his left thighbone. A biopsy and further analysis revealed that an inch of his femur had been devoured by cancer, leaving doctors amazed that it hadn't snapped as he'd played. Immediately after the amputation, Freddie held on to his positive attitude and told his mother that he wondered if there was any rule against one-legged kickers. -TexasCoopPower.com
Yes. Though it is not shown in the movie, Freddie temporarily broke up with his girlfriend Linda Wheeler out of fear that he was going to die, but they got back together a few months later in the fall when he couldn't stand being apart anymore. Freddie's condition soon worsened and he began painful chemotherapy treatments for lung cancer. Around the Christmas holidays, Freddie proposed to Linda. They bought rings and set their wedding date for May 23, 1971. Freddie bought an Italian suit and Linda made her own dress. They sent out invitations but the wedding was called off. By May 23, Freddie had begun to slip in and out of a coma. He passed away on June 6, 1971. -TexasCoopPower.com
Yes. As stated earlier, President Richard Nixon had been in attendance at the December 6, 1969 "Game of the Century" against Arkansas. He met Freddie that day, who he watched excel in the game despite battling debilitating leg pain. Freddie had his leg amputated just six days later, and Nixon called him in the hospital and invited him to the White House. Freddie's fight helped prompt the United States Congress to create the National Cancer Act of 1971, which Nixon signed into law, marking the start of the country's "War on Cancer."
Learn more about the My All American true story by watching an interview with former teammate and friend Bobby Mitchell. Also, view footage of the real Freddie Steinmark accepting the game ball from Coach Darrell Royal after the Cotton Bowl victory.