Numerous times over his Hall of Fame coaching career, Marv Levy told his players in the pregame huddle: “Where else would you rather be than right here, right now?” For Levy, there was apparently no where else he would rather be than at the Pro Football Hall of Fame on the eve of his 100th birthday.
Levy, who officially turned 100 on Sunday, received a serenade of “Happy Birthday” from the crowd inside Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium during Saturday’s Hall of Fame enshrinement ceremony. Three of Levy’s former players — Hall of Famers Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas and James Lofton — initiated the impromptu celebration of Levy’s centenary birthday.
Levy, who sat beside former co-worker and Hall of Fame general manager Bill Polian, was presented by Polian during his Hall of Fame enshrinement back in 2001. His enshrinement was the result of a highly successful coaching career that included four consecutive trips to the Super Bowl with the Buffalo Bills from 1990-93.
Despite being 60 years old when he became the Bills’ coach, Levy enjoyed a 12-year career in Buffalo that was highlighted by four consecutive AFC titles, six division titles and eight playoff appearances. Including the playoffs, Buffalo went 123-78 under Levy during his dozen years on the sideline.
While his teams never won a Super Bowl, Levy often lauded the resilience of those teams to get back to the big game a year after coming up short.
“There’ll always be regret that the Bills didn’t win one, but it’s not something that destroys your outlook on life,” he said in a 2019 interview. “It was a game. It was an important game. I wish we would’ve won them, but I’m proud we got there. I’m proud we bounced back. I’m proud of the people on our team.”
