CANTON — Marv Levy smiled on the stage of the Pro Football Hall of Fame while the Class of 2025 Enshrinement crowd sang “Happy Birthday” to him.
Levy, the head coach of Buffalo Bills teams that went to four Super Bowls, will turn 100 Sunday, Aug. 3.
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Levy did not speak to the crowd. Hall of Fame running back Thurman Thomas did.
“I never came across a guy who played for Marv and didn’t like him,” Thomas said. “Marv didn’t just teach us football. He taught us to become better friends, better family men, better members of our community.
“I love you coach. Happy birthday.”
Levy was one of the most articulate men to come through the NFL. The Buffalo News called his 2001 enshrinement talk the most famous speech in Buffalo Bills history.”
An excerpt from the speech:
Hall of Famer Marv Levy is recognized for his 100th birthday during the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement at Tom Benson Hall of Fame in Canton. August 02, 2025.
“When I was a high school assistant football coach exactly a half century ago, men like Jim Thorpe, Bronko Nagurski, Sid Luckman and Marion Motley were mythical gods. They still are, and I tread this ground with great reverence for all who are here.
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“Never did I dream that some day I might be invited to share these same lodgings with them.
“The greatest man I ever knew of my father. As a Marine in World War I, he raced several hundred yards into withering machine gun fire, across the wheat fields at Belle Wood and France, to help stop a German advance 25 miles from Paris.
“When I was a young man, I telephoned my father to tell him I was leaving Harvard Law School, and that I wanted to be a football coach. Thirty seconds of painful silence followed.
“Finally, the old Marine said, ‘Be a good one.’ I hope I haven’t disappointed him.”
As he prepared to turn 100, Levy shared the stage with more than 110 returning Pro Football Hall of Famers.
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Another milestone, Chris Berman’s 25th appearance as master of ceremonies at an enshrinement, was marked shortly after Levy waved to the crowd.
As is his custom, Berman responded to a moment in his honor with humor:
“They’re not smart enough to get rid of me yet.”
Reach Steve at steve.doerschuk@cantonrep.com
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Hall of Fame honors coach Marv Levy as gets set to turn 100 years old