Birthday Friday

Lot of very No Masian birthdays to celebrate today including the legend above, a man who died long before his time and yet still in his short life set the American record in every distance from 2,000 to 10,000 meters. He's one of three American runners on today's list along with the former Mr. Marion Jones and a Northern Californian middle-distance man who to this point has been more bark than bite. Also born today we have four footballers (Portugal's finest, Pele's forward partner with Brazil in 1970, one of Brazil's finest forwards today, and a Barca lifer), three Pro Football Hall-of-Famers (The Toe, a Purple People Eater and the unsung hero of Super Bowl III), two hockey players (a well-traveled Finn and an American captain), a giant of Spanish motocross, a honky tonk wrassler, the bass player on the track that accompanies every victory celebration, one of Bangladesh's finest cricketers, an all-time NASCAR hero, the only man ever to serve as a head coach in the NFL, AFL and CFL, and the voice of the Tigers who is also one of the true historical voices of the game of baseball period.