Running back Terdell Middleton ran for 121 yards and four touchdowns as the Green Bay Packers crushed the Settle Seahawks 45-28 at Milwaukee County Stadium. While Middleton’s outstanding performance led the way, the highlight of the game came on the opening kickoff, when Packers wide receiver Steve Odom kept his promise to a hospitalized fan and scored a touchdown for him. This was a high-scoring, exciting game that made many enduring memories.
Packers Crush Seahawks After Steve Odom Keeps His Promise: The Buildup
The 1978 Packers were the surprise of the league in the first half of the season. Green Bay finished 4-10 the previous year under head coach Bart Starr in 1977. They weren’t expected to be much better in 1978. Starting quarterback Lynn Dickey was still unavailable as he recovered from a broken leg suffered in a late season game against the Rams in 1977. David Whitehurst was back as the starter in his second NFL season.
The Packers got off to a surprising 5-1 start to the season, already surpassing their win total from the previous year before the leaves fell off the trees. Seattle entered the game 3-3.
Earlier in October 1978, 11-year-old Greg Peeters lost both of his legs in a farm accident. He was a big Packers fan and Odom was one of his favorite players.
“A friend of the family came up and asked me if I’d speak to Greg the next day,” Odom recalled years later. “He was having surgery to remove his legs.”
There, Odom made a promise to the boy. “Greg had his surgery and was in his bed,” Odom explained. “He was obviously in pain, but he rolled over and looked at me and practically jumped out of his bed. After what he had just been through, all he could think of was the Packers and me.”
Odom promised to give him the game ball and that he would try to score a touchdown for him.
A Fast Start, Promise Kept
Odom didn’t take long to keep his promise. He took the opening kickoff on a rainy day in Milwaukee and ran it back 95 yards for a touchdown.
“Seattle kicked off and it was a left return,” Odom remembered. “I made it look like I was going up the middle and then it was like the parting of the Red Sea. [Then] I got the blocks, and I shot right through it as the hole closed up. I think I thought of Greg Peeters as I ran the last 50 yards or so. Touchdown.”
Green Bay led 7-0, but things were just getting started. The Seahawks fumbled on their second play from scrimmage and Ezra Johnson recovered for Green Bay. Two plays later, Whitehurst found rookie wide receiver James Lofton for a 24-yard touchdown pass. The Packers led 14-0.
Another Seahawks fumble set up the next Packers score. Rufus Crawford dropped a punt return in the rain and Estus Hood recovered at the Seattle 20. Middleton scored on an old-fashioned Packers sweep and it was 21-0 Green Bay.
Ezra Johnson recovered another fumble by Seattle’s Sherman Smith and Middleton scored on another sweep, this one to the left side. The Packers led 28-0. The first quarter wasn’t over yet.
Packers Crush Seahawks After Steve Odom Keeps His Promise: Not So Fast
Starr knew he needed to keep his young team grounded. After Jim Zorn got Seattle on the board with a 12-yard scramble for a touchdown early in the second quarter, he called his offense together on the sideline. Seattle then recovered an onsides kick to get the ball back.
“I told them, ‘If you think this is going to be a cakewalk, you’re wrong. Dead wrong.’” Starr said. “They scored as I was talking.” Zorn found Steve Largent on a 48-yard bomb and the Green Bay lead was cut to 28-14.
The Packers thought they scored again on a pass from Whitehurst to Lofton, but an offensive pass interference call nullified the touchdown, and the Packers settled for a 22-yard field goal by Chester Marcol. They led 31-14 at the half.
The Second Half
The Packers added to their lead in the third quarter. Linebacker Mike Hunt recovered a fumble by Zorn at the Seattle 37. A 19-yard pass to Lofton set up Middelton for another score, this time a two-yard run. The Packers led 38-14.
Middelton’s fourth touchdown closed out the scoring for the Packers in the late in the third quarter. Seattle managed two more scores, but the outcome was already decided. The Packers won going away, 45-28.
Whitehurst finished the game by completing 12-of-19 passes for 179 yards and a touchdown. Lofton caught five passes for 98 yards and a score. Odom added a 48-yard punt return to go along with his 95-yard touchdown on the opening kickoff.
Starr was pleased with his offense, which put up a season-high 45 points while his defense forced seven turnovers. That included five fumble recoveries and interceptions by Willie Buchanon and Johnnie Gray.
“The blocking was crisp, the running was very good,” Starr told reporters. As a result, our passing game was good when we needed it.”
Packers Crush Seahawks After Steve Odom Keeps His Promise: The Aftermath
The win increased the Packers record to 6-1. They held a three-game lead over the competition in the NFC Central. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t last. The Packers second half schedule was tougher, and the team finished the season 8-7-1. That tied them with the Vikings for first place in the division, but the Vikings held the tie breaker, and the Packers narrowly missed the playoffs.
Odom ended up leading the NFL in kick returns while Middleton gained 1,116 yards for the season and earned Pro Bowl honors.
The four rushing touchdowns by Middelton remains tied for the Packers single-game record.
Odom did return to give the game ball to Peeters. “I went to the hospital and Greg was very excited to get that ball,” Odom said. “I hope he still has it.”
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