Ron Hughes is a name that is not going to be on the tip of the tongue for many fans of the Pittsburgh Steelers, at least not before his passing yesterday. But he had an understatedly immense impact on the fate of the franchise in this millennium, and on General Manager Kevin Colbert.
A Pennsylvania native, he himself played football through the college level, at California State College, playing both offense and defense at center and linebacker during the 1970s. He would soon after dabble in the coaching ranks at the high school level in the Pittsburgh area.