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ARGONAUTS.CA STAFF
TORONTO – The Toronto Argonauts Football Club is saddened to learn of the passing of one of its All-Time Argos, Ulysses “Crazy Legs” Curtis, who passed away earlier this month on October 6 in Toronto. He was 87 years old.
Curtis, who earned the nickname “Crazy Legs” because of his unique style of running, broke through both defences and colour barriers as a player. A two-time Grey Cup champion (1950 & 1952), he was the first player of African American descent to play for the Argonauts and among the first African Americans in professional football history to play the running back position. He dressed in 57 regular season and nine (9) playoff games at running back for the Double Blue from 1950-1954.
Commented Argonauts Football Operations Consultant and former teammate, Nick Volpe, “On the field, Ulysses was one of the best natural runners I have ever seen. His nickname, “Crazy Legs”, came to be because, when he ran, his knees would go so high that he would sometimes knock the ball out of his own hands! Off of the field, he was very quiet and very intelligent. My locker was beside his for a couple of years and I always enjoyed listening to his perspectives on life. He will be missed.”
A prolific runner, Curtis still holds a place in the Argos record books as one of the most productive running backs in the organization’s 140-year history. He sits fourth all-time in Argonauts record books for career rushing yards with 3,712, a total the Albion, Michigan native accumulated in only 529 attempts for an average of seven (7.0) yards per carry. He also holds the second-best single-game rushing yards total in Argos history with 208 (behind Gill Fenerty, 215 in 1988), sits fourth all-time in career 100-yard rushing games with 12, and his 994 rushing yards in 1952 are still the tenth-most in a single season in team history.
His name was raised to the rafters of Rogers Centre in 2005 when he became a member of the exclusive “All-Time Argos” list which currently has just 22 members.
Upon his retirement in 1954, Curtis stayed in Toronto to raise his two daughters. He became a teacher and worked in the North York school system for 30 years. Curtis was buried in Albion on October 16, 2013, and is survived by two siblings, his wife, Catherine, their three children, six grandchildren and a great-granddaughter.