Oct. 18, 2003

When Charlie Justice died Friday morning after a lengthy illness, the life of arguably this state's most famous athlete came to an end.

Michael Jordan, Mia Hamm, and many others have become national and even international stars in recent years.

But, to those people who lived during the Justice Era in the late 1940's there has never been a bigger sports figure than the University of North Carolina's star tailback.

Justice played before cable television, SportsCenter, all-sports radio networks and websites. He finished his Tar Heel career even before network television had become a part of daily life.

Even without those publicity outlets Justice became a national star. He was a four-time All-America, twice was runner-up in the Heisman Trophy voting and is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.

Justice was a threat in every possible way on the football field. He was best known for his running ability, both from scrimmage and returning kicks. He holds school records in kickoff and punt return averages and also had four punt returns for touchdowns.

He was also a fine passer, a good receiver and a brilliant punter. He led the nation in punting in 1948. He held the Carolina career rushing record until Don McCauley finally passed him in 1970.

He tried to remain as close to Tar Heel athletics as possible. Any time he was in town he made an effort to attend football practice.

"I know Charlie would make me feel better any time I saw him," said Bill Dooley, who coached the Tar Heels from 1967 to 1977. "We were trying to rebuild the program and just to know that the school' greatest player was behind us was a boost to our staff."

Justice made sure he was in the locker room to congratulate Jason Stanicek when his career total offense finally fell in 1994.

That was typical Justice. He had not been excited about being a big star or setting records anyway. He just wanted to be part of a team.

But, he was the player around whom Coach Carl Snavely built the most successful teams in school history. From 1946 to 1949 the Tar Heels were 32-9-2, went to three major bowls and turned down an Orange Bowl invitation in 1947 to stay home for the holidays.

Justice and his teammates were playing in the period immediately following World War Two. Many had been away from their families for three, four or five years. They simply wanted to finally be home for Christmas.

Like his teammates Justice had been away from his family. He joined the armed forces, but never saw combat action. Unable to swim, he signed up for the Army. The U.S. government, of course, immediately put him in the Navy and sent him to Bainbridge Naval Training Center in Maryland. There he was placed on the station's football team that faced teams from other bases. His competition included professional stars.

After three years there he could have stepped right into the pros himself, but decided to get an education. He chose Carolina and later called it one of the two best decisions he ever made. The other was marrying his wife, Sarah.

Perhaps it was that time period, as much as his performance on the football field, that made Justice such a star. People were looking for heroes after the war. Justice was a perfect choice.

He was married and mature, but still had boyish looks with a chiseled chin that was perfect for photographers. He was on the cover of all the big magazines, including Look and Colliers.

Plus, he was a homegrown star, having won high school All-America honors in Asheville. He was friendly and modest to a fault. He neither smoked nor drank. There could not have been a better player for this football program.

And football was especially important at the University at that time.

Chapel Hill was an exciting college town in 1946, but the campus had an unusual mix. The war veterans were returning in large numbers and most were older than the other undergraduates. Like Justice, many were married students. This, with the normal influx of kids just out of high school, presented a great range in personalities on campus.

Approximately 2,000 veterans enrolled that fall, pushing the student population to 6,800. That was 2,400 over the largest previous total at Carolina.

A common denominator for all the students proved to be on the football field. Success there could unite the various groups. Perhaps the most overlooked part of Justice's career is that he and his teammates helped create campus camaraderie at such an unusual time in the University's history. Never before had so many students had so little in common and gotten along so well.

Justice was fortunate to be surrounded by excellent players. Most of them, even those listed as freshmen, had a good deal of football experience. Like Justice they had played on service teams during the war. Some upperclassmen had played at other schools before transferring to Carolina after ending their military service. In fact, the average age of the 70 players on the pre-season roster was 21.5. That might not seem so unusual except there were no seniors on the team, just 11 juniors and only 25 sophomores.

Even with great all-round talent, Justice was the centerpiece of the team and as well known as anyone in the South.

A teacher at an orphanage in North Carolina asked his pupils to name the most important man in the United States. The principal of the school got one vote; Harry Truman, president of the United States, had two; the remainder went to Justice.

Before his health began to fail a few years ago, he regularly attended the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame dinner. In a room filled with the greatest athletes the state has ever produced he always got the greatest applause.

For years officials at the College Football Hall of Fame tried to get him to attend its annual dinner in New York. But, Charlie hated to fly and always turned the invitation down.

When news of his death spread Friday, accolades poured in from across the nation. Even 57 years after he first played here, he is still as well known to many as the Tar Heel stars of today.

He is, after all, the one athlete whose time on campus bears his name. The Justice Era was that special in the history of Carolina athletics.