BY JOHN A. DARNELL JR.
      associate editor
      It was almost 40 years ago, in 1977, the Mahoning Valley climbed into elite circles when Edward J. DeBartolo Jr., then 32-years-old, assumed control of the San Francisco 49ers, purchasing a majority interest in the team for $17 million.
      DeBartolo’s father, Edward Sr., had become a national figure in the years before the purchase, as an American shopping mall pioneer, and had been rebuffed in his efforts to buy a professional baseball team, the Chicago White Sox; and now his son acquired a professional football team.
      Would he be as successful as his father?
      The Niners, under those first two seasons of DeBartolo ownership, didn’t show much, finishing back-to-back 2-14 campaigns.
      And Eddie Jr. wasn’t exactly well-liked in San Francisco.
      So, Eddie, his father, Bill Moses (Mr. D’s assistant) and Atty. Carmen Policy met for weeks in the Bay area, courting then Stanford University head grid coach Bill Walsh to become their new head coach.
      Eventually, Walsh agreed, and the Niners fortunes grew into a legend when Walsh, with quarterback Joe Montana, implemented the ‘west coast offense,’ and 1981 the Niners won their first of five Super Bowls under Eddie’s leadership.
      The franchise posted the best winning percentage in the NFL in both the decades of the 1980s and 1990s. DeBartolo was named the NFL Man of the Year by the Football News in 1989 as recognition as one of the nation’s top sports executives, and in 2008 was named to the national Italian Sports Hall of Fame. In 2009, he was inducted into the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame.
      The Niners shared their success with the people in the Mahoning Valley, bringing team members to Boardman many times for victory parties. Thousands would attend the celebrations. Among the most memorable was 1988 Super Bowl champs, who all were in town on May 5, 1989 at Mr. Anthony’s on South Ave. where The Team of the Eighties was featured.
      Under DeBartolo Jr., and with Carmen Policy as team legal counsel, the Niners weren’t afraid to spend money, a lot of it, to get the best players. They spent so much money and won so many times, eventually the NFL changed its rules to stop the artful maneuvers orchestrated by Eddie and Carmen.
      23 years after Eddie’s magical run in pro football, he hit a large bump in the roadway when he got involved with Louisiana Gov. Edward Ed wards in a $400,000 transaction over a gambling permit in Boosier City, La.
      The bump forced Eddie out of pro football and the Niners were turned over to his sister, Denise, whose family still owns the team today, looking for their first win in a Super Bowl.
      Sports fans argue about a lot of stuff. Who was the best at this or that, etc.?
      But, ask the question: Who is the first NFL owner to win five Super Bowls.
      There is only one---
      Eddie DeBartolo Jr., from Boardman, Ohio.
       Note: Mr. DeBartolo Jr. now resides in Tampa, Fla. He founded DeBartolo Holdings LLC in 2002 and its portfolio companies include DeBartolo Development, DeBartolo Sports and Events, DeBartolo Family Foundation, Brooks DeBartolo Collegiate High School, Famous Famiglia and D-Terra Solutions. Eddie also achieved the pinnacle of hockey greatness in the early 1990s, winning two Lord Stanley Cup Championships during the family’s tenure as owners of the Pittsburgh Penguins (1990–91 and 1991–92); and during which the Penguins signed all-time great Mario Lemieux.
      Here’s what Carmen Policy (49ers executive, (1983-98) offered on Eddie D:
       •“He deserves to be in the Hall of Fame because he’s one of a kind. Sports relishes the one of a kind...If you’re talking about a business Hall of Fame, you’d have to say Steve Jobs belongs because he thought about things differently. Eddie was that kind of visionary. He was not the most brilliant financial guy in terms of crunching numbers, but he changed the NFL’s treatment of players...His message to players was, ‘Okay, if you’re going to go out there and lay it all on the line, I’m going to lay it all on the line for you. I may not be able to help you on the field, but I’m going to help you out in every other way I can.’”
       •And Joe Montana (49ers quarterback 1979-1992) noted “I think that there is no one more deserving for the Hall of Fame. The culture has changed, and it’s because Eddie and Bill Walsh were able to change the way the game was played for a while. The guys on our team looked at him like he was another player. He was not like a regular owner. You could look in his eyes and just see that he had the fire and that he had the love. I don’t think I’ve met anyone who had more love for the organization or the NFL than Eddie D.”
     
      PICTURED:SET FOR INDUCTION INTO THE PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME during ceremonies set for Sat., Aug. 6 in Canton, Oh. is Boardman native and former San Francisco 49ers owner Edward J. DeBartolo Jr. DeBartolo-led Niners teams were the first NFL franchise to win five Super Bowls (1981, 1984, 1988, 1989 and 1994). His team still owns the record for most wins over a 10-year span in NFL history. The 49ers during DeBartolo’s reign claimed 13 division titles, made 16 playoff appearances, advanced to the NFC championship game 10 times. The franchise posted the best winning percentage in the NFL in both the decades of the 1980s and 1990s.