News out of St. Louis last week that longtime NFL great Jack Snow died triggered a lot of boyhood memories for this writer.

And when the Boston Red Sox acquired Snow’s talented son J.T. in an offseason move to shore up defense at first base, the memories washed over me.

You see, for years I followed the football fortunes of the Los Angeles Rams, and Snow’s sudden passing – he was only 62 -brought back days of a bunch of kids sitting in front of my father’s large television set and cheering on our beloved Rams.

For the record, we were not always fans of the West coast bunch. For years, the New York football Giants dominated our thinking.

I’m old enough to remember when the only televised football we could watch in the greater-Bangor area was Johnny Unitas and the Baltimore Colts. Next up came the Giants, followed by two broadcasts each Sunday, one New York game, one Boston Patriots game.

For young kids in that generation, the Rams took the TV world by storm. I first started following this team casually, but my good friend Bruce always recreated the talented quarterback Roman Gabriel’s fluid arm motion and drop-back style in our nightly touch football games on either his father’s lawn on Webster Avenue or mine, affectionately known as Brown Stadium on Highland Avenue.

Of course, if you played on Bruce’s team, the tight end position was manned faithfully by a Jack Snow impersonator. By that I mean, one would have to imitate all the Notre Dame grad’s mannerisms, including his steady, loping style in the open field, and, of course, his great hands.

Snow’s real stats were impressive. Old No. 84 chalked up 10 career 100-yard games. His average run and catch yardage was also something. Every time Jack caught the ball he managed to advance it 17.7 yards, while taking the ball into the end zone 45 times.

Consider that, then consider a bunch of backyard boys playing out their own football fantasies.

On the other side of the ball, we still held dear the Giants stars of old. Guys such as Sam Huff, No. 70, as good a linebacker who ever played the game, and Andy Robustelli, No. 85, a solid defensive end, could catch anyone in the backfield or chase you down the sidelines.

January snow was no deterrent for our activities. Brown Stadium was the place to be in the winter, for Bruce’s lawn sloped, creating difficult uphill footing on any post pattern, a favorite Jack Snow move. Even button hooks, another Gabriel-to-Snow favorite, could be bogged down by the tough sledding.

And, of course, there was always the indoor version of Gabriel to Snow, chased by Huff and Robustelli. No, we didn’t ruin our mothers’ living rooms. We brought out our trusty electric football games instead, with players painted in Rams and Giants colors – with appropriate numbers, of course – and had at it in front of the television set.

I have many fond memories of electric football tournaments being played during my high school years.

Now, make no mistake about it: Advancing a tiny felt football on a small metal playing surface was no small task.

I juiced my own home field up a little with a stronger motor, which afforded the players more movement through vibration.

I didn’t ever get to see the Gabriel to Snow combination in person. Roman, no statistical slouch himself, tossed an impressive 154 career TD passes – still an L.A. record – and had the lowest interception percentage for 500 attempts at just 3.38 miscues.

No one could capture the tanned, lean QB look quite like my friend Bruce, but I held my own in the open field, impersonating No. 84.

If I had had Jack’s hands, longtime Bangor High football coach Gerry Hodge would’ve snatched me up quickly. I didn’t, and, subsequently, he didn’t.

Coach Hodge once told me I could’ve been a decent guard. Nah, I’m thinking. I never liked those midrange numbers such as 64 or 55.

Rest in peace, Jack. You brought a lot of happiness to a lot of backyard boys in the 1960s and 1970s. Maybe the Sox will let J.T. wear your number for luck.

NEWS columnist Ron Brown, a retired high school basketball coach, can be reached at bdnsports@bangordailynews.net