ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- Franco Harris was the victor in the made-for-television challenge match against Jim Brown, but he denied the triumph proved anything.
'Is that the end, and does that tell it all?' Harris asked after the competition, which was designed to determine who was the better athlete. 'I don't think it does.'
Harris beat the former Cleveland Browns star by seven yards in a 40-yard dash, Friday night, which climaxed the two-day event.
Brown, the 48-year-old Hall-of-Famer who sparked the competition with his disparaging remarks about Harris' style of play, broke to an early lead in the televised footrace, but Harris, 34, raced past Brown in the final 30 yards to take the race in a time of 5.16 seconds. Brown finished in a time of 5.72 seconds.
As the race ended, Brown grabbed his left thigh and appeared to pull up, but he said later that the injury did not affect the outcome.
'What happened to me is really secondary,' he told reporters at a news conference at the Tropicana Hotel-Casino. 'I have a little slight pull in the leg.'
Brown said the injury occurred about three weeks ago while he was training for the competition.
'My leg hurts a little bit and maybe my pride hurts a little bit,' he said. 'I'd like to be Superman, but I've always said there are no supermen, there are only men.'
Brown aggravated the leg injury during a one-on-one football game that preceded the telecast. Harris won that event, which featured New York Giants quarterback Phill Simms tossing passes.
Heading into the last night of the competition, Brown had drubbed Harris in basketball and in racquetball to win a $15,000 mink coat and a vacation cruise to Hawaii. Harris won a car and a camper for his victories Friday night.
The contest developed after Brown criticized Harris as the former Pittsburgh Steeler running back began closing in on Brown's all-time NFL rushing record.
Brown, whose brilliant nine-year career with the Browns landed him in the Hall of Fame, ridiculed Harris' habit of stepping out of bounds to avoid tackles, in contrast to Brown's style of running through tackles to gain a few extra yards.
Brown also contended he would be a better player than Harris today even though Harris, at 34, is 14 years younger, and he offered to race Harris to prove it.
Harris' assault on Brown's mark ended after he left the Steelers in a contract dispute and was cut by the Seattle Seahawks. Payton, who drew praise from Brown for his power-running style, broke the record last season, leaving Brown and Harris, who wants to play again, in second and third place on the rushing list.
