Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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WHERE HAVE YOU GONE? "Problem is I was never the same af- ter that, and after four years I was out of football," Niehaus said. "I found out you can't play in the NFL with one arm. It was very difficult. People close to me and to the situation knew what was going on, but everyone else wanted to know, 'What happened to Steve Niehaus?' "[Seattle head coach] Jack Patera told the papers when he traded me that I just didn't turn out the way they thought I would — with no mention of the shoulder. Back then I didn't even get a physical when they traded me to the Vikings, so the Vikings got someone who was worthless. Now, you have to pass a physical before a trade is allowed." Although financially well off with his NFL contract and signing bonus, Niehaus drove a Pepsi truck for sev- eral years just to have something to do before becoming a sales manager in the industry, moving back to Cincin- nati in 1990 and working for a Bud- weiser distributorship for 15 years, and then working for a friend in the construction business. He returns annually with Sylves- ter, former running back Tom Bake and about 20 other friends from Notre Dame who didn't play football. He keeps it to one game a year "mainly because the stadium seats are so bad. They were made for somebody 5-7, 130 pounds. It is just so crowded and cramped." It's the only time in Notre Dame Sta- dium he's ever felt blocked. ✦ Niehaus' grandson Matt Dotson (left), a tight end in the class of 2017, could be a future Notre Dame recruit. PHOTO COURTESY STEVE NIEHAUS