Former 49ers offensive lineman Jesse Sapolu savors induction into Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame
Jesse Sapolu joined the San Francisco 49ers in 1983 as an unheralded 11th-round draft choice from the University of Hawaii.
Sapolu went into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame on Thursday as a four-time Super Bowl champion.
He was one of five former athletes honored at the Hyatt Regency Embarcadero. The others: Former San Francisco Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford; Olympians Missy Franklin and Eddie Hart, both Cal alums; and longtime Cal rugby head coach Jack Clark.
Sapolu, 65, started 154 games at center and guard across his 15 years in the NFL. He protected quarterbacks Joe Montana and Steve Young, and he also played with wide receiver Jerry Rice and running back Roger Craig among other celebrated teammates.
All four of those players were previously inducted into the Bay Area hall.
"There was a special commitment with our group," Sapolu said Thursday. "There's a reason why we were able to go five times (to the Super Bowl). We all know the 49ers have some superstars right now, and they've been close the last three times. But it's hard to close the deal.
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"Back when I was playing, I just thought that was what we were supposed to do."
Sapolu arrived in the Bay Area one year after the 49ers won their first Super Bowl championship in January 1982. They added four more titles before Sapolu retired after the 1997 season.
He suited up only for the 49ers, a rare distinction in professional sports and one he's "very proud" about.
San Francisco reached the NFC Championship Game eight times in Sapolu's 15 seasons, a remarkable run of contention. The 49ers went 4-4 in those conference title games, which still gnaws at Sapolu.
"Those losses stay with you a little longer," he said. "So moments like tonight make you appreciate what we did, because they're honoring you for living up to a high standard. But sometimes when I'm by myself, I still think about those four losses."
If Sapolu offered a link to one of the most enduring Bay Area sports dynasties, Hart represented an under-the-radar element in this year's BASHOF class. He was a standout sprinter at Cal and qualified for the 1972 Olympics in Munich.
Hart, now 77, earned a gold medal when he ran the anchor leg on the U.S. 4x100 meter relay team. He and teammate Rey Robinson were rather infamously disqualified in the 100-meter competition, after they arrived late because their coach used an outdated schedule.
All these years later, Hart appreciates being forever known as an Olympian.
"You're not even thinking about those things when you're going through it," Hart said. "But now looking back, 50 years later, it's big. … When you say you're an Olympian, people kind of pay attention. The Olympics are still the granddaddy of sports."
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