I hadn't heard he had passed. So sad to hear that time is marching on so rapidly. Prayers to his family and friends. He will be greatly missed by all.
Sad news. I had the pleasure of speaking and corresponding with Norm quite a few times over the years after his Gators Football Vault book came out. He was a wealth of knowledge and really bled orange and blue. Ultimately he was the reason and inspiration when I started researching Gators football history. Sad to hear of his passing but 90 is a good run. Godspeed Mr Carlson!
Sad to hear this about a great Gator. Fond memory of my grandfather calling him to find a couple of tickets to a game back sometime in the 60’s. Probably wasn’t his job to do in those days but he accommodated anyway. He got us two but I can’t recall what game. RIP, Norm Carlson.
From Steve Spurrier on X: Gator Nation lost a historian, S.I.D., & Assistant Athletic Director when Norm Carlson passed away. The world lost a great person, mentor, and friend. Some say Norm was the reason I won the Heisman. He had a big hand in it, I know that. He will be missed. Prayers to his family.
A great Gator, instrumental in doing the media work done to promote SOS for the Heisman, and so many other things. Condolences to Gator Nation, friends and family.
Huge part of Gator lore from behind the scenes, and often times, right there up front. RIP Mr. Carlson. A small sampling of items bearing Norm Carlson's stamp:
Another source (Pat Dooley/via Tampa Bay Times): Gators legend Norm Carlson pioneered the modern-day Heisman campaign Excerpt going into a little more detail about Spurrier's H-man campaign: But in a sense, his Gators legacy was cemented the same day as Spurrier’s: Oct. 29, 1966. Prior to that Saturday, when the 6-0 Gators hosted Auburn at Florida Field, Carlson had been working feverishly to thrust Spurrier into the collective consciousness of Heisman voters, who didn’t have the benefit of seeing the quarterback live. Florida had no regular-season games televised in 1966. First, Carlson assembled a brief highlight film of Spurrier’s best plays at various positions — quarterback, punter and kicker — from previous years and mailed them to roughly 500 TV stations all over the country. After games, he phoned influential Heisman voters to inform them of Spurrier’s exploits that day. He also launched a push for Heisman voter registration in the South, where precious few voters resided. “I had always wanted to know why (Tennessee’s) Johnny Majors in 1958 didn’t win — and he had a phenomenal year that year,” Carlson said in 2002. “And Paul Hornung on a 2-8 Notre Dame team wins the Heisman.” A taxpayer-supported stroke of luck ensued. Midway through the season, Florida Gov. Haydon Burns — himself a Gator booster — asked Carlson what he could do to help Spurrier’s cause. Carlson suggested distributing another film clip, with plays from ‘66. “So he just called the Tourism Department and said, “I want these Spurrier clips sent to all these places,’” Carlson recalled. “So the state of Florida, through the Tourism Department, sent out another 500 film clips in the middle of the year.” The day of the Auburn game, Carlson had crammed the Florida Field press box with reporters from all over the nation, including the first New York Times staff writer (Joe Durso) to cover a UF contest. Spurrier threw for 259 yards and a touchdown that afternoon. Then, in his most legendary audible ever, he waved off normal UF kicker Wayne Barfield and converted a 40-yard field goal with just over two minutes to play in a 30-27 Gator win. “The Heisman ballots had gone out that week,” Carlson said. Spurrier won the Heisman in a landslide over runnerup Bob Griese of Purdue (1,679 points to 816). Gators legend Norm Carlson pioneered the modern-day Heisman campaign
I've heard the same thing over the years. Back then the BIG thought the SEC was high school level. Times have changed.
