Who Is Joy Murrath? Brian Piccolo’s High School Sweetheart, Wife and Mother of Three Girls

If you have ever seen the movie Brian’s Song, you already know part of Joy Murrath’s story. She is the wife of Chicago Bears running back Brian Piccolo, the young football player who died of cancer at only 26 years old.

Most people know Brian and his close friend Gale Sayers. Joy usually stands in the background of that story. But she was there for every important moment: the wedding, the first NFL contract, the long hospital stays and the hard years after Brian died.

Quick Bio

Detail	Information
Full name	Joy Grace Murrath
Also known as	Joy Piccolo, Joy Piccolo O’Connell
Best known as	Wife of Chicago Bears player Brian Piccolo
First husband	Brian Piccolo
How they met	High school sweethearts in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Wedding date	December 26, 1964
Years married to Brian	1964 to 1970 (until his death on June 16, 1970)
Children with Brian	Three daughters: Lori, Kristi and Traci
Later name	Joy Piccolo O’Connell
Connected to	The Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund and the Piccolo legacy
Birth date and place	Not confirmed by major sources

Who Is Joy Murrath?

Joy Grace Murrath was born as Joy Murrath. After she married Brian Piccolo, she became Joy Piccolo. Later in life, she remarried and began using the name Joy Piccolo O’Connell. That is why you may see all three names online.

She is not a celebrity in the usual sense. She never played in the NFL or acted in a movie. Her place in history comes from her marriage to a man whose life touched millions of people, and from the strength she showed after losing him.

How Joy Met Brian Piccolo

Brian Piccolo grew up in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. His family moved there from Pittsfield, Massachusetts, when he was three years old. He went to Central Catholic High School, which was later renamed St. Thomas Aquinas High School. He graduated in 1961.

Joy and Brian were high school sweethearts. Wikipedia and ESPN both describe her this way. After high school, Brian went to Wake Forest University in North Carolina to play football. Their relationship lasted through his college years.

Brian’s Big College Season

To understand Joy’s story, it helps to know what was happening in Brian’s career. At Wake Forest, Brian had a slow start. The team won very few games in his first seasons. Then in 1964, his senior year, everything changed.

According to the Chicago Bears website, Brian led the whole country in rushing and scoring that year. He ran for 1,044 yards and scored 111 points. He was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year. He also finished tenth in the Heisman Trophy voting, ahead of famous names like Joe Namath and Gale Sayers.

But when the 1965 NFL draft came, no team picked him. Many scouts thought he was too small to play fullback. Brian said later that he felt embarrassed and hurt by this. Joy was by his side during this disappointing time.

The Wedding and the Bears Contract

Brian and Joy got married on December 26, 1964. Three days later, Brian signed a free agent contract with the Chicago Bears. ESPN reports that he chose the Bears because owner George Halas offered him the most money.

The Bears made a big deal of the signing. Halas held a press conference in downtown Chicago. The Bears say this was unusual for a player who was not drafted, and it has never happened again for an undrafted player.

Joy was part of that day. In a thank-you letter to Halas, dated January 11, 1965, Brian wrote that Joy kept telling everyone about the press conference. He thanked Halas for being kind to her and for inviting her to join the photos. It is a small detail, but it shows how much it meant to the young couple.

Life as a Young Bears Family

Life in the NFL was not easy for Brian at first. He spent his first season on the Bears’ taxi squad, which is what we now call the practice squad. That means he could practice with the team, but he could not play in games.

In the next seasons, he mostly played on special teams or as a backup to Gale Sayers. His best year came in 1968, when Sayers hurt his knee. Brian ran for 450 yards that season. In 1969, he earned a spot as the starting fullback.

During these years, Joy and Brian were building a family. They had three daughters: Lori, Kristi and Traci. They also became close friends with another Bears couple, Johnny and Jeannie Morris. Jeannie later wrote Brian’s biography.

Brian Gets Sick

On November 16, 1969, the Bears played the Atlanta Falcons. Brian scored a touchdown, then took himself out of the game because he could not breathe well. This was something he had never done before. It was the last time he played in the NFL.

A few days later, doctors found a tumor in his chest. He was diagnosed with embryonal cell carcinoma, a fast-growing cancer. He had surgery in New York City at Memorial Hospital, and doctors removed a tumor the size of a grapefruit.

Over the next months, things got harder. Brian had chemotherapy and more operations. In April 1970, doctors removed his left lung. Later, the cancer spread to other parts of his body, including his liver.

Brian talked openly about how the illness changed him. The Bears website quotes him saying that when he lay in bed wondering if he would live, he thought about his three little girls. He said he learned that some things matter more than football.

Joy faced all of this while caring for three very young children. She was the person at home and at the hospital every step of the way.

Brian’s Death and the Support Joy Received

Brian Piccolo died on June 16, 1970, at the age of 26. His funeral was held in Chicago at Christ the King Catholic Church. Six Bears teammates carried his casket, including Gale Sayers and Dick Butkus.

Joy was suddenly a young widow with three little girls. The Bears family stepped in to help.

In a 2019 documentary called A Lifetime of Sundays, Joy talked about the support she received from Virginia McCaskey, a member of the family that owns the Bears. Joy said Virginia was caring and told her not to worry. The family never saw a hospital bill, and the funeral was paid for.

The Bears say George Halas paid those costs himself. He also honored the rest of Brian’s contract and set up college funds for the three daughters. This kind of help meant a lot to a young family facing a huge loss.

Joy Asks a Friend to Finish Brian’s Book

Before he died, Brian had started working on a book about his life. After his death, Joy called her close friend Jeannie Morris and asked her to finish it.

Jeannie agreed. The result was Brian Piccolo: A Short Season, published in 1971. The book includes parts that Brian wrote himself. Jeannie Morris passed away at the age of 85, and the Chicago Bears honored her for sharing Brian’s story so well.

Years later, Joy went to Wake Forest University for an autograph session for the book. A photo from that day shows her sitting next to Jeannie.

Joy and Brian’s Song

In 1971, the TV movie Brian’s Song aired on ABC on November 30. James Caan played Brian, and Billy Dee Williams played Gale Sayers. According to Wikipedia, about 55 million people watched it. The Bears website says it won four Emmy Awards.

Joy had a real part in making the film. The Bears say that she and Gale Sayers spent about a month with Caan and Williams before filming started. Sayers wrote in his own book that they talked about everything, from the way Brian laughed at his jokes to the way he handled the pain of his illness.

The film is still famous today. It is often called one of the most emotional sports movies ever made. A new version came out in 2001, with Sean Maher as Brian and Mekhi Phifer as Gale.

Joy’s Three Daughters

Joy and Brian had three daughters: Lori, Kristi and Traci. They were all very young when their father died. The Bears say that Joy and the girls have stayed close to the team and to the Piccolo legacy.

For example, the Bears website reports that Joy and her daughters joined a call to honor a player who won the Brian Piccolo Award. The family also appears at events that remember Brian and support the fund in his name.

Life After Brian: Joy Piccolo O’Connell

Joy did not stay alone forever. Several reports say she remarried a few years after Brian died. One source says the year was 1973. Her second husband is Rick O’Connell, and she has used the name Joy Piccolo O’Connell since then.

Please note that some websites give different years or extra details about her second marriage. Because those details are not always the same, this article only repeats what appears in more than one source. The name Joy Piccolo O’Connell is confirmed by NFL.com, which quotes her after the Bears honored Brian at a minicamp. Several Bears players wore the number 41, Brian’s old number. Joy said the tribute blew her away and meant a great deal to the family.

The Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund

One of the biggest parts of Joy’s story is the cancer research fund that carries Brian’s name. The Bears say the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund was created in 1970, soon after his death, by family, friends and members of the Bears team. Its first goal was to fight embryonal cell carcinoma.

At the time Brian died, this cancer was almost always deadly. Later, doctors made big progress. The Bears report that the cure rate today is more than 95 percent.

Because of this progress, the fund changed its focus in 1991. It began to support breast cancer research at Rush Medical Center in Chicago. It also helped the Clearbrook Center, a place that supports people with developmental disabilities in Arlington Heights.

The numbers are impressive. The Bears say more than 10 million dollars has been raised by the Brian Piccolo Research Fund. Wake Forest students and the school have raised more than 3 million dollars more. Together, that is over 13 million dollars for cancer research in Brian’s name.

Some news reports describe Joy as president of the foundation and say that she and Rick work hard for it. Since these reports are older, it is best to check the fund’s official page for who leads it now.

How Brian Piccolo Is Remembered

Joy’s story is closely tied to how people remember Brian. Here are a few ways his name lives on:

• The Chicago Bears retired his number 41.
• Wake Forest retired his number 31 and has a dorm named after him.
• Wake Forest students hold the Brian Piccolo Cancer Fund Drive every year. It began in 1980.
• The Atlantic Coast Conference gives the Brian Piccolo Award to its most courageous player each season.
• The Bears give their own Piccolo Award to one rookie and one veteran player each year.
• The football stadium at St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale is named after him.
• A park in Cooper City, Florida, also carries his name.

Behind all of these honors is a family that has kept Brian’s story alive for more than fifty years.

Why Joy Murrath’s Story Still Matters

Joy Murrath’s life reminds us that behind every famous story, there are real people who live with the pain. She loved a young man before he was famous. She stood by him when he did not get drafted. She cared for him while he was sick. And after he was gone, she raised three daughters and helped make sure his name would help other people fight cancer.

You do not need to be on a football field to be strong. Joy showed that strength in quiet ways, and the Piccolo story would not be the same without her.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Joy Murrath?

Joy Murrath, also known as Joy Piccolo and Joy Piccolo O’Connell, is the wife of former Chicago Bears player Brian Piccolo. She is best known for standing by him during his cancer illness and for helping keep his memory alive.

When did Joy Murrath marry Brian Piccolo?

Joy and Brian got married on December 26, 1964. They were high school sweethearts from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Three days after the wedding, Brian signed his contract with the Chicago Bears.

How many children did Joy and Brian Piccolo have?

They had three daughters named Lori, Kristi and Traci. All three were very young when their father died in June 1970.

Did Joy Piccolo get married again?

Yes. Joy later remarried and now goes by the name Joy Piccolo O’Connell. Reports name her second husband as Rick O’Connell. Sources do not all agree on the exact year, so it is best to treat that detail with care.

What is the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund?

It is a charity created in 1970 after Brian died. It first raised money to fight the cancer that took his life. Today it supports other cancer research and community programs, and it has raised more than 10 million dollars, according to the Chicago Bears.

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