For Mazur, the scars remain

But now the 75-year-old Mazur is broken. And nearly broke.

''He's dependent on a walker, his balance is poor, sometimes he has great difficulty expressing himself," said his wife, Bernadine.

Mazur retired in 1980 with a paltry pension of $1,500 a month.

''I wish somebody would do something for us," he said slowly and softly, not really wanting to go public with his private life.

''I hate to beg, I don't want to beg, but . . . I figure they should give a guy a decent cost of living increase. I haven't had one since 1980. I put 19 years in [football] and that was in the days when you had four or five coaches. Now they have 15. That should count for something. It's not like I've been going out as a drunk or an alcoholic."

Mazur's disease has gotten progressively worse since he felt a pain in his hand and leg while at a Jets practice in 1978. He also has bladder problems and hypertension, which leaves him weak and prone to passing out. His wife, a nurse, cares for him, but she works part time.

Mazur said he needs help, but worries more about his wife of 47 years.

''I'm 75 and my wife is 74, and it's a damn shame my wife has to work," he said. ''She comes home dragging her fanny."

His wife worries about him. ''In the past year he's had at least 20 serious falls; he's lucky he hasn't broken any bones." said Bernadine.

Most days he sits in the living room, where his wife leaves refreshments and entertainment within reach. There's a mini-refrigerator filled with Cokes and sandwiches. There are books and a tiny television to watch football.

Coach Mazur tries to smile. He is a proud man, but he is in trouble. ''I feel like I'm getting blitzed every damn time I walk around," he said.

Behind him on the mantel are three footballs with the final scores written on them. They are from the 1964 and '65 Buffalo Bills teams that won the AFL championship. The '66 team won the Eastern Conference, but lost to the Kansas City Chiefs. ''If we won that, we would've been in the first Super Bowl against the Packers," said Mazur.