NEW CANAAN, Conn. — Terry Hanratty played on a couple of Super Bowl championship teams with the Steelers.

He won a national championship at Notre Dame.

But this was a different opponent — one he had never seen, one he knew little about.

COVID-19.

And he beat it ... though not easily.

“I've never been that sick. This was definitely the worst,” the 1965 Butler graduate and former quarterback said.

After dealing with headaches and persistent coughing and sneezing, Hanratty was recommended for testing by his doctor March 26. He described the testing procedure as “the longest four seconds of my life.”

“Two seconds of that swab going high up one nostril, then two seconds up the other one,” Hanratty, 72, said. “I found out I was positive the next day. My medication had already been prescribed and was ready.

“But I got worse before the medicine had a chance to kick in.”

Hanratty wound up lying on his back in the hospital for six days. Once his medicine kicked in, he began feeling better.

But he was still weak.

“My fever hit 103, yet I couldn't stay warm,” he recalled. “I had four blankets on me and I was still shivering.

“Even if I was able, I wasn't allowed to leave my room the entire time. When I did get up, I couldn't take more than 10 steps and I was done.

“My attention span was horrible. I love to read, but I couldn't even read a page,” Hanratty continued of his experience battling the virus.

He never had to go into intensive care. He never needed a ventilator.

When he did return home, he couldn't go up the steps to get into his house.

“The ambulance personnel, all dressed up in their protective gear, had to carry me into my house,” Hanratty said. “I couldn't even walk up two stairs.”

Hanratty lost 16 pounds in two weeks. He remained in quarantine while he worked to regain his strength.

“I'm able to take a little walk outside now. That feels so good,” he said.

Living in New Caanan, Conn. — 40 miles from Manhattan — Hanratty has learned some sobering facts about the disease.

“There's 20,000 people in this town and we've had 16 (now 18) deaths,” he said. “That's chilling to me. This thing has painted the world red. It's scary.

“I always thought a ventilator was part of regular treatment for this disease. I didn't realize it was a last-ditch effort. I didn't realize what a ventilator could do to you. Thankfully, that wasn't me.

“I asked my doctor that, since I've had (COVID), am I immune to it now? He said yes, but he didn't know for how long. Our medical profession, as great as it is, is still learning about this thing as we go along,” Hanratty added.

Hanratty has heard from former Steeler teammates during his fight.

“Mike Wagner called me today (Friday),” he said. “I've heard from Rocky Bleier. Even Jack Lambert tried reaching me. I called him back and left a cute message on his machine.”

He and good friend and former Butler teammate Mike Kelly, who also battled the virus, “have exchanged our war stories,” Hanratty said.

Hanratty admits that his attitude toward a return to normalcy has changed.

“I don't see myself going into a restaurant anytime soon, or walking into a crowded stadium, or even getting physically close to people for a long while,” he said. “People who have avoided this virus probably feel differently, probably can't wait to get back into a stadium and scream and yell for their team.

“I have no desire to do that.”

While Hanratty says the country “definitely needs our sports,” he sees no pressure to bring them back right away.

“There's time. We have May and June as a buffer. If we're playing in July, even in empty stadiums for a while, we're good,” he said.

“Our country is so diverse. In Manhattan, people are crammed into elevators, pushing the same button, and the disease spreads like wildfire. In Montana, people are spread out by thousands of acres of land. Portions of the nation like that will come back first.”