But, they also remember him as a humble man whose television persona was much different than his true demeanor.
"When you saw him on television, wrestling after the football years, that was the hype. He was the bad guy, but that was the hype," friend Richard Pecantte said.
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Ladd, a native of Rayville and resident of Franklin, died at 10 a.m. Saturday at his home following a battle with cancer. He was 68. Services for Ladd will be conducted at 11a.m. Saturday, with visiting hours observed from 9 a.m. until the time of service at the civic center.
His football career began at Grambling State University under famed Coach Eddie G. Robinson.
"Ladd was a senior in '61. I went to Grambling in '62. But he always did come back to school, because he was a person to give back to the school. That's how I got to know him," Pecantte said. "At Grambling we had a lot of great football players. But when they said Ernie Ladd or Big Cat, everybody listened."
In 1961, Ladd was drafted by the San Diego Chargers, where he played in three AFL championship games - including a league title in 1963. In 1966, he played a season with the Houston Oilers and then moved the following year to the Kansas City Chiefs, where he won another AFL title.
He was inducted into the American Football League Hall of Fame.
Perhaps most notable in Ladd's career is the fact that he took up the sport of professional wrestling. The career turn came as a publicity stunt when he was challenged by professional wrestlers to a workout.
He took up the challenge and became a part-time competitor in Los Angeles during his offseason football break. By 1968, Ladd officially debuted in the world of professional wrestling, where he became one of the sport's villains.
Ladd retired from the ring in 1986 and was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame in 1995.
While Ladd's wrestling persona was a tough, trash-talking one, friends close to Ladd say he was completely different.
"On the football field he would tear your head off your body. The minute the game was over, he would grab your hand and pray to the Lord," Pecantte said.
"He sold tickets. When he did it, he did it to the best of his ability," said friend Berwick Moore. "He was a person that was very honorable. He was a very strong person. He had a humorous side, but he had very firm beliefs."
Moore said he will miss being able to sit and talk with his friend of 30 years.
Clifton August also knew Ladd during the past three decades.
"Ernie evolved. He came from football and wrestling to Christianity," August said.
August said even though Ladd was a well-known figure in the sports world, he was just one of the boys with his local friends.
"He fell right in with us. He never tried to build a wall. He was down to earth. He was like a father figure. The thing that impressed me was that he wasn't afraid to step in and say, 'August, you're making a mistake.' "
Marty Sigue has known Ladd for 15 years.
"Ernie would help anybody," said Sigue. "He was easy to get along with. He loved to play dominoes and cards. Not for money, just for fun. He got along with everyone."
He agreed that Ladd's public persona was completely different from the friend he knew.
"It's like night and day. What you saw on TV was not the real Ernie Ladd. He's a very easy going guy," Sigue said. "He's going to be missed by many people."
Pecantte said Ladd was a good friend of the presidential Bush family, especially George H.W. Bush. He remembers meeting him with Ladd while on a trip.
"He never lost that touch. He would go on the corner and talk with the average person, but he could sit with kings and talk. He always remembered his roots," Pecantte said. "He was a humble man. Ernie was the strength of our organization. He was the concrete. He was our foundation."
Ladd is survived by his wife, Roslyn Holmes Ladd, three sons Ernest, Rodney and Reginald Ladd, daughter Erika Peters, a brother, two sisters, 16 grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren.
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