The official publication of Run to Win happened less than two weeks ago, and I’m pleased to announce that the book which I wrote with Hall of Famer Jerry Kramer is off to a great start.
We had two book-signing events this past week, one at the Green Bay Packers Pro Shop inside the Lambeau Field Atrium and the other was a combination Q & A/book-signing at both NŌ STUDIOS and Best Place at the Historic Pabst Brewery in Milwaukee.
We also had a very nice crowd for the event at NŌ STUDIOS on September 29, which was covered by WISN Channel 12 in Milwaukee. The Sports Director for Channel 12, Dario Melendez, moderated the Q & A session at NŌ STUDIOS, plus Dario interviewed both Jerry and I there. We want to thank Oscar winner John Ridley and his sister Lisa Caesar for allowing us to use their wonderful venue for this event.
Afterwords, we headed to the nearby Best Place, where we continued signing books. The Best Place also offered beer and other adult beverages to the crowd, which also included 150 brats, which were donated by Johnsonville. Speaking of wonderful venues, Best Place offered a superb atmosphere to continue the evening. Jim Haertel and his staff at Best Place treated Jerry and I like royalty, plus gave us and others a tour of the iconic Pabst Brewery.
The wonderful evening at both NŌ STUDIOS and Best Place was set up by producer, author and attorney Chris Olsen. The copies of Run to Win for people to buy and get signed were provided by Boswell Book Company in Milwaukee.
Besides the book-signing events, Jerry and I were also on a number of radio shows promoting the book, plus Rich Ryman of the Green Bay Press-Gazette put out a very nice article about Run to Win, which appeared in all the Gannett publications in Wisconsin, including the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Jerry and I are very proud of this book, in which we were able to get some assistance from some very notable people. Jeremy Schaap wrote the foreword for the book, while Rick Gosselin, a voter for the Pro Football Hall of Fame and a key member of the Seniors Committee, wrote the introduction.
Plus, Run to Win had a number of blurbs and praises from outstanding individuals like David Maraniss, Mark Murphy, Bud Selig, David Baker, Vince Lombardi Jr, Bart Starr Jr. and the late, great Paul Hornung. Other former members of the Packers also offered their kind thoughts, and this group includes Aaron Rodgers, LeRoy Butler and Gilbert Brown.
The book chronicles the start of Kramer’s career in Green Bay in 1958 and his entire career with the Packers, in which he was part of five NFL championship teams and two Super Bowl-winning teams under head coach Vince Lombardi. This also includes being on a squad which won three straight NFL titles (1965, 1966 & 1967) in the playoff era, which has never been duplicated before or since.
The book also entails chapters about Coach Lombardi, Bart Starr, Willie Davis, Paul Hornung, Ray Nitschke, Max McGee, Fuzzy Thurston, Boyd Dowler, Emlen Tunnell, Dave Robinson, Don Chandler, Jim Taylor, Henry Jordan, Lee Roy Caffey, Doug Hart, Zeke Bratkowski, Carroll Dale, Ron Kramer, Forrest Gregg, Herb Adderley, Gale Gillingham, Jim Ringo, Bob Skoronski, Willie Wood, Dan Currie, Tommy Joe Crutcher, Ron Kostelnik, Elijah Pitts, Donny Anderson, Jim Grabowski, Chuck Mercein and Don Horn.
Run to Win also devotes a chapter to Jerry’s very close friend, the late, great Dick Schaap.
Plus, the book also includes a chapter on the five toughest defensive tackles Jerry had to face in his NFL career.
Run to Win also describes the 44-year wait Kramer had to go through before he was rightfully enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The book also includes how Jerry used controlled anger when he played, which led to five First-Team All-Pro honors, as well as three Pro Bowl berths. Jerry was also named to the NFL All-Decade Team of the 1960s.
In addition, there is a chapter about Jerry’s encounters with celebrities, which later led to an opportunity for Kramer when he was offered the lead role in one of top-grossing films of 1973.
Bottom line, Run to Win has this and much more, which also includes a number of never-before-seen items that Jerry has never written about in his four previous books (Instant Replay, Farewell to Football, Lombardi: Winning is the Only Thing and Distant Replay). By the way, three of the four books were bestsellers and Instant Replay went all the way to No. 1 on the bestsellers list.
Run to Win can be ordered at places like Triumph Books (our publisher), Amazon, Walmart, Target, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Boswell Book Company in Milwaukee and the Packers Pro Shop.
I’m very pleased to announce that Run to Win is now available on a pre-sale basis. You can order this book that I wrote with Hall of Famer Jerry Kramer of the Green Bay Packers at a number of online sites. You can order the book at Triumph Books, which happens to be our publisher. Triumph Books is the No. 1 sports publishing company in the country. You can also order the book at online outlets like Amazon and Walmart.
Run to Win will be available in bookstores on September 19.
This is the first book written about Jerry since 1985, when Jerry and the late, great Dick Schaap put out Distant Replay. Of the four books that Jerry put out, three became bestsellers. Instant Replay went all the way to No. 1. This book will cover Jerry’s career with the Green Bay Packers, which will include the fantastic draft class that Jerry was part of in 1958, which was a key component in helping the Pack to win the NFL championships in 1961 and 1962.
The book will also delve into Jerry’s remarkable comeback in 1965 after have nine medical procedures due to intestinal issues, which caused him to miss most of the 1964 season. In addition, the book will cover the unprecedented three straight NFL championships that the Packers won from 1965 through 1967. That will include a very insightful view of the “Ice Bowl”, also known as the 1967 NFL championship game. Plus, the book will entail the real reason Jerry retired, which is different than the official statement put out by the Packers. In the book, Jerry will add some very perceptive and illuminating commentary about Vince Lombardi, as well as his opinions about a number of his teammates, which will include all of the players who later were inducted into the Hall of Fame.
The foreword for the book was written by Jeremy Schaap of ESPN, who is Dick’s son. Jeremy is a 13-time Emmy Award winner and a NYT bestselling author. Jeremy was named after Jerry and is also the godson of Jerry.
The introduction was penned by Rick Gosselin of the Talk of Fame Network. Rick also is a voter for the Pro Football Hall of Fame and is on the Seniors Committee. Rick played a big role in helping Jerry get a bust in Canton in 2018. Rick was one of Jerry’s presenters to the full Hall of Fame Selection Committee, along with Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
A number of notable people will add insightful commentary about Jerry. This list includes teammates such as Paul Hornung, Boyd Dowler, Dave Robinson, Donny Anderson, Jim Grabowski, Chuck Mercein and Don Horn. Others will also add complimentary comments about No. 64. This includes David Maraniss, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Mark Murphy, the President & CEO of the Packers, David Baker, the former President of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Tommy Lee Jones, Academy Award-winning actor, Aaron Rodgers, Vince Lombardi Jr., Bart Starr Jr., Gilbert Brown and LeRoy Butler.
The list of teammates written about in this book include Hornung, Dowler, Robinson, Anderson, Grabowski, Mercein, Horn, Emlen Tunnell, Jim Taylor, Forrest Gregg, Bart Starr, Ray Nitschke, Herb Adderley, Willie Davis, Jim Ringo, Willie Wood, Henry Jordan, Bobby Dillon, Fuzzy Thurston, Max McGee, Ron Kramer, Gale Gillingham, Don Chandler, Dan Currie, Bob Skoronski, Doug Hart, Carroll Dale, Tommy Joe Crutcher, Lee Roy Caffey, Ron Kostelnik, Zeke Bratkowski, Elijah Pitts, Ken Bowman and Travis Williams.
The book will also cover the frustrating 44-year period in which Jerry had to wait for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, even with Jerry being named as the only guard on the first team of the NFL 50th Anniversary Team in 1969. Jerry was also on the first team of the NFL All-Decade Team of the 1960s. Jerry came close on several occasions, as he was a finalist in 1974, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1987 and 1997 (as a senior nominee), but he never received the necessary votes to get a bust in Canton. That all changed in 2018. Before he was inducted, Jerry received over 30 endorsements from peers/players who had already been enshrined in Canton.
In addition, the book will cover the charities that Jerry has supported throughout the years. One is the Boys & Girls Club of Door County. During the 13 years of the celebrity golf outings since Jerry became involved, the Club has raised $1,300,000. Jerry has also been involved with National Child Identification Program (NCIDP) for seven years.
Also, the book will also have Jerry reminiscing about getting together with celebrities like Johnny Carson, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Lee Marvin and Kirk Douglas. Speaking of Hollywood, Jerry got to be good friends with Richard Zanuck and David Brown, who produced films like Jaws and The Sting. The two of them offered Jerry the lead role in one of the top-grossing films in 1973 that they produced. Jerry turned down that offer, which is pretty ironic, knowing that his two biggest competitors in the NFL, Merlin Olsen and Alex Karras, later went on to become successful actors.
The book will also touch on the recent documentary put out about Jerry’s life, called You Can If You Will: The Jerry Kramer Story. The film was released in 2021 and I was a supervising producer for that film, which was directed by award-winning filmmaker Glenn Aveni.
Additionally, members of the Kramer family will also honor Jerry with their reflections about him.
Bottom line, the hope is that Run to Win is received with as much pleasure as Jerry and I had, as we embarked on this very enjoyable journey.
Back in late July, I wrote that Jerry Kramer and I had reached an agreement with Triumph Books to publish our upcoming book tentatively titled Run to Win and that it would be published in 2023. Triumph Books is the nation’s leading sports book publisher and are based out of Chicago.
I recently was told that the book can be pre-ordered sometime in March. The book itself will go to print on May 1. The book’s on-sale date is September 19, which falls at the beginning of the 2023 NFL season.
Run to Win will be the first book written about Jerry since 1985, when Jerry and Dick Schaap put out Distant Replay. Of the four books that Jerry put out, three became bestsellers. Instant Replay went all the way to No. 1. This book will cover Jerry’s career with the Green Bay Packers, which will include the fantastic draft class Jerry was part of in 1958, which was a key component in helping the Pack to win the NFL championships in 1961 and 1962. The book will also delve into Jerry’s remarkable comeback in 1965 after have nine medical procedures due to intestinal issues, which caused him to miss most of the 1964 season. In addition, the book will cover the unprecedented three straight NFL championships that the Packers won from 1965 through 1967. That will include a very insightful view of the “Ice Bowl”, also known as the 1967 NFL championship game. Plus, the book will entail the real reason Jerry retired, which is different than the official statement put out by the Packers. In the book, Jerry will add some very perceptive and illuminating commentary about Vince Lombardi, as well as his opinions about a number of his teammates, which will include all of the players who later were inducted into the Hall of Fame.
The foreword for the book was written by Jeremy Schaap of ESPN, who is Dick’s son. Jeremy is a 13-time Emmy Award winner and a NYT bestselling author. Jeremy was named after Jerry and is also the godson of Jerry.
The introduction was penned by Rick Gosselin of the Talk of Fame Network. Rick also is a voter for the Pro Football Hall of Fame and is on the Seniors Committee. Rick played a big role in helping Jerry get a bust in Canton in 2018. Rick was one of Jerry’s presenters to the full Hall of Fame Selection Committee, along with Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
A number of people will add insightful commentary about Jerry. This list includes Paul Hornung, Boyd Dowler, Dave Robinson, Donny Anderson, Jim Grabowski, Chuck Mercein, Don Horn, Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Maraniss, Mark Murphy, Aaron Rodgers, Vince Lombardi Jr., Bart Starr Jr., Gilbert Brown and LeRoy Butler.
The list of teammates written about in this book include Hornung, Dowler, Robinson, Anderson, Grabowski, Mercein, Horn, Emlen Tunnell, Jim Taylor, Forrest Gregg, Bart Starr, Ray Nitschke, Herb Adderley, Willie Davis, Jim Ringo, Willie Wood, Henry Jordan, Bobby Dillon, Fuzzy Thurston, Max McGee, Ron Kramer, Gale Gillingham, Don Chandler, Dan Currie, Bob Skoronski, Doug Hart, Carroll Dale, Tommy Joe Crutcher, Lee Roy Caffey, Ron Kostelnik, Zeke Bratkowski and Elijah Pitts.
The book will also cover the frustrating 44-year period in which Jerry had to wait for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, even with Jerry being named as the only guard on the first team of the NFL 50th Anniversary Team in 1969. Jerry was also on the first team of the NFL All-Decade Team of the 1960s. Jerry came close on several occasions, as he was a finalist in 1974, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1987 and 1997 (as a senior nominee), but he never received the necessary votes to get a bust in Canton. That all changed in 2018. Before he was inducted, Jerry received over 30 endorsements from peers/players who had already been enshrined in Canton. Many of those endorsements will be in the book.
Photo by John Biever
The book will also get readers caught up regarding Jerry’s family life, since it’s been 37 years since his last book. Plus, the book will cover Jerry’s athletic career before he began playing in the NFL.
In addition, the book will cover the charities that Jerry has supported throughout the years. One is Gridiron Greats, an organization that he originally founded. Another is the Boys & Girls Club of Door County. During the 13 years of the celebrity golf outings since Jerry became involved, the Club has raised $1,300,000. Jerry has also been involved with National Child Identification Program (NCIDP) for seven years. Plus, Jerry has also been very interested in stem cell therapy. I wrote a four-part series about that a few years ago, some of which will be in the book.
In addition, the book will also have Jerry reminiscing about getting together with celebrities like Johnny Carson, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Lee Marvin and Kirk Douglas. Speaking of Hollywood, Jerry got to be good friends with Richard Zanuck and David Brown, who produced films like Jaws and The Sting. The two of them offered Jerry the lead role in one of the top-grossing films in 1973 that they produced. Jerry turned down that offer, which is pretty ironic, knowing that his two biggest competitors in the NFL, Merlin Olsen and Alex Karras, later went on to become successful actors.
The book will also touch on the recent documentary put out about Jerry’s life, called You Can If You Will: The Jerry Kramer Story. The film was released in 2021 and I was a supervising producer for that film, which was directed by award-winning filmmaker Glenn Aveni.
Bottom line, Jerry and I hope that Run to Win is received with as much enjoyment as we had while putting this book together.
I am very pleased to announce that Jerry Kramer and I have reached an agreement with Triumph Books to publish our upcoming book. The book is tentatively titled “Run to Win”, which is expected to be published in 2023. Triumph Books is the nation’s leading sports book publisher and are based out of Chicago.
This book has been in the works for a while now, but the biggest task was finding the right publisher. We are very pleased with the partnership we have achieved with Triumph Books.
This will be the first book about Jerry Kramer since 1985, when Jerry and Dick Schaap put out Distant Replay. Of the four books that Jerry put out, three became bestsellers. Instant Replay went all the way to No. 1. This book will cover Jerry’s career with the Green Bay Packers, which will include the fantastic draft class Jerry was part of in 1958, which was a key component in helping the Pack to win the NFL championships in 1961 and 1962. The book will also delve into Jerry’s remarkable comeback in 1965 after have nine medical procedures due to intestinal issues, which caused him to miss most of the 1964 season. In addition, the book will cover the unprecedented three straight NFL championships that the Packers won from 1965 through 1967. That will include a very insightful view of the “Ice Bowl”, also known as the 1967 NFL championship game. Plus, the book will entail the real reason Jerry retired, which is different than the official statement put out by the Packers. In the book, Jerry will add some very perceptive and illuminating commentary about Vince Lombardi, as well as his opinions about a number of his teammates, which will include all of the players who later were inducted into the Hall of Fame.
In addition, several of Jerry’s teammates will add their thoughts about playing with No. 64.
The book will also cover the frustrating 44-year period in which Jerry had to wait for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, even with Jerry being named as the only guard on the first team of the NFL 50th Anniversary Team in 1969. Jerry was also on the first team of the NFL All-Decade Team of the 1960s. Jerry came close on several occasions, as he was a finalist in 1974, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1987 and 1997 (as a senior nominee), but he never received the necessary votes to get a bust in Canton. That all changed in 2018. Before he was inducted, Jerry received over 30 endorsements from peers/players who had already been enshrined in Canton. Many of those endorsements will be in the book.
The book will also get readers caught up regarding Jerry’s family life, since it’s been 37 years since his last book. Plus, the book will cover Jerry’s athletic career before he began playing in the NFL, including his time as a member of the Idaho Vandals.
In addition, the book will cover the charities that Jerry has supported throughout the years. One is Gridiron Greats, an organization that he originally founded. Another is the Boys & Girls Club of Door County. During the 13 years of the celebrity golf outings since Jerry became involved, the Club has raised $1,300,000. Jerry has also been very interested in stem cell therapy. I wrote a four-part series about that a few years ago, some of which will be in the book.
In addition, the book will also have Jerry reminiscing about getting together with celebrities like Johnny Carson, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Lee Marvin and Kirk Douglas. Speaking of Hollywood, Jerry got to be good friends with Richard Zanuck and David Brown, who produced films like Jaws and The Sting. The two of them offered Jerry the lead role in one of the top-grossing films in 1973 that they produced. Jerry turned down that offer, which is pretty ironic, knowing that his two biggest competitors in the NFL, Merlin Olsen and Alex Karras, later went on to become successful actors.
The book will also touch on the recent documentary put out about Jerry’s life, called You Can If You Will: The Jerry Kramer Story. The film was released in 2021 and the Packers are selling the DVD/Blu-Ray copies of the film in their Pro Shop.
Bottom line, I am very excited about writing this book with Jerry and we are both extremely elated about our partnership with Triumph Books.
I grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in the 1960s. My love of sports, especially football and baseball, came from my dad, who would educate me about the history of teams like the Green Bay Packers, Milwaukee Braves and the Wisconsin Badgers. In terms of being a fan of the Packers, the decade of the ’60s was incredible.
The Packers under head coach Vince Lombardi would win five NFL championships in seven years, which included victories in the first two Super Bowl games. Plus, the Packers also won three straight NFL titles from 1965 through 1967 and that feat has never been duplicated since the NFL went to a playoff format in 1933.
My favorite player on the Packers was quarterback Bart Starr. He, along with Hank Aaron of the Braves, were definitely on the top of my pedestal in terms of looking up to professional athletes. I loved all the Packers on offense, which included halfback Paul Hornung, fullback Jim Taylor, flanker Boyd Dowler and end Max McGee. Dad told me that the success that those four great players had stemmed from the exceptional offensive line play that the Packers had during that period.
Dad told me games were won in the trenches and to watch players like right tackle Forrest Gregg, right guard Jerry Kramer, center Jim Ringo, left guard Fuzzy Thurston and left tackle Bob Skoronski. Never was that more clear than during the 1967 NFL championship game, better known as the “Ice Bowl” game. The weather on that day would have been nice for a polar bear to take a stroll, but was not exactly a great environment for football.
One never knows what will happen in the region where the Fox River connects to the bay off Lake Michigan late in the year. And on December 31, 1967, the region was given the coldest and most frigid day since they first started documenting weather conditions in Green Bay.
For the NFL title game between the Dallas Cowboys and Packers, it was shocking to find out that the game-time temperature was -13°. If you add in the wind throughout the game, the temperature plummeted to -50°.
The game came down to one big play with 16 seconds to go, after halfback Donny Anderson failed to score on two running attempts.
After conferring with Lombardi on the sideline after the final timeout of the Packers, Starr called a 31-wedge play in the huddle, which calls for the fullback to get the ball. However, unknown to anyone in the huddle, except for Kramer, Starr decided to keep the ball himself due to the slippery conditions near the goal line.
That wedge play was called earlier in the week when the team was studying the defensive tendencies of the Cowboys. Kramer actually suggested the play to Lombardi.
“Jethro [Pugh] was high, and I actually suggested that play on Thursday when we were studying short-yardage films,” Kramer said. “I said we could wedge Pugh if we had to. And Coach Lombardi said, ‘What?’ And I said that we can wedge Pugh if we have to. So we ran the film back three or four times, and coach says, ‘That’s right. Put in a wedge on Pugh.’
So after Starr called the play with just seconds to go in the game, what was going through Kramer’s mind?
“Responsibility. I mean I had suggested the play on Thursday. It seemed like the play was squarely on my shoulders,” Kramer said. “I knew I had to perform. I knew that to be successful as a blocker that I had to keep my head up and my eyes open.
“And also put my face into the chest of the defensive tackle [Pugh]. That is not the easiest thing to do, but it’s the safest and the surest way to make a block. I felt great personal responsibility to the team on that block. When I came off the ball, I was on fire.”
That great period by the Packers in the 1960s always brings back fantastic memories for me. That was fortified by the book that Kramer and the late, great Dick Schaap put out called, Instant Replay in 1968. Talk about a literary masterpiece. I still read that book every year come training camp time. Speaking of Schaap, his son Jeremy adds his voice to the film. Jeremy is in fact, named after Jerry, plus Jerry is the godfather of Jeremy because of his close friendship with Dick.
Little did I know that I would one day become friends with Kramer. Talk about feeling like a kid in a candy store. Plus, like Schaap did four times, I’m currently working on a book with Jerry.
Like myself, Glenn Aveni also grew up in Milwaukee. And like me, on the northwest side of Cream City. Glenn was also a huge fan of the Packers and he too was able to become friends with Kramer.
That all led to the collaboration of the film You Can If You Will: The Jerry Kramer Story, which was released earlier this year. The documentary was directed by the award-winning Aveni, who also brought me on board to be a supervising producer for the film.
Talk about a great partnership. I can see why Glenn has such a decorated career in the film industry. Speaking of partnerships, the Green Bay Packers have also partnered with us, as they are selling the DVD/Blu-Ray of the film at the Packers Pro Shop, plus streamed the documentary earlier this year.
In addition, the film premiered at the Marcus Bay Port Cinema on October 2nd, which is near Lambeau Field. There, folks got to see the full-length version of the film, which is 87 minutes long. Previous to that, the movie had been shown on the Packers television network on stations throughout Wisconsin, but that version was less than one hour.
Which leads us to the Milwaukee premiere of You Can If You Will: The Jerry Kramer Story on November 13th (3:00 pm and 8:00 pm) at the Wilson Theater at Vogel Hall, which is in the Marcus Performing Arts Center.
The film includes appearances by Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, Bart Starr Jr., the late great Paul Hornung, Boyd Dowler, Dave Robinson, Donny Anderson, Carroll Dale, Jim Grabowski, Chuck Mercein, Don Horn and Gilbert Brown. Plus, Pro Football Hall of Famer James Lofton adds some commentary, as do other folks who have busts in Canton, like Ron Wolf, Franco Harris, Tom Mack, Joe Delamielleure, “Mean” Joe Green, Bill Polian and Robert Brazile.
The president of the Packers, Mark Murphy is also in the film, as are Jerry’s children…Tony, Diana, Dan, Alicia and Matt, who speak of their admiration for their father. Jerry’s sister Carol also shares some nice memories about their childhood.
Bottom line, it’s amazing that two guys who grew up on the northwest side of Milwaukee in the 1960s during the heyday of the Packers under Coach Lombardi, were somehow put in position to make this epic film about about not only one of the greatest offensive guards in NFL history, but also one of the finest human beings both Glenn and I have ever met.
Yes, I’m talking about Gerald Louis Kramer. Please join us on Saturday to see a film about Jerry’s life that will truly inspire you!
It’s taken over two years, but the documentary highlighting the amazing life of Jerry Kramer is finished. There have been some bumps and hurdles over that time, including the COVID-19 pandemic, but the film is done and is already getting epic reviews from those who have seen it.
I was honored to take part in this great undertaking as a supervising producer after being introduced to award-winning filmmaker Glenn Aveni, who directed and helped write this documentary.
The people who add their commentary in the film are a Who’s Who list of prominent people. For instance, Bart Starr Jr., Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers all add some insightful discussion about Jerry. We came close to adding two more very significant voices to this group. Glenn and I had set up an interview with both Bart Starr and Zeke Bratkowski at Zeke’s home in Florida’s panhandle in 2019. Unfortunately, Bart’s health situation worsened and he passed away before we could do the interview. About six months later, his best friend Zeke also passed away.
Plus there are many other legendary sports icons in this movie. People like the late, great Paul Hornung. Other teammates of Jerry’s who add their commentary in the film include Hall of Famer Dave Robinson, as well as Boyd Dowler, Carroll Dale, Chuck Mercein, Donny Anderson, Don Horn and Jim Grabowski. Other former Green Bay greats also add some great analysis about Jerry, which include stars like Gilbert Brown and Hall of Famer James Lofton.
The president of the Packers, Mark Murphy, also lends his voice in this film. As does the former general manager of the team, Ron Wolf.
Also in the documentary is David Baker, the president and executive director for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The two men who made the presentations for Jerry to all of the voters for the Hall of Fame are also in this film. They are Rick Gosselin and Pete Dougherty.
There was nobody more important in Jerry’s literary career than his very good friend Dick Schaap. That part of Jerry’s life, as well as some other excellent assessment about Jerry was added by Jeremy Schaap, Dick’s son. Jeremy is named after Jerry, plus Jerry is the godfather of Jeremy.
Plus there a number of Pro Football Hall of Fame members who also add some insightful recognition about Jerry. This includes Franco Harris, Tom Mack, Joe Delamielleure, “Mean” Joe Green, Bill Polian and Robert Brazile. Also in the documentary is the vice president of the Chicago Bears, Brian McCaskey.
In addition, five of Jerry’s children…Tony, Diana, Dan, Alicia and Matt, speak of their admiration for their father. Jerry’s sister Carol also shares some nice memories about their childhood.
Three of the executive producers of the film, Herb Kohler, Lonnie Stephenson and Kenny Hansmire, also add some commentary in the documentary.
Jerry was also able to share some great memories with some of his buddies from Sandpoint High School.
I talked to Aveni about the film recently and he was very thankful for all the help he received along the way.
“The whole film has been a pleasurable experience,” Aveni said. “We have had tremendous support. First and foremost, the Green Bay Packers. The Packers have been outstanding in wanting to be involved with us, from Mark Murphy on down, including his whole team and also Craig Benzel (vice president of sales and business development) who have been very supportive. Then inevitably, they decided they would help in distribution for us.”
“They will be handling the digital streaming on their platform for the feature-like version and it will be there exclusively. They are also going to handle sales of digital downloads, physical DVDs and Blu-Ray copies at the Packers Pro Shop at Lambeau.”
The film goes back to Jerry’s childhood growing up in Sandpoint, Idaho. It captures Jerry’s time in high school and also at the University of Idaho. Then there was the 11 wonderful years Jerry spent in Green Bay playing under Vince Lombardi. Jerry was part of a team which won five NFL championships in seven years, which included the first two Super Bowls. Plus, the Packers won three straight NFL titles (1965, 1966 & 1967), which is something that has never been duplicated in the playoff era of the NFL which started in 1933.
The signature moment of the time under Coach Lombardi was the victory in the “Ice Bowl”, aka the 1967 NFL title game. That game included the signature drive in the Lombardi era, as well as the signature play, Starr’s quarterback sneak. Jerry played a big role in all those memorable moments.
That period was an unforgettable time in Jerry’s life. He was part of a great collection of individuals, who excelled on the playing field and also in life in general, thanks to the coaching and teaching of Coach Lombardi.
The documentary also delves into Jerry’s literary career and then the long 44-year journey that Jerry took on his way to enshrinement into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
One day, Jerry can look back on all of the wonderful achievements he has accomplished in his life.
“I know I’ll go home and go fishing one of these days,” Jerry says in the film. “And sit out on the water and remember the days and some of the moments and some of the players and some of the guys. I think I just need to be alone and be out in the bushes somewhere and think about it for a while. But it’s been all I dreamed it could be and more. It’s just been more that I ever hoped it would be.”
When he played for the Green Bay Packers for six years and then the St. Louis Cardinals for three more years, Donny Anderson was a multi-talented halfback who could run, receive and pass (two touchdown passes and 115.7 passer rating in his career) very effectively against his opponents. But No. 44 could also punt very well. In fact, he punted so well that the NFL changed a rule because of his prowess in punting the football.
In his rookie year in 1966, Anderson punted only twice, as Don Chandler was the primary punter for the Pack, as well as being the team’s placekicker. But starting in 1967, Anderson was the primary punter for the Packers until he was traded to the Cardinals after the 1971 season by head coach and general manager Dan Devine.
I was shocked by that trade, as Anderson and fullback John Brockington were an outstanding combination in ’71. Anderson had one of his best years ever in the NFL that season, as he rushed for 757 yards and five touchdowns. No. 44 also caught 26 passes for 306 yards and another score. Meanwhile, Brockington was named AP NFL Rookie of the Year, as he rushed for 1,105 yards and four scores. No. 42 also caught 14 passes for 98 yards and a touchdown.
If you add up the rushing yardage for Anderson and Brockington in 1971, it equals 1,862 yards combined between the two backs. The reason I bring that up is because the man who Devine traded Anderson for, MacArthur Lane, rushed for 821 yards in 1972, while Brockington rushed for 1,027 yards. That adds up to 1,848 yards, 14 yards fewer than what Anderson and Brockington did in 1971.
Still, Devine traded away Anderson, even though Donny had two back-to-back great seasons at halfback in 1970 (1,267 total yards and five scores) and 1971 (1,063 total yards and five scores), plus was continuing to be one of the better punters in the NFL as well. We will revisit the Devine situation with Anderson later in this article.
Back to Anderson’s punting now. Even though Vince Lombardi had a great punter like Chandler on his roster in 1967, he decided to make Anderson his regular punter.
Anderson talked about one reason Lombardi liked him as a left-footed punter.
“My ball had a backward spin, made it tough for punt returners, plus there was the hang time factor and the fact I kicked the ball high,” Anderson said. “Anyway, I would punt early in practice to Elijah [Pitts] about 15 minutes before everyone else got on the field. And on this occasion, Elijah was having a tough day catching my punts. Coach Lombardi was watching us and Elijah said to him, ‘Coach, I’ve never caught a left-footed punter before and it’s really hard to catch.’ The main reason Elijah was having a tough time was because the spiral was going the opposite way.
“When I first punted against the Bears, Gale Sayers fumbled my punts twice and we recovered both times. That led to 10 points and we ended up winning the game 13-10. “One of the writers asked Vince if I should remain the punter, as I only averaged 37.5 yard per punt that day. And Vince says, ‘Didn’t Sayers fumble the first punt and the second punt? And on the third punt had a fair catch? Didn’t we win?’ The writer replied yes. And Vince said, ‘Yeah, I’m going to let him punt again next week.’
“My 37.5 average didn’t mean a lot to Vince, as he knew my punts were hard to catch and if they were caught, there was not much of return, if any. I think Vince learned a lot from Elijah.”
In 1967, Anderson punted 65 times. Only 13 of his punts were returned. And that was just for 22 yards. That adds up to a little over a yard and a half a return. It’s no wonder Lombardi loved Anderson punting the ball.
It was during the 1967 season when Anderson had the only punt blocked in his entire NFL career, which numbered 387 punts. That was against the Los Angeles Rams at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, when Tony Guillory blocked a punt from Anderson late in the game with the Packers holding a 24-20 lead. It led to a final second touchdown by the Rams, as they beat the Pack 27-24.
“Steve Wright missed a call,” Anderson said. “The guy came straight up the middle and was never blocked.”
But the Packers would later beat those same Rams in the 1967 Western Conference title game in Milwaukee 28-7. That led to the 1967 NFL title game, better known as the “Ice Bowl” at Lambeau Field. Anderson played a key role in Green Bay winning that game, especially on that final epic 68-yard drive. Anderson also punted eight times in the game, in which the temperature was -13°. If you add in the wind conditions throughout the game, the temperature plummeted to -50°. Anderson only averaged 28.8 yards per punt on those eight punts, which had to feel like kicking a rock. But guess what? Not one of those punts was returned.
Two weeks later, another punt from Anderson in Super Bowl II played a key role in turning the tide of that game. Late in the 1st half, Anderson punted from his own 17 and booted the ball 36 yards. At that point, the Packers were leading the Oakland Raiders 13-7. But punt returner Roger Byrd fumbled the punt and Dick Capp of the Packers recovered. A short time later, Chandler kicked a 43-yard field goal and the Packers increased their lead to 16-7 and never looked back, as Green Bay won 33-14.
Anderson had a nice game at halfback as well in Super Bowl II, as No. 44 rushed for 48 yards and a touchdown, plus caught two passes for 18 yards.
Because of Anderson’s ability to punt the ball so effectively, causing either a turnover or having little or no return, the NFL made a rule change to help the punt returner. The NFL prohibited the offensive team on punts from moving downfield until the ball was kicked.
Bottom line, Anderson punted 387 times for 15,326 yards in his career, an average of 39.6 yards per punt.
Back to Anderson’s time with Devine now. I asked Donny how it was playing for the former Missouri head coach, who would also coach at Notre Dame.
“First of all, let me say God bless his soul,” Anderson said. “I would say that he was totally out of his environment. He had no clue about coaching men. He thought he was very knowledgeable, but he was only knowledgeable on the college level. And he didn’t have the grace or kindness or the sophistication about working with grown men.
“I believe when Devine arrived in 1971, there were 19 players on the team who played on the Super Bowl I team. Devine could not handle the legacy of Lombardi. And he starting moving a lot of those players out as soon as he could.
“In 1971, I was leading the NFL in rushing at the time and we were playing in Milwaukee and it was raining. The infield dirt started to turn to mud. So we were driving and Devine pulled me out of the game and put in Dave Hampton, who was an excellent running back. So I go to the sideline and asked Devine what he was doing. And he said, ‘You need to clean your shoe off, because if we have to punt, we don’t want a lot of mud on your shoe which might cause a bad punt.’ And I said, “Coach, I’m the leading rusher in the NFL and you just pulled me out to tell me to clean my shoe off.’ I just walked away at that point.”
I’m sure that encounter may have been one of the reasons Devine traded Anderson after the 1971 season.
Anderson told me another funny story about about another game he played in which involved his punting.
“We were playing in Cleveland in 1969, and Boyd Dowler was backing me up as punter,” Anderson said. “It was cold and windy that day. On one of our running plays I got hit right in the nose by defensive tackle Walter Johnson. The blow broke my helmet, facemask and everything. I only had my nose bleed one time in 20 years of playing football, but it was definitely bleeding that day. Anyway, it’s getting near a punt situation and Boyd comes up to me on the sideline and says, ‘You need to get that nose fixed because we are going to have to punt and I am not going in to punt. There is no way I’m going to punt.’
“So I told Boyd that I can’t punt because my nose is broken. The cartilage in the tip of my nose is broke. And Boyd said he didn’t care what my physical status was because I was going to punt. Finally I said, ‘Okay, I’ll go in to punt.’ The doctor on the sideline told me not to go in and punt, but I did anyway. But we had to punt later and I had to take all the cotton out of my nose and I started bleeding pretty good. So finally, Boyd did have to punt.”
That punt by Dowler was the first for No. 86 since the 1962 season, when he and Max McGee split time punting, although Dowler was the primary punter that year. Dowler got off a 34-yard punt against the Browns. Even though he broke his nose, Anderson had 44.3 yard punting average in the game on seven punts and as per usual, the return yardage was very minimal, as the Browns tried to return a punt three times and only gained four yards overall.
Bottom line, Anderson was one of the best punters in the NFL while he played due to the spin on the ball because he was a left-footed punter, the hang time of his punts and also because his punts were so high. Anderson was so good, as a matter of fact, that NFL made a rule change to help the punt returners in the league.
That says a lot right there about the skill of Anderson as a punter.
With the 2021 NFL draft just two weeks away, I want to write about one of the players that the Green Bay Packers selected in the 1961 NFL draft. That player was drafted in the 13th round out of a small college in Arkansas called Philander Smith. That player’s name was running back Elijah Pitts.
Pitts was part of a draft class which included Hall of Fame cornerback Herb Adderley who was selected in Round 1, as well defensive tackle Ron Kostelnik, who was drafted in Round 2. And in the next round after Pitts was selected, the Packers drafted LB Nelson Toburen in Round 14.
Going into the ’61 draft, the Packers already had Paul Hornung and Tom Moore at the top of their halfback depth chart. Adderley had played halfback at Michigan State and Pitts also played that position at Philander Smith, so something had to give.
The Packers ended up first moving Adderley to flanker and then towards the end of the year to cornerback. It obviously was a wise decision that both Vince Lombardi and Phil Bengtson made, as Adderley became one of the very best corners to ever play the game.
In his rookie year, Pitts played in all 14 games and actually started a game, as he rushed for 75 yards on 23 carries and scored a touchdown. Hornung led the NFL in scoring for the third year in a row, plus rushed for 671 yards and had eight rushing touchdowns. No. 5 also caught 15 passes for 145 yards and two more scores. Hornung was later named the NFL MVP in ’61. Moore rushed for 302 yards and a score, plus had caught eight passes for 41 yards and another score.
The Packers would go on and win the 1961 NFL title at new City Stadium in Green Bay, as Hornung scored 19 points for the Pack, as Green Bay defeated the New York Giants 37-0. Hornung almost didn’t play in that championship game due to Army duty, but thanks to the friendship between Lombardi and President John F. Kennedy, he was given a pass to play.
In 1962, Pitts got some more playing time, as Hornung injured a knee and only played in nine games. Fullback Jim Taylor led the Packers in rushing with 1,474 yards and 19 touchdowns. No. 31 was later named NFL MVP in 1962. Moore led the halfbacks with 377 yards and seven scores, while Hornung rushed for 219 yards and five touchdowns. Pitts chipped in with 110 rushing yards and two scores.
In ’62, Pitts also returned punts at times and had seven returns for 17 yards, as Willie Wood was the main return man for the Pack. But in the 1962 title game against the New York Giants again, this time at Yankee Stadium, Pitts had a key 36-yard punt return in the 4th quarter to help set up Jerry Kramer for another field goal attempt to pad the 13-7 lead the Packers had at the time. Kramer missed that 40-yard attempt in a swirling wind, but later connected on 30-yard attempt in that same direction to make the score 16-7 and the Packers were NFL champions again for the second straight year.
In 1963, there was a major change for the Packers as they attempted to win their third straight NFL title. They would have to do it without Hornung, who was suspended along with Alex Karras of the Detroit Lions for the season for gambling. That also meant more time at halfback for Pitts.
Moore became the lead halfback in Hornung’s absence, as No. 25 gained 658 yards and scored six touchdowns. Pitts added 254 yards rushing and had five rushing touchdowns himself. Moore and Pitts also combined for 32 receptions for 291 yards and three more scores. Pitts also continued to return punts along with Wood, as No. 22 returned seven for 60 yards. But between the absence of Hornung, a broken hand which caused quarterback Bart Starr to miss four games and the exceptional play by the Chicago Bears, the Packers fell just short in winning the NFL title again in 1963. Green Bay finished 11-2-1, but Chicago was even better at 11-1-2, as da Bears ended up winning the NFL crown by beating the G-Men from New York.
Hornung was back for the Packers in 1964, but there were major changes along the offensive line, as center Jim Ringo had been traded to the Philadelphia Eagles for linebacker Lee Roy Caffey and a 1965 1st round draft which would be used to select Donny Anderson. In addition to that change, right guard Jerry Kramer missed almost the entire season with intestinal issues. Left tackle Bob Skoronski moved over to play center for some games, while Norm Masters filled his spot at left tackle, plus Dan Grimm filled in for Kramer at right guard.
The Packers finished second in the Western Conference again in 1964, as the kicking game of the Packers was a big reason why, as Hornung was just 12-of-38 in connecting on field goal attempts. The Packers lost two close games to the Western Conference champion Baltimore Colts due in part to the kicking woes. Bottom line, if the Packers had beaten the Colts in those two games, Green Bay wins the Western Conference.
With the return of Hornung, Pitts again was relegated to being the third option at halfback behind Hornung and Moore. Hornung rushed for 415 yards and five scores, while Moore ran for 371 yards and two touchdowns. Pitts chipped in with 127 rushing yards and one score. Pitts continued to return punts in tandem with Wood and returned seven for 191 yards, which included a 65-yard touchdown scamper.
In 1965, the Packers were determined to get back to the status of being champion. The rushing game struggled for most of the year, but when it counted in the postseason, the ground game clicked like it did in the early ’60s in Green Bay. Taylor only rushed for 734 yards, which was the first time he hadn’t eclipsed the 1,000 yard mark since 1959. Pitts remained as the No. 3 halfback behind Hornung and Moore, but when he got an opportunity, he found a way to find pay dirt. Hornung rushed for just 219 yards, but had five scores, while Moore only had 124 yards rushing and no scores. Pitts rushed for 122 yards, but he did also have four rushing touchdowns.
In the 1965 NFL title game at Lambeau Field against the Cleveland Browns, Taylor and Hornung ran like it was 1961 again, as combined they rushed for 201 yards. The “Golden Boy” rushed for 105 yards and a score, as the Packers were NFL champs again, as they beat the Browns 23-12.
The situation for Pitts at halfback would be quite different in 1966, as Lombardi had traded Moore to the Los Angeles Rams and now had Anderson, who Lombardi had drafted in 1965 with a future pick in the 1st round. Hornung started the year as the lead halfback again, but as the season wore on, the neck/shoulder issues he had only allowed No. 5 to play in nine games and start six of them.
With Hornung relegated to the sideline due to his injury, Pitts became the main halfback for the Packers in 1966. No. 22 gained 393 yards and scored seven touchdowns. Hornung rushed for 200 yards and had two scores, while Anderson had 104 yards on the ground and had two scores.
Plus, Anderson took away the job Pitts had in returning punts with Wood, especially after No. 44 returned a punt for 77 yards and a TD in a game against the Atlanta Falcons in a game I attended at County Stadium in Milwaukee.
Bottom line, Starr was the difference for the Packers on offense in ’66, as he was named NFL MVP in ’66.
The Packers once again returned to the 1966 NFL title game, this time against the Dallas Cowboys at the Cotton Bowl. Pitts came up big in that game, as he rushed for 66 yards on just 12 carries, plus caught a 17-yard touchdown pass from Starr, who threw for 304 yards and four TD passes in the game. For the second straight year, the Packers were NFL champs and had won their fourth NFL title in six years. But another test was still awaiting the Pack. That would be Super Bowl I, when the NFL champion Packers would be facing the AFL champion Kansas City Chiefs for the bragging rights in Pro Football.
Starr was just phenomenal in the game, as he was named MVP in the 35-10 win by the Pack. Split end Max McGee also had a big game, as No. 85 caught seven passes for 138 yards and two scores. Guess who else scored two TDs for the Packers that day? That would be Mr. Pitts, who had two rushing touchdowns, as he rushed for 45 yards on 11 carries.
In 1967, things would really be different for the Packers in terms of their offensive backfield. Taylor played out his option and signed with the New Orleans Saints which netted the Packers a 1st round pick in the 1968 NFL draft, while Hornung was nabbed by the Saints in the expansion draft. Hornung would end up retiring due to his neck/shoulder woes.
That meant the starting backfield for the Packers in 1967 would be Jim Grabowski at fullback and Pitts at halfback. The two would be backed up by Ben Wilson and Anderson, as the Packers tried for their third straight NFL title, a feat that had never been done in NFL history since the playoff era started in 1933.
Both Grabowski (466 rushing yards and two TDs) and Pitts (247 rushing yards and six TDs) were having strong years, when both were basically lost for the season in Week 8 against the Baltimore Colts at Memorial Stadium. Pitts was definitely lost for the year with a ruptured Achilles tendon, while Grabowski suffered a knee injury that kept him out for the entire year except four carries against the Bears in Week 11.
It was at that point that Lombardi added Chuck Mercein to add to the depth chart at fullback, while Anderson became the starter at halfback with rookie Travis Williams backing him up. Even with all the changes at running back for the Packers in 1967, the team finished second in the NFL in rushing. Better than that, the team indeed won their third straight NFL title by beating the Cowboys again in the 1967 NFL championship game at Lambeau Field, better known as the “Ice Bowl”, plus won their second straight Super Bowl, by beating the Oakland Raiders 33-14.
In 1968, Lombardi resigned as head coach and was general manager only for the team, as Bengtson became the head coach. Pitts, along with Williams, became backups to Anderson at halfback. The same routine occurred in 1969, when Pitts backed up both Anderson and Williams. In ’68 and ’69, Pitts combined to rush for 398 yards and two scores.
In 1970, Pitts, along with Caffey and center Bob Hyland, were traded to the Bears for a 1st round draft pick. Pitts was later released by the Bears and picked up by two teams (the Saints and the Rams) in 1970. All told, Pitts rushed for 104 yards in eight games combined for both teams.
In 1971, the new head coach and general manager of the Packers, Dan Devine, picked up Pitts to play for the Pack in ’71. But No. 22 did not carry the ball once for the Packers that year and only returned kicks for Green Bay that year. After the season was over, Pitts retired and started scouting for the Packers, which he did for two seasons.
In 1974, Pitts was hired to coach running backs with the Rams in 1974. That led to a long assistant coaching career in the NFL, similar to what both Boyd Dowler and Zeke Bratkowski did after their playing careers ended, as Pitts coached for 23 years as an assistant, which concluded with Elijah being the assistant head coach of the Buffalo Bills when they went to four straight Super Bowls in the early 1990s.
In 1997, while Pitts was still coaching in Buffalo, he was diagnosed with stomach cancer. That dreaded disease took the life of Pitts just nine months later at the young age of 60.
Now you know the history of Pitts as a NFL player and coach. But I want to you to know more about Elijah. Which is why I wanted to talk with both Kramer and Anderson about their time with Pitts.
Let’s start with No. 64.
“Elijah was probably one of the sweetest, gentlest, most thoughtful players on the team,” Kramer said. “He really had a nice comfortable way about him. He had a great voice and a great smile. I remember that smile as much as anything.”
No. 44 concurred.
“Elijah was a perfect gentleman,” Anderson said. “I could understand why he was there in Green Bay for so long. Elijah was pretty quiet guy. He didn’t have a lot to say, but he was pretty funny when he would say things. He was just a sweet guy. And he was my friend. I was his friend too, even though we fought for the same position.”
Kramer talked about the running style of Pitts.
“I tried to get on his ass a little bit about the way he would go by Fuzzy and me on the sweep,” Kramer said. “And Elijah would go, ‘Okay Jerry, okay.’ But later he would do the same thing and run by us. I think it was more of an instinctive way to run by Elijah. He had great talent and speed. But he wasn’t used to waiting for his blockers while he ran. He was the type of back who wanted to go for as much as he could get, as quick as he could get it.”
Anderson mentioned that he and Pitts had similar styles.
“Elijah was different than Hornung in terms of power and speed,” Anderson said. “I was like him, in terms of being light-legged and fast. Elijah could block a lot better than I could though.”
Anderson also mentioned another story about the way he and Pitts ran.
“Elijah and I were similar in the way we ran, as we didn’t raise our feet very high,” Anderson said. “So anytime we played a stadium that had high grass, that could be a deterrent for us, as we would sometimes stumble. In fact, Vince asked me why Elijah and I stumbled at times running. I told him that the grass was too high, like at County Stadium in Milwaukee. Both Elijah and I had problems there, as did Bob Jeter. After that, Vince made sure the grass was mowed in either Green Bay or Milwaukee for Elijah and I.”
Kramer summarized the way Pitts was when they played together.
“There were quite a few things that were impressive about Elijah,” Kramer said. “There was his smile and his singing, but there was more than that. Elijah just had a happy way in the manner he conducted himself. Always smiling and happy and just a very pleasant guy to be around.”
Since the National Football League (NFL) first started in 1920, then under the name the American Professional Football Association (APFA), there has been only one team in league history who have won the championship of the league three consecutive times.
That team is the Green Bay Packers. And they have done it twice. Once before the NFL playoff era started in 1933 and once afterward. Under head coach Curly Lambeau, the Packers won three straight NFL titles in 1929, 1930 and 1931, when the league champions were crowned due to their league record. Those great teams of the Packers were led by players like Lavvie Dilweg, Red Dunn, Verne Lewellen, Jug Earp and Johnny “Blood” McNally.
But starting in 1933, the NFL champion was determined by the ultimate winner in the postseason. That means the playoff system has been in place for 87 years now. And only one team has won three straight NFL titles during that time. And that was the Green Bay Packers who played under head coach Vince Lombardi. The Pack won NFL championships in 1965, 1966 and 1967. Many of the players who played on those teams had a chance to win three in a row once before, as the Packers won the NFL title in both 1961 and 1962, before falling just short in 1963.
The period in which the Packers won three titles in a row happened right smack dab in the middle of the merger between the NFL and the AFL. Which means, besides winning three straight NFL championships in a row, the Packers also had to play the AFL champion after the 1966 and 1967 seasons. That game became known as the Super Bowl. The Packers won both Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II, as quarterback Bart Starr was the MVP of both of those games.
I wanted to talk with some players who were on those Green Bay teams which won three titles in a row and I was fortunate to be able to talk with three of those players. Those three very talented players are right guard Jerry Kramer, who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2018, split end Boyd Dowler, who like Kramer was on the NFL 50th Anniversary Team and flanker Carroll Dale, who became the deep threat for Starr and the Packers when he joined the team in 1965.
The Packers came close to winning three NFL titles in a row earlier in the Lombardi era. Had the Packers won the 1960 NFL title game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Franklin Field, it would have been the first of three straight championships, because the Packers won the 1961 NFL title game 37-0 against the New York Giants at new City Stadium (now Lambeau Field) and also the 1962 NFL title game against the G-Men again by a score of 16-7 at Yankee Stadium.
The Packers came close to beating the Eagles in the 1960 championship game, as they lost 17-13 when fullback Jim Taylor was tackled on the final play of the game at the Philadelphia 8 by middle linebacker Chuck Bednarek. Green Bay had outgained Philadelphia in the game and had squandered away some early points in the game by going for it on 4th down twice and didn’t succeed either time.
But it was the words of Coach Lombardi after the game that made Kramer a believer of what his coach was trying to accomplish in Green Bay.
“After the game, Coach Lombardi didn’t get into the locker room until 15 minutes later than the rest of us,” Kramer said. “He was talking to the media or whatever. I remember him getting on a trunk in the middle of the locker room and tells everyone to bring it up to listen to him. We were all still angry and frustrated and Coach knew that and understood that. When everyone was around him, Coach Lombardi says, ‘All right. This year we played in the championship game. Next year we will win the championship game.’ I made up my mind at that moment to buy in with what he was preaching. Up until then, I wasn’t sure. But I was all in after that talk.”
Plus, had the Packers won the NFL title in 1963, that also would have meant three straight NFL titles, after winning in ’61 and ’62. But even though the Packers finished 11-2-1 that year, the Chicago Bears were 11-1-2 and ending up winning the NFL championship that year.
The Packers finished second in the Western Conference again in 1964 and Kramer missed most of the season due to intestinal issues. Kramer just hoped he could resume his NFL career in 1965 and winning another championship was secondary in his thinking.
“I came out of the Mayo Clinic late in ’64 and I had dropped a lot of weight and now had a colostomy. I got as low as 179 pounds. A while after that, Doc Brault talked me into another operation because I wasn’t getting better. I didn’t show up the first and second time the operation was scheduled. Finally, the third time I did. Doc found the splinters which had been lodged in me for 11 years. He also reversed my colostomy. I believe my last procedure with Doc Brault was in March or April of 1965. A month or so later, I went to see Coach Lombardi.
“So when I went to talk with Coach Lombardi about playing, he said, ‘Jerry, we can’t count on you this year. I just want you to go home and we’ll take care of your salary and your hospital bills.’ I told Lombardi that I really wanted to play. I knew that I had already missed most of the ’64 season and if I missed the ’65 season, I would probably never get a chance to play again. I told him emphatically that I would not go home and that I wanted to play. We went back and forth about this for about 35 or 40 minutes. Finally Lombardi says, ‘Okay, I’m going to put you with the defense.’ I said, great. I always wanted to play defense anyway. But the main thing is that allowed me to get on the field at least.”
Kramer found out however that his task of getting in football shape would be very, very difficult.
“We always used to take three laps around the field to start practice. I ran a half of a lap and my lungs seized up. I just couldn’t breathe or get any air. Don Chandler came up to me and asked, ‘What’s wrong, pal?’
“I told Don that I can’t breathe. Don told me that, ‘Between the two of us, we would do what one of the players does in terms of an exercise. If you can only do a half of a lap, I’ll do the other two and half laps.’
“So Don worked out besides me for the next month and we did just that. If the team did 50 sit ups and I could only do 10, Don would do the other 40. If the team did 50 side-saddle hops and I could only do 15, Don would do the other 35. So Don kept me in the game and kept me from being embarrassed. That kept me from feeling like a jerk in front of a bunch of world-class athletes. So by doing that procedure with Don, I gradually was able to do more and after a month I was able to do all of the exercises.
“I gained about 15 pounds. I knew that the colostomy was reattached, the hernia was fixed and the intestines were okay. It was just going through the reconditioning which was so difficult. Without Don, I really doubt that I could have made it through that camp. So all the books, the three straight NFL championships, the two Super Bowls and all the great things that happened to me after that was because of my teammate.”
Going into the ’65 season, Dowler felt the team was ready for another championship run.
“Going into the 1965 season, I don’t recall anyone being negative,” Dowler said. “I think we all believed that we didn’t live up to expectations in ’63 and ’64. We need to get back on the track. And we did. I think not getting into the championship game for two years in a row was just not good enough. We were better than that. We had more focus as a team in 1965 and that carried on over through the season.”
Meanwhile, Dale was just happy to be with a team which had championship aspirations after playing with the Rams in the first part of his NFL career and the team never had a winning season.
“I spent five losing seasons with the Rams,” Dale said. “We were in the same conference as the Packers and we played them twice each year. We didn’t have a lot of success against the Packers either. To be traded to a contender, a team that had won it all in ’61 and ’62, was just fantastic. Plus, there were a couple of guys I was familiar with, as Tom Fears, who was the receivers coach with me with the Rams, was now in Green Bay, as was Zeke Bratkowski, who I had played with in Los Angeles.
“But getting traded to the Packers was a dream come true. Green Bay was perfect for me because I was a small-town boy growing up, plus playing in Blacksburg where I went to college was also small. And the fact that the team was a championship contender made it more attractive.”
Kramer, Dowler and Dale played key roles in the Packers winning the 1965 NFL title, as the Packers finished with a 10-3-1 record. The Baltimore Colts also finished 10-3-1, which set up a playoff game to see who would play the Cleveland Browns in the NFL title game.
I wrote about that controversial game back in 2016, as Bratkowski added the commentary. Zeke led the Packers to a 13-10 win in overtime.
Kramer got better as the year went on as he regained his All-Pro form, which in turn improved the team’s rushing attack, which was ranked just 10th in the NFL in ’65. But come the postseason, when Kramer was almost in peak form, the running attack blossomed. In the NFL title game against the defending NFL champion Cleveland Browns, the Packers rushed for 204 yards, as Paul Hornung rushed for 106 yards and a score and Taylor added 96 more yard toting the rock, as the Packers won 23-12 at snowy and muddy Lambeau Field.
“I remember that game against the Browns,” Kramer said. “Jimmy Brown was held to 50 yards rushing by our defense. That was a great job by Willie Davis, Ray Nitschke, Dave Robinson and company. You know, it took me a while to get my shit together in ’65 and get comfortable. And when I did, it seemed like I got going and we got going. I had my confidence back and I had my strength back. And in that game, it all came together. Fuzzy [Thurston] and I had a blast that game!”
Dowler led the Packers in receiving in 1965 with 44 receptions and four touchdowns. In the postseason during the games against the Baltimore Colts and the Browns, Dowler had 10 catches for 109 yards.
“In ’65, we started throwing the ball a little more, compared to the earlier years under Coach Lombardi,” Dowler said. “I personally had a pretty good year. I know I played in the Pro Bowl. I didn’t play in the Pro Bowl because I was voted in, I played in the Pro Bowl because Jimmy Orr pulled a muscle in the first practice for that game in Los Angeles. I was next in line in the voting, so they called me on the phone to get out there.”
Dale also had a big postseason in ’65, after having an quiet regular season, when No. 84 caught 20 passes for 382 yards and two scores. But in the games between the Colts and the Browns, Dale had five catches for a whopping 123 yards (24.6 average) and a touchdown. That TD occurred in the NFL title game against the Browns, as it was the opening score of the game when Starr hit Dale with a 47-yard pass for a touchdown.
“In the game against the Browns, I told Bart that they were playing me a little tight,” Dale said. “Of course, it had snowed that day and it was muddy. So I was trying to run a fly pattern and Bart underthrew it and I was able to come back and catch it, plus a couple of their guys slipped down and I was able to go all the way and score.”
So, after the NFL title in 1965, the Packers now had won three NFL championships in five years. That being said, 1966 would be much different, as before the season, the NFL and AFL had merged to create a championship game between the leagues that would become the Super Bowl.
As it was, the 1966 Green Bay team was probably the second best team which played under Lombardi. The 13-1 team in 1962 was the certainly the best, but the 12-2 team in 1966 came close. The two losses in the regular season were by a combined total of four points.
Starr was the NFL MVP in 1966, as he led a Green Bay offense which was ranked No. 4 in the NFL. It helped that Kramer was back to his usual form, as he was named First-Team All-Pro. Right tackle Forrest Gregg was also named First-Team All-Pro, as was Starr obviously.
The Green Bay defense was just outstanding in 1966, as it was ranked No. 1 in total defense. Several players from the great defense were also named First-Team All-Pro, which included Davis, Nitschke, Herb Adderley, Willie Wood and Lee Roy Caffey.
The Packers played the Dallas Cowboys in the 1966 NFL championship game at the Cotton Bowl. Starr was just magnificent, as No. 15 threw four touchdown passes without throwing an interception for 304 yards. One of Starr’s touchdown passes went to Dowler and another went to Dale.
“I don’t remember a hell of a lot about that game,” Kramer said. “I know that we moved up and down the field pretty well. I know Elijah [Pitts] ran the ball pretty well and Bart was phenomenal.”
The 16-yard touchdown pass that Starr threw to Dowler was controversial, because No. 86 was already two steps into the end zone when cornerback Mike Gaechter upended Dowler and flipped him high in the air and the former Colorado Buffalo landed on his shoulder.
Taylor wanted to go after Gaechter after that cheap shot, but Starr made sure that he kept No. 31 from getting a personal foul, as he and Taylor jogged to the sideline.
On the 51-yard touchdown pass to Dale, the former Virginia Tech star described what happened.
“On that play, Cornell Green flashed in front of me,” Dale said. “Bart just threw it as hard and high as he could and the trajectory of the ball just missed Cornell’s arms as he was defending and went right into my arms and it stuck.”
Starr also threw TD passes to Pitts and Max McGee, as the Packers held off the Cowboys and won 34-27, which meant the Packers would be playing the Kansas City Chiefs in the first Super Bowl.
Once again, Starr had a tremendous performance, as No. 15 completed 16-of-23 passes for 250 yards and also threw two touchdown passes, as the Packers won 35-10. Starr was especially deadly on third down, as the Packers were able to convert 11-of-15 chances on that crucial down. The two TD passes that Starr threw went to McGee, who came into the game after the third play of the contest when Dowler injured his shoulder.
Even with a slight hangover and very little sleep, No. 85 had a huge game, as he had seven catches for 138 yards and two scores.
The running game of the Packers was also effective, as the running attack gained 130 yards. Pitts had two rushing touchdowns, while Taylor had one.
Going into the game, even with Lombardi telling the team not to underestimate their opponents, Kramer recalled a big laugh when the offense was watching films of the KC defense.
“I remember watching the Chiefs defense while we were watching film, and their two safeties ran into one and another. All of a sudden Max starts doing the merrie melodies and looney tunes theme song and we all cracked up.
“So we were not really prepared for that first quarter and the quality of talent that showed up for the Chiefs. You were playing against guys like Jerry Mays, Buck Buchanan, E.J. Holub, Johnny Robinson and Bobby Bell. They had a lot a lot of talent on that defense!”
Dale recalled Lombardi telling the team how important this first Super Bowl game was.
“Apparently Commissioner Rozelle had called Coach Lombardi and reminded him that he was not only representing the Green Bay Packers, but the entire NFL,” Dale said. “Coach shared that with us and told us that we had the extra pressure going into the game. He felt we would win, but we definitely had to respect Kansas City.”
But it wasn’t easy.
The Packers only led 14-10 at halftime. But things were completely different in the second half. Wood picked off a Len Dawson pass early in the third quarter and returned it 50 yards to set up a five-yard touchdown run by Pitts. The game was basically over at that point.
The victory in Super Bowl I set up the magical 1967 season for the Packers. That wonderful season was documented by Kramer in his classic book, Instant Replay, which edited by the late great Dick Schaap.
Kramer recalls that the focus of winning a third straight NFL title was talked about immediately by Lombardi at training camp in 1967.
“Without question, Coach Lombardi’s favorite topic was about winning that third NFL title in a row that year,” Kramer said. “How the team could be set apart from any other team in pro football and how people would remember that forever. He mentioned that several different times that year, including our first team meeting at training camp.
“But it was a bitch of a season for us in ’67. We had won two in a row and we weren’t sneaking up on anybody. Everybody knew our game, plus we didn’t change anything. But we wanted that third title badly.”
It was indeed a tough season for the Packers. Hornung and Taylor were gone. Starr was hampered by injuries early in the year. In Week 8 against the Colts, the Packers lost their starting running backs, Pitts and Jim Grabowski, for the season. Plus there were two excruciating last second losses to the Colts and the Rams on the road.
Yet the team overcame all of that adversity.
Just two weeks after that disheartening 27-24 loss to the Rams in Week 13 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the Packers hosted the Rams at County Stadium in Milwaukee for the Western Conference title.
The theme of that game was set by Lombardi in a pregame speech.
“With Coach Lombardi, he always preached that we should have three priorities,” Dale said. “God first, our families second and the Green Bay Packers third. In a meeting before the game against the Rams, Coach was talking about St. Paul and running a race. I was the guy who ran chapel for the team and Coach asked me if I had heard that parable. Well, you only had one answer when Coach Lombardi spoke to you. You said, ‘Yes, Sir!’ So I went straight home and looked it up and found it in 1 Corinthians 9:24. St. Paul said in a race there are many runners, but only one will win the prize. So run to win. That was the theme for the game against the Rams in his pregame speech.”
The Packers started off slowly and fell behind 7-0 in that game. But from the 2nd quarter on, the Packers just dominated the game. Starr once again had a big game, as he completed 17-of-23 passes for 222 yards and a touchdown pass to Dale.
But the star of the game was halfback Travis Williams, who definitely ran to win, as he rushed for 88 yards and two rushing touchdowns, including a 46-yard scamper to tie the game in the 2nd quarter.
Kramer definitely recalls that play.
“I remember blocking on Merlin [Olsen] and he was starting to slip away to the outside in pursuit and I look outside and Travis was about even with us, but near the sideline running towards the end zone. And I knew that this play was over. He’s gone.”
On defense, the Packers just dominated the Rams and held Los Angeles to 217 total yards. The Packers sacked quarterback Roman Gabriel five times, including 3.5 sacks by defensive tackle Henry Jordan.
When the game was over, the Packers were the winners by a 28-7 score.
That victory set up the 1967 NFL title game between the Packers and Cowboys at Lambeau Field. The game is better known as the “Ice Bowl” game.
One never knows what will happen weather-wise in the region where the Fox River connects to the bay off Lake Michigan in the winter. And on December 31, 1967, the region was shocked with the coldest day in Green Bay history.
The game-time temperature was -13°. If you add in the wind throughout the game, the temperature plummeted to -50°. Nice weather if you are a polar bear. But not if you are a professional football player.
The Packers jumped out to an early 14-0 lead, thanks to two Starr touchdown passes to Dowler. Back in January, I talked to Dowler about this game and he told me about each of the touchdowns he scored.
The first touchdown came on the first drive of the game of the Packers and it was when Green Bay was on the 8-yard line of the Cowboys.
“Bart noticed that the cornerback was lined-up a couple of yards outside of me and I was in tight,” Dowler said. “So was the linebacker. Plus, Mel Renfro, who was a safety, was near the line of scrimmage near the center. So Bart calls an audible called 86, which had nothing to do with my number. 86 was a quick post or slant and it was a blitz audible when the safety was up. But Bart never once called that audible when I was in tight. He always had called it when I was split out wide.
“But he called it anyway. But the call did not throw me off, as I knew how Bart thought and was in my ninth year playing with him. So I thought to myself to just not screw up and run what Bart had called, even though I was in tight. The linebacker gave me a clean release off the line of scrimmage and I just broke inside to where Renfro should have been and Bart just threw it to me and it was an easy pitch and catch. But it was the play call that got me open. Bart sort of surprised me with the call, but when I broke wide open in the end zone, I realized it was a damn good call by Bart.”
Dowler also recalled the second touchdown, which occurred in the second quarter.
“It was third and short and Bart called the 36 pass,” Dowler said. “If Renfro was playing deep where he was supposed to be, Bart would have changed the call to a 36 run, when the fullback would run off tackle.”
On the 36 pass, Starr had two options. One, he could throw to the halfback out in the left flat or throw to the end who would run a post pattern. This play occurred when the Packers were at the 43-yard line of the Cowboys.
“On that 36 pass play, Bart first faked the handoff to Ben Wilson and then looked to pass,” Dowler said. “The wind was blowing in Bart’s face on that play. Renfro was playing up a bit and when I got by him, my heart skipped a beat because I thought Bart would overthrow me, but he laid it in there perfectly. Renfro wasn’t far behind me when I caught it and he did tackle me in the end zone.
“The bottom line is that on both of my touchdowns, the coverage problem for the Cowboys was because of where Renfro was lined up. Bart saw that and took advantage of it.”
But the Packers let the Cowboys back in the game thanks to a fumble by Starr which was returned for a TD and a fumble by Wood on a punt return which led to a field goal. The Packers were up just 14-10 at halftime. Then on the first play of the 4th quarter, halfback Dan Reeves hit flanker Lance Rentzel with a 50-yard touchdown pass on the halfback option play.
The Cowboys took the lead 17-14 and that was the score when the Packers got the ball back at their own 32 with 4:50 left in the game. Up until that point, the Packers had run 31 plays after their first two scores and had mustered a minus-nine yards.
Kramer has talked to me about that drive many times.
“I don’t think we ever considered the possibility of losing,” Kramer said. “We didn’t really acknowledge the fact that we didn’t gain any yardage in 31 plays prior to that. We knew where we were when we got in the final huddle. We knew what we had to do.
“I asked Bart about that years later, about what made him think we could go 68 yards and score a touchdown after we had made minus-nine yards on 31 plays prior to that. Bart said, ‘Jerry, I came into the huddle and started to say something. Then I looked in your eyes, I looked at Forrest’s eyes and everyone else in the huddle, and I knew I didn’t have to say anything. So all I said was, ‘Let’s go.’
Kramer said there was calm in that huddle.
“Even at that point of the game there wasn’t any panic with us,” No. 64 said. “There was a sense of urgency however. We still believed that we could do it.
“The beautiful part of that was the contribution by so many different players in that drive. Players like Chuck Mercein, Boyd Dowler and Donny Anderson.”
Indeed, except for a 13-yard pass to Dowler, it was Anderson and Mercein who accounted for most of the yardage on that drive. Mercein picked up 34 yards by himself. No. 30 hadn’t joined the Packers until midway through the ’67 season when Grabowski was hurt, but Mercein proved how valuable he was to the Packers in the postseason games against the Rams and Cowboys.
The game basically came down to one play. It was 3rd down and the Packers had the ball at the 1-yard line of the Cowboys. Green Bay was out of timeouts and there were 16 seconds left in the game. After Starr called his final timeout, he went up to Kramer and asked if he could make the wedge block on Jethro Pugh. The reason Starr asked Kramer that was because earlier in the week while watching film of the Dallas short-yardage defense, Kramer noticed the Pugh played high, as opposed to submarining like most defensive tackles do.
Starr went to the sideline and told Coach Lombardi what he was going to do. Lombardi just replied, “Then run it and let’s get the hell out of here.”
In the huddle, Starr called the 31-wedge play in which Mercein is supposed to get the ball and run through the one hole between center Ken Bowman and Kramer. But Starr indeed kept the ball himself and scored the most famous touchdown in the glorious history of the Packers.
Photo by John Biever
Starr knew exactly what he needed to do on his legendary sneak. No. 15 did not go through the 1-hole like the play was designed. Instead, he went through the 3-hole which was to Kramer’s right. Plus, as he snuck into the end zone, Starr transferred that ball from his right arm to his left. That was very important because just as Starr was crossing the goal line, linebacker Chuck Howley of the Cowboys was ripping at Starr’s empty right arm trying to force a fumble.
After the game, Kramer wanted to make sure he corrected the record about his head coach.
“After that game, I was interviewed by Tom Brookshier,” Kramer said. “There had been a negative article about Coach Lombardi that had come out recently from Esquire magazine. The article compared him to Mussolini and a pigeon walking around with his chest thrown out. It was just a hatchet job.
“Tommy asked me about Coach Lombardi. I had made up my mind previously to talk about him, as I heard that Coach’s mother was really upset with the article. She even cried over it.
“So when Tommy asked me about the coach and mentioned the criticism, I said, ‘People don’t understand Coach Lombardi. They don’t know him. But we know him. We understand him. And we love him. And this is one beautiful man.’
“And that still fits today. I still feel that same way.”
After that monumental game, Lombardi received a phone call in the locker room from his mentor Red Blaik, who taught Lombardi so much at Army. The words from Blaik to Lombardi can be read in the fantastic book, When Pride Still Mattered by David Maraniss, which to me is the greatest book ever written about Lombardi.
“Vince,” Blaik said. “A great victory, but greater were the words of Kramer, who has stilled those who are skeptical about you as a person.”
The Packers had won their third straight NFL title, but they still had to play in Super Bowl II against the Oakland Raiders.
Starr once again was MVP of that game, as threw for 202 yards and one touchdown pass. That TD pass went to Dowler on a 62-yard play-action pass. The Packers ended up winning their second straight Super Bowl by beating the Raiders 33-14.
Dowler had his best season ever in 1967 and was the go-to-guy for the Packers in the postseason, as he had three touchdown receptions.
“It was a great feeling for all of us to win three straight NFL titles and the first two Super Bowls,” Dowler said. “For me personally, the 1967 season was the best year I had in my career. And to finish that off with the two TD catches in The “Ice Bowl” and the TD catch in the Super Bowl, was definitely the highlight of my career.”
Dale had a great postseason as well in 1967, as he had 13 receptions for 196 yards and a score.
“When Coach Lombardi talked to us about Run to Win from St. Paul, it made us focus more on the task at hand. If you are going to be involved in something, just don’t be involved, be the best of what you are involved in. With us, it was winning a third straight title. Nobody had done it and we were weren’t just satisfied winning two championships in a row, we wanted a third. And we were able to achieve that goal.”
The Green Bay Packers lost another great member of their family on November 13, when Paul Hornung passed away. The former Notre Dame Fighting Irish star’s passing came just 15 days after another former legendary athlete of the Packers died. That player was Herb Adderley.
In fact, over just the past two years, 11 players who played under head coach Vince Lombardi in Green Bay have passed away.
The list also includes Jim Taylor, Bob Skoronski, Forrest Gregg, Bart Starr, Zeke Bratkowski, Doug Hart, Allen Brown, Willie Wood and Willie Davis.
Taylor, Gregg, Starr, Wood, Davis, Adderley and Hornung all have busts in Canton at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
So does Lombardi.
For this story, I wanted to talk to a number of players who played with Hornung in Green Bay. Those players are Jerry Kramer, Boyd Dowler, Carroll Dale, Donny Anderson and Jim Grabowski. I also talked to Don Horn, who got to know Hornung at alumni gatherings for the Packers, plus stood near Hornung at the “Ice Bowl”, when the Lombardi received permission from Commissioner Pete Rozelle to have Hornung on the Green Bay sideline during that legendary game.
When I talked with Kramer about Hornung five years ago, Jerry believed the primary reason that Lombardi decided to come to Green Bay was the presence of Hornung on the roster.
“When you talk about Paul, you have to remember how critical he was in the decision that Coach Lombardi made to come to Green Bay,” Kramer said. “If you think back, Bart Starr was methane. He was colorless, odorless, tasteless and virtually invisible. We didn’t know who Bart was.
“Bart was competing with a few other guys like Babe Parilli, Joe Francis and Lamar McHan. Bart was back and forth the first couple of years after Lombardi became the coach.
“But I do remember Lombardi saying, ‘Hornung was going to be his Gifford.’ And remember how critical the sweep was to the Lombardi offense.
“As coach said quite often, ‘This is a play we will make go. This is a play we must make go. We will run it again and again and again.’
“So Hornung may have been the key to getting Lombardi to come to Green Bay.”
Hornung had come to Green Bay in the 1957 NFL draft as the bonus pick of that particular draft. The NFL used a bonus pick system throughout the 1950s when a given NFL team would get the No. 1 pick of the draft. A team would only be able to use the bonus pick once during that period. The Packers got their chance in 1957 and their fabulous scout Jack Vainisi instructed the general manager of the Packers then, Verne Lewellen, to select Hornung.
Hornung had won the Heisman Trophy in 1956. No. 5 is the only player to ever win that award who played on a losing team. Notre Dame was just 2-8 in 1956. But Hornung did it all for the Fighting Irish, as he led the team in rushing, passing, scoring and punting, not to mention kickoff and punt returns. If that wasn’t enough, the “Golden Boy” also led Notre Dame in passes defensed, as well as being second on the team in tackles and interceptions.
Under head coach Lisle Blackbourn in 1957 and head coach Ray “Scooter” McLean in 1958, the Packers did not utilize Hornung correctly. Sometimes No. 5 would play fullback. Other times halfback. Plus, when given a chance to pass, only completed one pass in seven attempts.
In those two years combined, Hornung only had 619 yards rushing and five touchdowns. No. 5 also caught 21 passes without a score. All told, Hornung scored 18 points in 1957 and 67 points in 1958, as in that year, Hornung kicked 11 field goals and converted 22 extra points. But the worst part was the losing. The Packers were a combined 4-19-1 in those two seasons.
Then Lombardi arrived in 1959. When Hornung and Lombardi spoke on the phone for the first time, his new head coach told his young star that he was going to be his left halfback. Or nothing at all.
And what a difference that made. Hornung became the face of the franchise over the the first three years he and Lombardi joined forces.
The primary reason? The power sweep. That play was the staple play of the Packers under Lombardi.
From 1959 through 1961, the Packers averaged 178 yards rushing per game. Taylor rushed for 2,860 yards during that time, but it was Hornung who seemed to be the biggest beneficiary of that play, as he rushed for 1,949 yards and scored 28 touchdowns.
Speaking of scoring, Hornung led the NFL in scoring for three straight years from 1959 through 1961. In 1959, No. 5 scored 94 points. In 1960, when the Packers advanced to the NFL title game for the first time under Lombardi, Hornung scored a whopping 176 points. In just 12 games! And in 1961, the year Hornung was named the NFL MVP and the Packers won their first NFL championship under Lombardi, Hornung scored 146 points.
In one of those games in 1961, Hornung scored 33 points in the 45-7 Green Bay victory over the Baltimore Colts at new City Stadium. No. 5 scored four touchdowns, kicked six extra points and one field goal.
Because of the Cold War between the United States and the then Soviet Union, a number of players from NFL teams were pressed into military duty in 1961. The Packers had three of their players pressed into service. They were Ray Nitschke, Boyd Dowler and Hornung.
As a matter of fact, at first it appeared that Hornung would not be allowed a pass from the Army to play in the 1961 NFL title game. That would have been quite an issue, had the league MVP not be allowed to play in the NFL championship game.
But thanks to the relationship that Lombardi and President John F. Kennedy had forged, Hornung was given a pass and scored 19 of the 37 points that the Packers scored in the first NFL championship game ever played in Green Bay, as the Pack whipped the New York Giants 37-0 at new City Stadium (now Lambeau Field).
I talked to Kramer again recently about Hornung. No. 64 talked about the relationship between Lombardi and Hornung.
“Coach Lombardi liked Paul, perhaps more than any other player,” Kramer said. “Almost like a son. Coach had a great affection for Paul.”
One of the reasons had to be the way Hornung would run the power sweep.
“Paul would stay behind Fuzzy [Thurston] and I on the sweep,” Kramer said. “He just knew instinctively how to use our blocks and how to fake a defender into going left or right. Paul knew the precise instance when the defender had to make a commitment, and then Paul would either step inside or outside and set the player up and go the other way. He was just sensational in doing that on a consistent basis.
“Bob, in the first three years we ran that play, we averaged 8.3 yards a carry.”
Everyone on the offensive line played a huge part in the success of the power sweep, as did the other running back and the tight end. The guards were key components, as they often would get to the second or third level with their blocks.
But two players have to be mentioned regarding the great success the power sweep had early in the Lombardi years. They were center Jim Ringo and tight end Ron Kramer.
The power sweep being run to the left was called red right 48 and if the sweep was run to the right it was called red right 49.
Both Hornung and Taylor excelled on that play running the ball, but especially Hornung. It didn’t hurt that both Hornung and Taylor were excellent blockers for one another.
Hornung also ran the red right 49 option play extremely well. On that play, Hornung would act like it was a running play and then throw an option pass.
When I talked with Dowler recently about Hornung, Boyd talked about how successful that option pass was for the Packers.
“On that play, the flanker comes in from the outside right on that play,” Dowler said. “I acted like I was going to block the safety who should be coming towards the line of scrimmage because the play looked like our power sweep. So once the safety came up, I would just turn and break out to the corner.
“Hornung would put the ball under his arm and take off like he was going to run and then he would pull up and pass. It seemed like it was easy to get open. I scored on that play a number of times.”
From 1959 through 1961, Hornung threw five touchdown passes using that play.
In one game in 1959, which was Dowler’s rookie year, No. 86 caught two touchdown passes from Hornung. It was the second to last game of the season against the Rams at the Los Angeles Coliseum. In that game, Dowler caught a 26-yards touchdown pass from Hornung in the first quarter and then a 30-yard touchdown pass from No. 5 in the second quarter, as the Pack went on to win 38-20.
Another play in which Hornung really had a lot of success was called brown right pass 36 x-post. It was a variation of the brown right run 36 when Taylor would carry the football off tackle to the left. On that play, Hornung would block the weakside linebacker.
But when the pass play was called and Starr would fake to Taylor, Hornung would fake the block on the linebacker and head outside to the flat. The split end (usually Dowler) to that side would run a post pattern on that same play. Starr would have two options as to where to throw the ball.
The 43-yard touchdown pass that Dowler scored in the “Ice Bowl” was the brown right pass 36 x-post play. But in the 1965 game against the Baltimore Colts at Memorial Stadium, Starr utilized Hornung on that play twice.
In the 1st quarter, Starr called the 36 pass play. And Hornung scored on a 50-yard touchdown pass. Then in the 4th quarter, No. 5 scored again on that play, this time from 65 yards out. It was Hornung’s fifth touchdown of the game, as the Packers won 42-27.
As glorious as Hornung’s first three seasons were under Lombardi in Green Bay, the way he finished the 1965 season and postseason was extra special.
Hornung scored the only Green Bay touchdown in the 13-10 overtime win against the Baltimore Colts at Lambeau Field in the Western Conference Championship game. No. 5 had 75 total yards in that victory.
But that was nothing compared to what Hornung did in the 1965 NFL Championship Game against the defending NFL champion Cleveland Browns the next week at Lambeau Field.
Hornung rushed for 105 yards in 18 carries and scored a touchdown. No. 5 also caught a pass for eight more yards. Taylor also had a big game, as No. 31 ran for 96 yards on 27 carries, plus caught two passes for 20 yards.
Hornung’s touchdown run was his last score in a championship game. The run by Hornung came behind one of the finest blocking sequences ever by Kramer, who pulled in front of Hornung to the left heading to the end zone. No. 64 first got to the middle linebacker of the Browns and screened him away from Hornung and then went left to seal off the cornerback to open a lane for the “Golden Boy” to score on a 13-yard jaunt.
Hornung had injury issues with the Packers starting in 1962. No. 5 injured his knee that year and [Jerry] Kramer took over the kicking duties for the Pack that season.
Hornung only started eight games in ’62 and even though he wasn’t 100 percent, No. 5 played in the 1962 NFL Championship Game and rushed for 35 yards on eight carries. Hornung also completed a 21-yard pass to Dowler in the game on the option play.
The Packers won their second straight NFL title in ’62, by beating the New York Giants again, this time by a score of 16-7 at Yankee Stadium on a very cold and blustery day. The difference in the game were the three field goals and the extra point kicked by Kramer in the contest.
In 1963, both Hornung and defensive tackle Alex Karras were suspended for the entire season by Commissioner Pete Rozelle. The Packers missed Hornung that year, even though the team finished 11-2-1, that wasn’t enough to catch the Bears, who finished 11-1-2. Chicago beat Green Bay twice that season and and went on to win the 1963 NFL title.
Hornung came back and started all 14 games in 1964, but he wasn’t the same player he was in the three-year span from 1959 though 1961. No. 5 rushed for 415 yards, but his kicking fell off badly, as he was just 12-of-38 in field goals that year. The Packers finished second again in ’64, as the Colts won the Western Conference.
In 1965, Lombardi brought in some new blood to the roster, as he traded for kicker/punter Don Chandler and flanker Carroll Dale. Both were huge additions for the team in 1965 and beyond.
Dale talked to me recently about joining the Packers in 1965 and meeting Hornung.
“When I arrived in Green Bay, my locker was right besides Hornung’s,” Dale said. “What really impressed me about Paul was besides his great athletic ability to execute run plays or pass plays, was the fact that he was always working with his teammates. Especially those who played his position.
“It was nice to see him share his experience and knowledge in terms of running, blocking and receiving. Over the two years I played with him and he had some injuries, he was almost like an assistant coach working with players. He was constantly working with the halfbacks.”
Hornung had injury issues again in ’65, this time dealing with a nerve issue in his neck/shoulder region. No. 5 started just eight games that season, but closed out the year in phenomenal fashion, with his performances versus the Colts and Browns. The victory against the Browns would be the first of three straight NFL titles by the Packers.
In 1966, as the Packers added three great rookies to their roster, halfback Donny Anderson, fullback Jim Grabowski and guard Gale Gillingham, Hornung had the neck/shoulder issues once again and only played in nine games and started six.
As Dale had mentioned earlier, Hornung tried to help Anderson as much as possible, as No. 44 explained to me recently.
“Paul was not going to be able to play much because of the injury to his neck,” Anderson said. “Elijah [Pitts] played a lot. Hornung helped me out in how best to run a pattern and learn the system that Lombardi had.
“It was a pretty simple system. It wasn’t complex at all. But there was one particular play which was called the A & B circle. And that play was primarily for the halfback or the fullback. And you would run the play from the weak side, and I played on the weak side the six years I played in Green Bay.
“Weakside was called Willie for the weakside linebacker. My job was to get in the open. Paul told me the key to the play was the middle linebacker. If you keyed on him, I could run either inside or outside. It was an excellent play. If you could beat the Willie linebacker and the Mike linebacker was gone, it was like an open field then. The play could go for 15 or 20 yards. So Hornung really helped me with that particular play.”
In 1966, Grabowski played fullback behind Taylor. And No. 33 was not getting any assistance whatsoever from No. 31.
Hornung was much different in terms of communicating with the younger players, as Grabowski told me recently.
“Paul just treated us all very well,” Grabowski said. “In ’66, Paul was hurt and didn’t play much because of the nerve problem in his shoulder. Paul was just a good guy.
“He would tell us what we should do in this situation and what we shouldn’t do. He was the voice of experience. I always appreciated him. Paul was very charismatic. He treated everyone well and he was a type of guy who everyone would flock to.”
Hornung didn’t play at all in the 1966 NFL title game or Super Bowl I. Even without Hornung, the Packers first beat the Dallas Cowboys 34-27 to win the NFL title and then the Kansas City Chiefs 35-10 in Super Bowl I.
In 1967, Lombardi placed Hornung’s name on the expansion list for the New Orleans Saints and the newest team in the NFL did indeed select Hornung to play for them. But because of his neck/shoulder problem, Hornung retired.
Still, Hornung would be coming back to Green Bay in late 1967 at a very opportune time. I’m talking about the week of the “Ice Bowl” game at Lambeau Field.
Lombardi petitioned Commissioner Rozelle to get permission for Hornung to be on the Green Bay bench for the game. That petition was granted. Just seeing Hornung again on the sideline of a NFL title game made the players on the Packers feel good.
When I talked to Horn recently, he remembered Hornung being around the week of that big game.
“Yes, Paul was at a couple of meetings, in the locker room and on the practice field that week,” Horn said. “I believe Coach Lombardi wanted Paul around for good luck. I mean Max [McGee] and Fuzzy were still there, so Paul’s presence was good karma. Every chance he got, Paul was socializing, as you might expect.
“On the sideline of the game, everyone was bundled up trying to stay as warm as we could. I stood pretty close to Coach Lombardi almost the entire game. Paul was nearby as well. But just to have Paul’s presence there was great. I mean, Paul was an icon. I was just a rookie. I always admired him for what he did before I got there. Having Paul there with Coach Lombardi just made everyone more confident.”
In fact, it was Hornung who gave Starr the hand warmers just before No. 15 went back to the huddle just before his legendary quarterback sneak.
In 1986, Hornung was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Speaking of the Hall of Fame, I never met Hornung in person, although I came close one time at the party the Packers threw for Kramer when he was being enshrined later that night in Canton in 2018.
As many of you know, I campaigned and promoted Jerry for the Pro Football Hall of Fame for several years. In 2012, I was talking to Jerry and I said it would be a good idea for someone like Hornung to contact the Seniors Selection Committee at the Hall of Fame, either by letter or vocally.
Jerry gave me Paul’s number. I called Paul and I asked him if he could write a letter or talk to the seniors committee on Jerry’s behalf. He said he absolutely would. And sure enough, that year he wrote a great letter to the committee.
At Jerry’s party, I saw Paul immediately. I definitely planned to talk with him. But I first talked to Dan Kramer and Rick Gosselin right after I arrived. I also talked to Jerry shortly after that. It was while I was talking to Jerry when I saw Paul leave the party.
The two phone conversations that I had with Paul told me something about the character of the man. That’s why I wanted to talk to some people who knew Hornung as a teammate and as a friend.
People like Kramer, Dowler, Dale, Anderson, Grabowski and Horn.
And there are more stories, as you might expect.
When I talked with Kramer, he mentioned that his daughter Diana called Paul a Renaissance man. A very apropos description of Hornung. Why? Because Paul was intelligent, charming, sophisticated, principled, classy and had multiple talents.
Kramer also talked to me about being with his buddy Hornung at the Kentucky Derby.
“At the Kentucky Derby, we would go down to the stables,” Kramer said. “I don’t believe everyone was allowed at the stables. Maybe just the owners. But Paul was allowed to go down there. Paul first started working at the track when he was just a kid, selling racing sheets or something like that.
“But we would go down and talk to the jockeys, talk to the owners and talk to the horse. We wanted to see if we wanted to put some money down on him. We then go up to our suite and enjoy the race. But everything was arranged by Paul. He took care of the whole package.”
Kramer also remembers how much Hornung enjoyed being with Jerry’s children.
“When I would have my children with me at some event, like maybe the Lombardi Golf Classic, Paul would sit with the kids and shoot the breeze with them. I have a number of photos of Paul with my kids.
“Paul knew how I felt about my children and he said, ‘Kramer, if I had kids as good looking as yours, I would have a dozen of them.’ Paul just enjoyed the hell about being with them.”
Anderson recalled a couple of stories about Hornung as well.
“When I was a rookie in 1966, as I had run a 9.6 100 at Texas Tech, I asked Paul one time about his best 100 time,” Anderson said. “And Paul said he ran a 10 flat. And I said, was that downhill or uphill? Paul laughed. He just had a great sense of humor.”
Anderson remembers another story when he was a rookie.
“I always got along with Jerry, Fuzzy, Max and Paul,” Anderson said. “And one time McGee asked me to go with the group to Fuzzy’s to have a few cocktails. So I get there and I asked why they had invited me, a rookie, to be with proven veterans and world champions and to have a few drinks. And McGee said, ‘That’s pretty simple. You have all the money and you can pick up the bill.’
Dowler also remembered how encouraging Hornung was with him when he first joined the team in 1959.
“Paul was always very supportive of me,” Dowler said. “He claimed to recognize that I would end up as a pretty good player. He would give me tips about running pass patterns. Sometimes we would run patterns on the same side of the field. He said the key was understanding what the defense was trying to do.
“He had a real instinctive feeling about where you needed to go to get open, based on the defense. Like I know where you are going and you know where I’m going. We worked as a combination there. We were very successful doing that.”
Dowler also talked about Hornung as never being full of himself.
“Paul didn’t act like a big shot,” Dowler said. “He was cool. He and McGee were a pretty good pair. They kind of wandered around and acted like Paul and Max. They didn’t put on any show, they just went about doing what they did.
“They were good conversationalists. They were funny. They definitely attracted people. They acted pretty natural. Paul just liked everyone.”
Grabowski recalled the same type of demeanor from Hornung.
“I don’t recall Paul ever really getting pissed off about something,” Grabowski said. “That was the way he played and also the way he was with his teammates. He just had a great attitude. Again, very charismatic.”
Dale recalls how Hornung was to be around, although he never socialized with No. 5.
“My experience with him was all very good. I mainly saw him in the locker room and on the field. I don’t know anything about his escapades,” Dale laughed. “Paul was just a great teammate.”
Horn didn’t play with Hornung, but got to know him a bit the week of the “Ice Bowl” and at alumni events.
“I got to know Paul a little bit over the years,” Horn said. “More like we were acquaintances. But I really admired him. With our last names being so close to one another, when we would get together at reunions, I would get announced first and I would get a nice courtesy applause and then when Hornung was announced, Paul would get the big roar from the crowd. We always would have some big laughs about that.
“Paul was just a great guy to be around and I only wish I could have played with him.”
The bottom line, Paul Hornung was a Hall of Famer in football and also a Hall of Famer in life. There will never be another one like him.
Rest in peace, Paul. May God bless you and your family, as well as your teammates and friends!
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