CANTON, Ohio — A crisp breeze was blowing off Lake Erie, but sunny skies and an afternoon off meant the chance to scratch something off my bucket list.
A visit to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
It was a short drive from Cleveland, where the wife is having tests run at the Cleveland Clinic. She had an afternoon free of medical appointments but needed to rest, so it was out of the hotel room for me.
Needless to say, a huge tourist attraction like the Hall of Fame has numerous signs leading to it and the trip was relatively easy. OK, I went the wrong way once, but just once.
The young lady selling tickets asked for a zip code and driver’s license and then took $4 off the price. Maybe it was the senior citizen discount, but it was not asked for in any form or fashion.
As you walk in you are greeted by a huge statue of Jim Thorpe. It resides in the middle of a spiral walkway, and he’s there later when you say good-bye.
Having grown up an NFL fan - Johnny Unitas and the Baltimore Colts - and staying that way through Cliff Harris and the Dallas Cowboys era, the historical part was what I was most interested in.
And it was there from thedown, set, hut.
There was an old ledger that showed a $208 profit from an early team. Obviously this was a long time before Arena Football and players getting fired days before a game.
Pro football’s first game was 1892. The ball was more round than oblong, and in the pictures the game looked more like rugby.
It was interesting to note that the first draft was in 1936 and the Heisman Trophy winner, Jay Berwanger, either declined the offer to play football - which is what the Hall of Fame reported - or, according to other reports, the Chicago Bears owner would not meet the $15,000 per season request.
The Green Bay Packers, the only publicly held NFL team, is the only franchise to win three consecutive championships twice. The second time included the first two Super Bowls.
The longest game in history - this was before sudden death overtime, although it’s likely the players, who played offense and defense, felt like they were about to die - went into double overtime, and lasted 82 minutes and 40 seconds as Miami, which trailed 10-0 after the first quarter, beat Kansas City 27-24.
Then it seemed like the tour stopped, but a small sign was seen with an arrow pointing to more exhibits.
It quickly became obvious the Hall of Fame has been added on to more than once and is currently undergoing more growth and renovation.
There was a room full of busts of every person who had been inducted in the ProFootball Hall of Fame, and while it was interesting it was a little odd too because you had all those faces staring at you.
Of course, Cortez Kennedy and Willie Roaf, 2012 inductees, were not on display yet, but Lance Alworth and Dan Hampton seemed to jump out at me.
There was a room devoted to other professional leagues like the American Football League, the United States Football League and even the World Football League (of which Memphis was a proud member).
Oh, and in 1936 the Boston Shamrocks refused to play the Cleveland Rams in the championship game because they were owed money. See, it has always been about the money.
There were many personaltributes - including a dress worn by Faith Hill - and time was spent watching clips of Johnny U., who went from making $6 a game playing semi-pro football after being cut by Pittsburgh to starring for the Baltimore Colts and leading them to what some call the greatest game ever played.
With time running out, he passed the Colts 73 yards for a tying field goal and then beat the New York Giants in Yankee Stadium, 23-17.
I was tired by the time I got to the exit, but I was very glad I had had the Pro Football Hall of Fame on my bucket list.
Sports, Pages 17 on 03/15/2012