Vincent Thomas "Vince" Lombardi (June 11, 1913 September 3, 1970) was an
American footballAmerican football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
coach. He is best known as the head coach of the
Green Bay PackersThe Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight league championships and five in seven years, including winning the first two Super Bowls following the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons. The
National Football LeagueThe National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
's
Super BowlThe Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
trophyThe Vince Lombardi Trophy is the trophy awarded each year to the winning team of the National Football League's championship game, the Super Bowl.-History:...
is named in his honor. He was enshrined in the NFL's Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
He played football at
St. Francis Preparatory SchoolSt. Francis Preparatory School, commonly known as St. Francis Prep, is a private, independent Catholic college preparatory school in the Fresh Meadows neighborhood of the New York City borough of Queens. It is the largest non-diocesan Catholic high school in the United States. St. Francis is run by...
, and later
Fordham UniversityFordham University is a private, nonprofit, coeducational research university in the United States, with three campuses in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...
. He began coaching as an assistant and later as a head coach at St. Cecilia High School. He would later become an assistant coach at Fordham University, the
U.S. Military AcademyThe United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
, and the
New York GiantsThe New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
before becoming a
head coachA head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
for the Green Bay Packers from 1959–67 and the
Washington RedskinsThe Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
in
1969The 1969 NFL season was the 50th regular season of the National Football League, and the last one before the AFL-NFL Merger. To honor the NFL's 50th season, a special anniversary logo was designed and each player wore a patch on their jerseys with this logo throughout the season.As per the...
. He never had a losing season as a head coach in the NFL, compiling an impressive Regular Season winning percentage of 73.8% and 90% in the Post Season.
Early years
Lombardi was born in
BrooklynBrooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
to Enrico "Harry" Lombardi and Matilda "Mattie" Izzo on June 11, 1913. Harry's mother and father, Vincenzo and Michelina emigrated from
SalernoSalerno is a city and comune in Campania and is the capital of the province of the same name. It is located on the Gulf of Salerno on the Tyrrhenian Sea....
,
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. Mattie's father and mother, Anthony and Loretta, emigrated from an area several miles east of Salerno. Henry had three siblings and Matilda had twelve siblings. Vince would be the oldest of five children, Madeleine, Harold, Claire, and Joe. The entire Lombardi and Izzo clan settled in Sheepshead Bay.
Matilda's father, Anthony, opened up a barber shop in Sheepshead Bay prior to the turn of the century. At about the time of Lombardi's birth, Harry, and his brother, Eddie, opened a butcher shop in the
Meatpacking DistrictThe Meatpacking District is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan which runs roughly from West 14th Street south to Gansevoort Street, and from the Hudson River east to Hudson Street, although recently it is sometimes considered to have extended north to West 16th Street and east...
. Throughout the
Great DepressionThe Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, Harry's shop did well and his family prospered. Lombardi grew up in an ethnically diverse, middle-class neighborhood.
Church attendance was mandatory for the Lombardis on Sundays. Mass would be followed with an equally compulsory few hours of dinner with friends, extended family members, and local clergy. He was an altar boy at St. Mark's Catholic Church. Outside of their local neighborhood, the Lombardi children were subject to the rampant racism that existed at the time against Italian immigrants. As a child, Lombardi helped his father at his meat cutting business, but grew to hate it. At the age of 12 he started playing in an uncoached, Sheepshead Bay, organized football league.
High School
Lombardi graduated from the eighth grade at P.S. 206, aged 15, in 1928. He then matriculated with the
Cathedral College of the Immaculate ConceptionCathedral Preparatory Seminary is a private, Roman Catholic high school and seminary in Elmhurst, Queens, New York. It is located within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn...
, a six-year secondary program to become a
CatholicThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
priestA priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
. At Cathedral, he played on the school's baseball and basketball teams, but his performance was hindered by his poor athleticism and eyesight. Against school rules, he continued to play football off-campus throughout his studies at Cathedral. After completing four years at Cathedral he decided not to pursue the priesthood. He enrolled at St. Francis Preparatory high school for the fall of 1932. There he became a Charter Member of
Omega Gamma DeltaOmega Gamma Delta is an American fraternity. It was created June 22, 1902 by Percy & Arthur Edrop and Walter Dohm in Brooklyn, New York.- External links :* * *...
fraternity. His play on Prep's football teamed earned him a spot on the virtual All-City football team.
Fordham University
In 1933, Lombardi accepted a football scholarship to
Fordham UniversityFordham University is a private, nonprofit, coeducational research university in the United States, with three campuses in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...
in the Bronx to play for the Fordham Rams and Coach
Jim CrowleyJames Harold "Jim" Crowley was an American football player and coach. He gained fame as one-fourth of the University of Notre Dame's legendary "Four Horsemen" backfield where he played halfback from 1922 to 1924. After a brief career as a professional football player, Crowley turned to coaching...
, one of the
Four HorsemenThe Four Horsemen of Notre Dame comprised a winning group of American football players at the University of Notre Dame under coach Knute Rockne. They were the backfield of Notre Dame's 1924 football team...
of
Notre DameNotre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the football team of the University of Notre Dame. The team is currently coached by Brian Kelly.Notre Dame competes as an Independent at the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision level, and is a founding member of the Bowl Championship Series coalition. It is an...
in the 1920s. During his freshman year, Lombardi proved to be an aggressive and spirited player on the football field. Prior to the start of his sophomore year, Lombardi was projected as a starter at tackle. Lombardi was undersized for the position (5'8" and about 180 lb.)
In his senior year (1936), he became the right guard in the
Seven Blocks of GraniteThe Seven Blocks of Granite was a nickname given to the Fordham University football team's offensive line under head coach "Sleepy" Jim Crowley and line coach Frank Leahy. The most famous Seven Blocks of Granite were: Leo Paquin, Johnny Druze, Alex Wojciechowicz, Ed Franco, Al Babartsky, Natty...
, a nickname given to the Fordham University football team's offensive front line by a Fordham University publicist. In a game against the Pittsburgh Panthers, he suffered a severe gash inside his mouth and had several teeth knocked out. Afterward, he missed almost the entire game until he was called in on defense for a successful goal line stand that preserved a 0-0 tie. The Rams went 5-0-2 before losing in the final game of the season, 7-6, to NYU. The loss destroyed all hopes of Fordham playing in the
Rose BowlThe Rose Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game, usually played on January 1 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. When New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, the game is played on Monday, January 2...
and the loss taught Lombardi a lesson he would never forget — to never underestimate your opponent.
Early career
On June 16, 1937, he graduated from Fordham University. The economic times of the
Great DepressionThe Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
offered him little opportunities for a career. For the next two years he showed no discernible career path or ambition. He tried his hand at semi-professional football and as a debt collector but those efforts proved to be failures very quickly. With his father's strong support he enrolled in Fordham Law school in September, 1938. Although he did not fail any classes, he believed his grades were so poor that he dropped out after one semester. Later in life, he would explain to others that he was close to graduating but his desire to start, and support, a family forced him to leave law school and get a job.
St. Cecilia High School
By 1939, Lombardi wanted to marry his girlfriend, Marie Planitz, but, at his father's insistence, he needed a steady job to support himself and a family. In 1939, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching job at St. Cecilia (which closed in 1986), a Roman Catholic high school in Englewood, New Jersey. He was offered the position by the school's new head coach, Lombardi's former Fordham teammate, quarterback Andy Palau. Palau had just taken over the head coaching position from another Fordham teammate, Nat Pierce (left guard), who had accepted an assistant coach's job back at Fordham. In addition to coaching, Lombardi, age 26, also taught Latin, chemistry, and physics for an annual salary of under $1,000 at the high school. Andy Palau left for Fordham in 1942 and Lombardi became the head coach at St. Cecilia. Lombardi stayed a total of eight years (five as head coach, and in 1943 was recognized as the top football team in the nation. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi became the President of the Bergen County Coach's Association.
Fordham University
In 1947, Lombardi became the coach of freshman teams in football and
basketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
at Fordham University. The following year he served as an assistant coach for Fordham's varsity football team, but he was arguably the de facto head coach.
West Point
Following the 1948 football season, Lombardi accepted an assistant's job, at the
U.S. Military AcademyThe United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
at West Point, a position that would greatly influence his future coaching style. Lombardi served as offensive line coach under legendary head coach
Earl "Colonel Red" BlaikEarl Henry "Red" Blaik was an American football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and United States Army officer. He served as the head football coach at Dartmouth College from 1934 to 1940 and at the United States Military Academy from 1941 to 1958, compiling a career college...
. "As integral as religion was to his (Lombardi's) sense of self, it was not until he reached West Point and combined his spiritual discipline with Blaik's military discipline that his coaching persona began to take its mature form." Blaik's emphasis on execution would become a trademark of Lombardi's coaching. Lombardi coached at West Point for five seasons, with varying results. The 1949, 1950, and 1953 seasons were successful. But the 1951 and 1952 seasons were not successful due to the aftermath of a cadet
cribbingCheating refers to the breaking of rules to gain advantage in a competitive situation. The rules infringed may be explicit, or they may be from an unwritten code of conduct based on morality, ethics or custom, making the identification of cheating a subjective process. Cheating can refer...
scandal (a violation of the
Cadet Honor CodeBoth the United States Military Academy and the United States Air Force Academy have adopted a Cadet Honor Code as a formalized statement of the minimum standard of ethics expected of cadets. Other military schools have similar codes with their own methods of administration...
) which was revealed in the spring of 1951. As a result, 43 of 45 members of the varsity football team were discharged by administrative order. "Decades later, looking back on his rise, Lombardi came to regard..." Blaik's decision not to resign "...as a pivotal moment in his [own] career" - it taught him 'perseverance'. Following these five seasons at Army, Lombardi accepted an assistant coaching position with the
New York GiantsThe New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
.
New York Giants
In
1954The 1954 NFL season was the 35th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended when the Cleveland Browns defeated the Detroit Lions in the NFL Championship Game.-Major rule changes:...
, Lombardi, age 41, began his NFL career with the
New York GiantsThe New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. He accepted a job that would later become known as the
offensive coordinatorAn offensive coordinator is a member of the coaching staff of a gridiron football team who is in charge of the offense. Generally, along with his defensive counterpart, he represents the second level of command structure after the head coach...
position under new head coach
Jim Lee HowellJames Lee Howell was an American football player and coach for the National Football League's New York Giants. Howell was born in Arkansas and played college football and basketball at the University of Arkansas. He was drafted by the Giants in the 1937 NFL Draft and played wide receiver and...
. The Giants had finished the
previousThe 1953 NFL season was the 34th regular season of the National Football League. The names of the American and National conferences were changed to the Eastern and Western conferences....
season, under 23-year coach
Steve OwenStephen Joseph Owen was an American football player and coach who earned a place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame as head coach of the National Football League's New York Giants from 1930 to 1953...
, with a 3–9 record. By the third season, Lombardi, along with the
defensive coordinatorA defensive coordinator typically refers to a coach on a gridiron football team who is in charge of the defense. Generally, along with his offensive counterpart, he represents the second level of command structure after the head coach...
, former All-Pro cornerback turned coach
Tom LandryThomas Wade "Tom" Landry was an American football player and coach. He is ranked as one of the greatest and most innovative coaches in National Football League history, creating many new formations and methods...
, turned the squad into a championship team, defeating the
Chicago BearsThe Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
for the league title in
1956The 1956 NFL season was the 37th regular season of the National Football League. CBS became the first network to televise some regular season games across the nation...
. "Howell readily acknowledged the talents of Lombardi and Landry, and joked self-deprecatingly, that his main function was to make sure the footballs had air in them." At points in his tenure as an assistant coach at West Point, and as an assistant coach with the Giants, Lombardi worried that he was unable to land a head coaching job due to prejudice against his Italian heritage, especially with respect to Southern colleges. Howell wrote numerous recommendations for Lombardi to aid Vince in obtaining a head coaching position. Lombardi applied for head coaching positions at
Wake ForestThe Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represents Wake Forest University in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Wake Forest plays its home football games at BB&T Field....
, Notre Dame and other universities and, in some cases, never received a reply.
In New York, Lombardi introduced the strategy of
rule blockingZone blocking is a technique in American football that is a simple and effective scheme for creating lanes for running plays.In a zone blocking scheme, fleet-footedness and athletic ability trump size as desirable qualities in offensive linemen...
to the NFL. In rule blocking, the offensive lineman would block an area, and not necessarily a particular defensive player, as was the norm up to that time. The running back then was expected to run toward any hole that was created. Lombardi referred to this as
running to daylight.
First year
For the
1958 NFL seasonThe 1958 NFL season was the 39th regular season of the National Football League.The Baltimore Colts defeated the New York Giants, 23–17, in the first sudden-death overtime in an NFL Championship Game...
, the Packers, with five future hall of famers playing on the team, finished with a record of 1-10-1, the worst in Packer history. The players were dispirited, the Packer shareholders were disheartened, and the Green Bay community was enraged. The angst in Green Bay extended to the NFL as a whole, as the financial viability and the very existence of the Green Bay Packer franchise were in jeopardy. On February 2,
1959The 1959 NFL season was the 40th regular season of the National Football League. Tragedy struck as NFL Commissioner Bert Bell died of a heart attack on October 11 at Philadelphia's Franklin Field while watching the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers play...
, Vince Lombardi accepted the position of head coach and general manager of the
Green Bay PackersThe Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
.
Lombardi created punishing training regimens and expected absolute dedication and effort from his players. The
1959The 1959 NFL season was the 40th regular season of the National Football League. Tragedy struck as NFL Commissioner Bert Bell died of a heart attack on October 11 at Philadelphia's Franklin Field while watching the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers play...
PackersThe 1959 Green Bay Packers season was their 39th season in the National Football League and 41st overall. The club posted a 7-5 record under first-year coach Vince Lombardi, earning a third-place finish in the National Conference.-NFL Draft:...
were an immediate improvement, finishing at 7-5. Rookie head coach Lombardi was named Coach of the Year.
Second year
In his second year, Green Bay won the NFL Western Conference for the first time since 1944. This victory, along with his well-known religious convictions led the Green Bay community to anointing him with the nickname "The Pope". Lombardi led the
Packers*First Quarter**GB-Hornung 20 yard FG*Second Quarter**GB-Hornung 23 yard FG**Phi-McDonald 35 yard pass from Van Brocklin **Phi-Walston 15 yard FG*Third Quarter**No scoring*Fourth Quarter...
to the
1960The 1960 NFL season was the 41st regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, Pete Rozelle was elected NFL commissioner as a compromise choice on the twenty-third ballot. Meanwhile, the league expanded to 13 teams with the addition of the Dallas Cowboys. Also, the Cardinals...
NFL Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Prior to the championship game, Lombardi met with
Wellington MaraWellington Timothy Mara was the co-owner of the NFL's New York Giants from 1959 until his death, and one of the most influential and iconic figures in the history of the National Football League. He was the younger son of Tim Mara, who founded the Giants in 1925...
and advised him that he would not take the Giants' head coaching job, which was initially offered after the end of the 1959 season. In the final play of the game, in a drive that would have won it, the Packers were stopped a few yards from the goal line. Lombardi had suffered his first, and his only ever, championship game loss. After the game, and after the press corps had left the locker room, Lombardi told his team, "This will never happen again. You will never lose another championship." In later years as coach of the Packers, Lombardi made it a point to admonish his running backs if they failed to score from one yard out, then he would consider it a personal affront to him and he would seek retribution. He would coach the Packers to win their next 9 post-season games, a record streak not matched or broken until
Bill BelichickWilliam Stephen "Bill" Belichick is an American football head coach for the New England Patriots of the National Football League. After spending his first 15 seasons in the league as an assistant coach, Belichick got his first head coaching job with the Cleveland Browns in 1991...
won 10 in a row from 2002 to 2006. The Packers would defeat the Giants for the NFL title in
1961The 1961 NFL season was the 42nd regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 14 teams with the addition of the Minnesota Vikings, after the team's owners declined to be charter members of the new American Football League. The schedule was also expanded from 12 games per...
(37–0 in Green Bay) and
1962The 1962 NFL season was the 43rd regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, CBS signed a contract with the league to televise all regular-season games for a $4.65 million annual fee....
(16–7 at Yankee Stadium), marking the first two of their five titles in Lombardi's nine years. After the 1962 championship win,
PresidentA president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
John F. KennedyJohn Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
called Lombardi and asked him if he would, "come back to Army and coach again"; Kennedy received Lombardi's tacit denial of the request. His only other post-season loss occurred to the St. Louis Cardinals in the
Playoff BowlThe Playoff Bowl was a post-season game for third place in the NFL, played ten times following the -69 seasons. Bell was a co-founder of the Philadelphia Eagles as well as a co-owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers during much of the 1940s...
(3rd place game) after the
1964The 1964 NFL season was the 45th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season started, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle reinstated Green Bay Packers running back Paul Hornung and Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras, who had been suspended for the 1963 season due to...
season (officially classified as an exhibition game).
Including postseason but excluding exhibition games, Lombardi went on to compile a 105–35–6 (.740 winning percent) record as head coach, and he never suffered a losing season. He led the Packers to three consecutive NFL championships — in
1965The 1965 NFL season was the 46th regular season of the National Football League.Because the Green Bay Packers and Baltimore Colts ended up tied in the Western Conference standings after the regular season ended, a conference playoff game was held in Green Bay. Although the Packers had defeated the...
,
1966The 1966 NFL season was the 47th regular season of the National Football League, and the season after which was played Super Bowl I, though it was called the AFL-NFL World Championship Game. The league expanded to 15 teams with the addition of the Atlanta Falcons, thus an odd number of teams...
, and
1967The 1967 NFL season was the 48th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 16 teams with the addition of the New Orleans Saints. The league's teams were realigned into four divisions: the Capitol and Century Divisions in the Eastern Conference, and the Central and...
— a feat accomplished only once before in the history of the league (by
Curly LambeauEarl Louis "Curly" Lambeau was founder, player, and first coach of the Green Bay Packers professional American football team...
, Co-founder of the Packers, who coached the team to their first three straight NFL Championships in 1929, 1930, and 1931). At the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 seasons, Lombardi's Packers would go on to win the first two Super Bowls. Lombardi coached the Green Bay Packers to championships in five of seven seasons.
The Lombardi Sweep
As coach of the Packers, Lombardi converted Notre Dame quarterback and
Heisman TrophyThe Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
winner
Paul HornungPaul Vernon Hornung is a retired Hall of Fame professional football player who played for the Green Bay Packers from 1957-66...
to a full-time
halfbackA halfback, sometimes referred to as a tailback, is an offensive position in American football, which lines up in the backfield and generally is responsible for carrying the ball on run plays. Historically, from the 1870s through the 1950s, the halfback position was both an offensive and defensive...
. Lombardi designed a play for Hornung based on an old single wing concept—both guards pulled to the outside and blocked downfield while Hornung would "run to daylight" -- i.e., wherever the defenders weren't. This was a play that he had originally developed with the Giants for Gifford that would become famous as the "Lombardi sweep" or "Packer power sweep".
The Ice Bowl
Lombardi's Packers hosted the
Dallas CowboysThe Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
in
Green BayGreen Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
on December 31, 1967 in the NFL Championship Game of
1967The 1967 NFL season was the 48th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 16 teams with the addition of the New Orleans Saints. The league's teams were realigned into four divisions: the Capitol and Century Divisions in the Eastern Conference, and the Central and...
. This became known as the "Ice Bowl" because of the -13F gametime temperature. With 16 seconds left in the game and down by 3 points, the Packers called their final time-out. It was 3rd and goal on the Dallas 2 foot line. In the huddle, with the game on the line, Starr asked Kramer whether he could get enough traction on the icy turf for a wedge play and Kramer responded with an unequivocal yes.
QuarterbackQuarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
Bart StarrBryan Bartlett "Bart" Starr is a former professional American football player and coach. Wearing #15, he was the quarterback for the Green Bay Packers from 1956 to 1971 and head coach from 1975 to 1983, compiling a record of 52–76–3 ....
came over to Lombardi on the sidelines to discuss the last play and told him he wanted to run a 31 wedge, but with him keeping the ball. Lombardi told Starr to 'Run it! And let's get the hell out of here!' Lombardi was asked by
Pat PepplerAlbert Patterson Peppler is a former football coach and executive who worked for teams that won five National Football League titles...
what play Starr would call, to which Lombardi replied, 'Damned if I know.' Starr returned to the huddle and called a Brown right 31 Wedge, but with him keeping the ball. At the snap of the ball, Kramer blocked
Jethro PughJethro Pugh, Jr. is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys.-College career:...
low and Ken Bowman hit Pugh high as Starr followed them into the end zone for the Packer lead and eventual victory.
Washington Redskins
Lombardi stepped down as head coach of the
PackersThe Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
following the
1967 NFL seasonThe 1967 NFL season was the 48th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 16 teams with the addition of the New Orleans Saints. The league's teams were realigned into four divisions: the Capitol and Century Divisions in the Eastern Conference, and the Central and...
, staying on as the team's general manager for
1968The 1968 NFL season was the 49th regular season of the National Football League. As per the agreement made during the 1967 realignment, the New Orleans Saints and the New York Giants switched divisions; the Saints joined the Century Division while the Giants became part of the Capitol Division.The...
. He handed off the head coaching position to
Phil BengtsonJohn Phillip Bengtson was a college football player and longtime assistant coach on the collegiate and NFL levels, chiefly remembered as the successor to Vince Lombardi as head coach of the Green Bay Packers in 1968....
, a longtime assistant, but the Packers finished at 6–7–1 and out of the four team NFL playoffs. Lombardi returned to coaching in
1969The 1969 NFL season was the 50th regular season of the National Football League, and the last one before the AFL-NFL Merger. To honor the NFL's 50th season, a special anniversary logo was designed and each player wore a patch on their jerseys with this logo throughout the season.As per the...
with the
Washington RedskinsThe Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
, where he broke a string of 14 losing seasons. The 'Skins would finish with a record of 7–5–2, significant for a number of reasons. Lombardi discovered that rookie running back
Larry BrownLawrence "Larry" Brown, Jr. is a former professional American football player in the National Football League who played running back for the Washington Redskins from 1969 to 1976....
was deaf in one ear, something that had escaped his parents, schoolteachers, and previous coaches. Lombardi observed Brown's habit of tilting his head in one direction when listening to signals being called, and walked behind him during drills and said "Larry". When Brown did not answer, the coach asked him to take a hearing exam. Brown was fitted with a hearing aid, and with this correction he would enjoy a successful NFL career.
Lombardi got quarterback
Sonny JurgensenChristian Adolph "Sonny" Jurgensen III is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League for the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Redskins. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1983....
, one of the league's premier forward passers, into the best condition he could. He coaxed former All-Pro linebacker Sam Huff out of retirement. He even changed the team's uniform design to reflect that of the Packers, with gold and white trim along the jersey biceps, and later a gold helmet with an "R" inside a circle, similar to the famous Green Bay "G" monogram.
The foundation Lombardi laid was the groundwork for Washington's early 1970s success under former
L.A. RamsThe St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,...
Coach
George AllenGeorge Herbert Allen was an American football coach in the National Football League and the United States Football League. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002.-Early life:...
. Lombardi had brought a winning attitude to the Nation's Capital, in the same year that the nearby
University of MarylandThe University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
had hired
Lefty DriesellCharles Grice "Lefty" Driesell is an American former college basketball coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Maryland, Davidson College, James Madison University, and Georgia State University. During his 41-year coaching career, Driesell led teams from each school to the NCAA...
to coach basketball and the hapless expansion
Washington SenatorsThe Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
named
Ted WilliamsTheodore Samuel "Ted" Williams was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 21-year Major League Baseball career as the left fielder for the Boston Red Sox...
as manager and led the club to its only winning record in Washington (86–76).
Family life
Lombardi was introduced to Lawlor's cousin, Marie Planitz. When Marie announced her ardent desire to marry him, her father told her that he did not want his daughter marrying an Italian, a prejudice against his heritage he would face more than once in his life. Lombardi and Marie wed, nonetheless, on August 31, 1940.
Marie miscarried her first child with Lombardi. The 'terrible effect' this had on Marie caused her to turn to
"heavy drinking"Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
, a problem she would deal with on more than one occasion in her life. On April 27, 1942, their son, Vincent Harold Lombardi (Vince Jr.), was born and on February 13, 1947, their daughter Susan was born.
"He seemed preoccupied with football even on their honeymoon, and cut it short to get back to Englewood... 'I wasn't married to him more than one week', she later related, 'when I said to myself, Marie Planitz, you've made the greatest mistake of your life.'" Lombardi's perfectionism, authoritarian nature and temper, instilled in his wife a masterful ability to verbally assault and demean Lombardi when he verbally abused her. His children were not immune from his yelling. When Lombardi had not lost his temper, he would often be reticent and aloof.
Lombardi's grandson, Joe Lombardi is the current quarterbacks coach for the
New Orleans SaintsThe New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....
. In the 2009 season, he helped lead the Saints to win the trophy bearing his grandfather's name and
Drew BreesDrew Christopher Brees is a quarterback for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League. He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft. He played college football at Purdue....
to win a Super Bowl MVP award.
Religion
The three constants throughout Lombardi's life were sports, particularly football, family and religion. His father was a daily communicant throughout his life and his mother's favorite picture of him as a child was on his Confirmation. When Lombardi was 12, on Easter Sunday while serving as an altar boy, "...amid the color and pageantry scarlet and white vestments, golden cross, scepters, the wafers and wine, body and blood ...that the inspiration came to him that he should become a priest...", which when his mother, Matty, got wind of, she bragged about it to her neighbors. Lombardi attended mass on a daily basis throughout his life.
During his tenure at St. Cecilia, Lombardi attended mass every day and "prayed for calm and control: of his temper and..." his wife's drinking. When Lombardi became head coach of football in 1942, he would lead his team to Sunday mass before each home game. At St. Cecilia, Lombardi shared an office with Father Tim Moore wherein it was not unusual for Lombardi to interrupt a conversation and request to go to
ConfessionThis article is for the religious practice of confessing one's sins.Confession is the acknowledgment of sin or wrongs...
and which Father Tim would oblige him right in the office. During his stay at Green Bay, Lombardi once emerged from his office and appeared before his secretary, Ruth McCloskey, wearing "...all these priest robes on, and he had a miter with a
tasselA tassel is a finishing feature in fabric decoration. It is a universal ornament that is seen in varying versions in many cultures around the globe.-Etymology:...
, everything." Each day on his way to work for the Green Bay Packers, Lombardi would stop at
St. WillebrordThe Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay was established on March 3, 1868 by Pope Pius IX. It covers the city of Green Bay as well as Brown, Calumet, Door, Florence, Forest, Kewaunee, Langlade, Manitowoc, Marinette, Menominee, Oconto, Outagamie, Shawano, Waupaca, Waushara, and Winnebago counties,...
and "offer a prayer in case of unexpected death: 'My God, if I am to die today, or suddenly at any time, I wish to receive this
Communion"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
as my
viaticumViaticum is a term used especially in the Roman Catholic Church for the Eucharist administered, with or without anointing of the sick, to a person who is dying, and is thus a part of the last rites...
...'". On the morning of the dedication of Lombardi Avenue, Lombardi remarked, to his 37 member entourage, he was pleased to have gotten them all up to attend morning mass. Lombardi was also a 4th degree in the
Knights of ColumbusThe Knights of Columbus is the world's largest Catholic fraternal service organization. Founded in the United States in 1882, it is named in honor of Christopher Columbus....
.
Unprejudiced nature
In 1960, on at least one team, a
color barrierRacial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
still existed in the NFL. But Jack Vainisi, the
Scouting DirectorIn professional sports, scouts are trained talent evaluators who travel extensively for the purposes of watching athletes play their chosen sports and determining whether their set of skills and talents represent what is needed by the scout's organization...
for the Packers, and Lombardi were determined "to ignore the prejudices then prevalent in most NFL front office in their search for the most talented players." Lombardi explained his views by saying that he "...viewed his players as neither
blackAfrican Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
nor
whiteWhite Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...
, but Packer green". Among professional football head coaches, Lombardi's view on discrimination was not
de rigueur in the midst of the American civil rights movement.
An interracial relationship between one of the Packer rookies and a young woman was brought to the attention of Lombardi by Packer veterans in his first training camp in Green Bay. The next day at training camp, Lombardi, who had a zero tolerance policy towards racism, responded by warning his team that if any player exhibited prejudice, in any manner, then that player would be thrown off the team. Lombardi, who was vehemently opposed to
Jim CrowThe Jim Crow laws were state and local laws in the United States enacted between 1876 and 1965. They mandated de jure racial segregation in all public facilities, with a supposedly "separate but equal" status for black Americans...
discrimination, let it be known to all Green Bay establishments that if they did not accommodate his black players equally as well as his white players, then that business would be off-limits to the entire team. Before the start of the 1960 regular season, he instituted a policy that the Packers would only lodge in places that accepted all his players. In the all-white Oneida Golf and Riding
Country clubA country club is a private club, often with a closed membership, that typically offers a variety of recreational sports facilities and is located in city outskirts or rural areas. Activities may include, for example, any of golf, tennis, swimming or polo...
, of which Lombardi was a member, Lombardi demanded that he should be allowed to choose a
Native AmericanNative Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
caddyIn golf, a caddy is the person who carries a player's bag and clubs, and gives insightful advice and moral support. A good caddy is aware of the challenges and obstacles of the golf course being played, along with the best strategy in playing it. This includes knowing overall yardage, pin...
, even if white caddies were available. Lombardi's view on racial matters was a result of his religious faith and the prejudice he had experienced as an
Italian-AmericanAn Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
.
Lombardi's unprejudiced attitude was not confined to his players, race, ethnicity, or
sexual orientationSexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
. Lombardi was aware of tight end Jerry Smith's homosexuality, and upon arriving in Washington, told Smith in confidence that it would never be an issue as long as he was coaching the Redskins. Smith flourished, becoming an integral part of Lombardi's offense, and was voted a First Team All-Pro for the first and only time in his career, which was also Lombardi's only season as Redskin head coach. Lombardi invited other gay players to training camp, and Lombardi would privately hope they would prove they would earn a spot on the team. At the
Washington RedskinsThe Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
training camp in 1969,
Ray McDonaldRay Douglas McDonald was a professional American football player, a running back in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins for two seasons, from 1967-68....
was a
gayHomosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
player, with sub-par skills, who was trying to make the Redskin roster again , but this time with Lombardi as the Redskins' new head coach. Lombardi told running back coach, George Dickson, 'I want you to get on McDonald and work on him and work on him - and if I hear
one of you people make reference to his manhood, you'll be out of here before your ass hits the ground.'
Illness and death
As early as 1967, Lombardi had been a sufferer of digestive tract problems, but he had refused his doctor's request for him to undergo a
proctoscopicProctoscopy is a common medical procedure in which an instrument called a proctoscope is used to examine the anal cavity, rectum or sigmoid colon. A proctoscope is a short, straight, rigid, hollow metal tube, and usually has a small light bulb mounted at the end...
exam. On June 24, 1970, Lombardi was admitted to
Georgetown University HospitalGeorgetown University Hospital is one of the national capital area's oldest academic teaching hospitals and is affiliated with Georgetown University School of Medicine. GUH is a not-for-profit, acute-care teaching and research facility located in Northwest Washington, DC...
, and tests "revealed
anaplastic carcinomaCancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in the
rectalThe rectum is the final straight portion of the large intestine in some mammals, and the gut in others, terminating in the anus. The human rectum is about 12 cm long...
area of his
colonThe colon is the last part of the digestive system in most vertebrates; it extracts water and salt from solid wastes before they are eliminated from the body, and is the site in which flora-aided fermentation of unabsorbed material occurs. Unlike the small intestine, the colon does not play a...
- a fast-growing malignant cancer in which the
cellsThe cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all known living organisms. It is the smallest unit of life that is classified as a living thing, and is often called the building block of life. The Alberts text discusses how the "cellular building blocks" move to shape developing embryos....
barely resemble their normal appearance." On July 27, Lombardi was readmitted to Georgetown and exploratory
surgerySurgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
found that the cancer was terminal. Lombardi, with Marie at his side, received family, friends, clergy, players, and former players at his hospital bedside. He received a phone call from
PresidentThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
NixonRichard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
telling Lombardi that all of America was
behind him - to which Lombardi replied that he would never give up his fight against his illness. On his deathbed, Lombardi told Father Tim that he was not afraid to die, but that he regretted he could not have accomplished more in his life. He died on September 3, 1970, aged 57.
On September 7, the funeral was held at
St. Patrick's CathedralThe Cathedral of St. Patrick is a decorated Neo-Gothic-style Roman Catholic cathedral church in the United States...
. Approximately 1,500 people lined Fifth Avenue and between 39th and 50th Street, Fifth Avenue was closed to traffic. Terence Cardinal Cooke delivered the eulogy. In attendance were team owners, Commissioner
Pete RozelleAlvin Ray "Pete" Rozelle was the commissioner of the National Football League from January 1960 to November 1989, when he retired from office. Rozelle is credited with making the NFL into one of the most successful sports leagues in the world....
, past and present members of the Packers, Redskins, and Giants, former students from Saints, colleagues and players from West Point, and classmates from Fordham, including the remaining Blocks of Granite." Lombardi is buried next to his wife Marie and his parents Harry and Matilda, in
Mount Olivet CemeteryMount Olivet Cemetery is a cemetery in Middletown, New Jersey. Vince Lombardi and his wife, Marie, are buried there....
in Middletown Township, New Jersey.
During Lombardi's illness, Marie had already "sanctified" her husband. After his death, Marie dwelt unceasingly on his life and accomplishments, so much so that Vince Jr. accused his mother of exaggerating Lombardi's significance. Susan, for all her misgivings about her relationship with her father while growing up, came to realize, long after his death, that she had a truly wonderful childhood and upbringing, and that she loved and missed her father. Vince Jr., like Susan, had his own conflicted views of his relationship with his father as late as 1976. Using his father as a model, he eventually became a paid speaker, and author of several books, on leadership.
"Lombardi time" is the principle that one should arrive 10–15 minutes early, or else be considered late. Vince Jr. viewed an integral part of his father's success was in stressing effort more than on fixating on failures.
Popular culture
In 1968, Lombardi starred in a half-hour motivational film titled
Second EffortSecond Effort is a 1968 sales training film starring Vince Lombardi, the Hall of Fame head coach of the Green Bay Packers. The film also featured veteran character actor Ron Masak and other members of the Green Bay Packers organization, including offensive lineman Jerry Kramer. It has been cited...
, that has been called "The best-selling training film of all time".
In 1973, the 1-hour Lombardi biographical TV drama "Legend in Granite" was released. It starred
Ernest BorgnineErnest Borgnine is an American actor of television and film. His career has spanned more than six decades. He was an unconventional lead in many films of the 1950s, including his Academy Award-winning turn in the 1955 film Marty...
as Vince, focusing mostly on his first 2 years as Packers head coach (1959–60).
NFL FilmsNFL Films is a Mount Laurel, New Jersey-based company devoted to producing commercials, television programs, feature films, and documentaries on the National Football League, as well as other unrelated major events and awards shows...
and HBO produced a film about Lombardi which debuted Saturday, December 11, 2010.
A play entitled
LombardiLombardi is a play by Eric Simonson, based on the book When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi by Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Maraniss.-Synopsis:...
opened on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City in October 2010, following an out-of-town tryout at the Mahaiwe Theater in
Great Barrington, MassachusettsGreat Barrington is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,104 at the 2010 census. Both a summer resort and home to Ski Butternut, Great Barrington includes the villages of Van...
. The production stars
Dan LauriaDaniel Joseph "Dan" Lauria is an American television and film actor.-Early life:Lauria, an Italian-American, was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Carmela and Joseph J. Lauria. He also lived in Lindenhurst, New York...
as Lombardi and
Judith LightJudith Ellen Light is an American actress. Her television roles include Karen Wolek on the soap opera One Life to Live, Angela Bower on the sitcom Who's the Boss?, Claire Meade on ABC's TV series Ugly Betty and Judge Elizabeth "Liz" Donnelly on Law & Order Special Victims Unit.-Early life:Light...
as his wife, Marie. The play has received positive reviews, as has Lauria's performance.
ESPN FilmsESPN Films is a production company owned by ESPN that produces and distributes sports films and documentaries.-History:...
announced that they will be making a film chronicling Lombardi's years as coach for Green Bay, set to be released in February 2012.
Honors
- On May 1967, Lombardi "...received Fordham's highest honor, the Insignis Medal... for being a great teacher"
- On January 13, 1969, he was inducted into the Knights of Malta at St. Patrick's.
- Inducted into the Fordham University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1971
- As part of the Lambeau Field renovation, a 14-foot statue of Lombardi now stands on a plaza outside the stadium, in an overcoat grasping a program, as he did often on the sideline.
- In 1968, Highland Avenue in Green Bay, home to the Packers' Lambeau Field
Lambeau Field is an outdoor football stadium in Green Bay, Wisconsin, the home of the NFL's Green Bay Packers. Opened in 1957 as City Stadium, it replaced the original City Stadium as the Packers' home field...
, was renamed Lombardi Avenue.
- In 1969, the Catholic Youth Organization
A Catholic Youth Organization is an organization for young Catholics. Usually each group uses the church for meeting and gathering, although some have their own premises. It was initiated by Bishop Bernard J...
(CYO) awarded Lombardi with the Jack MaraJohn V. Mara was a co-owner of the New York Giants; an American football team which plays in the National Football League. Jack was the son of Tim Mara and brother of Wellington, and served as the team's president for 24 years...
sportsman of the year.
- The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
is named in his honor.
- One of the Green Bay School District's schools is named the Lombardi Middle School.
- The football field at Old Bridge High School
Old Bridge High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Old Bridge Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Old Bridge Township Public Schools...
in Old Bridge, New Jersey, is named Lombardi Field. The football field in Palisades Park is also known as Lombardi Field.
- Vince Lombardi Square (with a plaque dedication in the sidewalk on the square) is near Sheepshead Bay Road and East 14th Street in Brooklyn, New York.
- There are two places in the Bensonhurst area, which are, or were, dedicated to Lombardi at one time: P.S. 204 Vince Lombardi Elementary School, and the entire Bensonhurst stretch of 16th Avenue was once dedicated by the City of New York as "Vince Lombardi Boulevard"
- The Vince Lombardi Service Area and park-and-ride is the northernmost rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike, at mileposts 116E on the Eastern Spur and 115.5W on the Western Spur. Outside the gift shop is a plaque about his life, which notes that he is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Middletown, New Jersey.
- The Vincent T. Lombardi Council, No. 6552, Knights of Columbus
The Knights of Columbus is the world's largest Catholic fraternal service organization. Founded in the United States in 1882, it is named in honor of Christopher Columbus....
, in Middletown, NJ is named for him.
- The Vince Lombardi Cancer clinic at Aurora Health Care
Aurora Health Care is a not-for-profit health care system headquartered in Milwaukee and serving eastern Wisconsin. The system has 13 hospitals, over 100 clinics, and more than 80 community pharmacies. With 29,000 employees including 3,385 physicians, Aurora is one of Wisconsin's largest...
is named after him.
- The Vincent T. Lombardi Center at Fordham University
Fordham University is a private, nonprofit, coeducational research university in the United States, with three campuses in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...
was named for the coach.
- The NFL's Super Bowl Trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy
The Vince Lombardi Trophy is the trophy awarded each year to the winning team of the National Football League's championship game, the Super Bowl.-History:...
- In 1970, the Rotary
Rotary International is an organization of service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world. The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help...
Club of Houston created the Lombardi AwardThe Rotary Lombardi Award is awarded annually to the best college football lineman or linebacker. The Lombardi Award program was approved by the Rotary Club in Houston in 1970 shortly after the death of Vince Lombardi. The committee outlined the criteria for eligibility for the award, which...
, which is given annually to the best college football offensiveIn American football, each team has eleven players on the field at one time. Because the rules allow unlimited substitution between plays, the types of players on the field for each team differ depending on the situation...
, or defensiveIn American football, each team has eleven players on the field at one time. Because the rules allow unlimited substitution between plays, the types of players on the field for each team differ depending on the situation...
, lineman or linebackerA linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
.
- In 1969, Lombardi received the Silver Buffalo Award
The Silver Buffalo Award is the national-level distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America. It is presented for noteworthy and extraordinary service to youth on a national basis, either as part of, or independent of the Scouting program...
, the highest adult awardScouting in Wisconsin has a long history, from the 1910s to the present day, serving thousands of youth in programs that suit the environment in which they live.-Early history :...
given by the Boy Scouts of AmericaThe Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
.
- Lombardi was enshrined in the NFL's Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
in 1971.
- Lombardi was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame
The Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame is a promenade in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, dedicated to honoring distinguished members of Wisconsin's sports history. New members are honored at a biennial banquet.-History:...
in 1976.
- Lombardi is a member of the Washington Redskins Ring of Fame.
- Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1988
- In 2008, Lombardi is inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame
The New Jersey Hall of Fame is an organization that honors individuals from the U.S. state of New Jersey who have made contributions to society and the world beyond....
- Lombardi appeared on a U.S. Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
first issued on July 25, 1997.
Head coaching record
| Team | |Regular Season | GB The 1959 Green Bay Packers season was their 39th season in the National Football League and 41st overall. The club posted a 7-5 record under first-year coach Vince Lombardi, earning a third-place finish in the National Conference.-NFL Draft:...
|
1959 The 1959 NFL season was the 40th regular season of the National Football League. Tragedy struck as NFL Commissioner Bert Bell died of a heart attack on October 11 at Philadelphia's Franklin Field while watching the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers play...
|
7 |
5 |
0 |
.583 |
3rd (Tie) in NFL West |
- |
- |
- |
- |
| GB *First Quarter**GB-Hornung 20 yard FG*Second Quarter**GB-Hornung 23 yard FG**Phi-McDonald 35 yard pass from Van Brocklin **Phi-Walston 15 yard FG*Third Quarter**No scoring*Fourth Quarter...
|
1960 The 1960 NFL season was the 41st regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, Pete Rozelle was elected NFL commissioner as a compromise choice on the twenty-third ballot. Meanwhile, the league expanded to 13 teams with the addition of the Dallas Cowboys. Also, the Cardinals...
|
8 |
4 |
0 |
.667 |
1st in NFL West |
0 |
1 |
.000 |
Lost to Philadelphia EaglesThe Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
in NFL Championship |
| GB -Regular season:Despite being named NFL MVP, Paul Hornung was briefly lost to the military. In response to the construction of the Berlin Wall, the United States Department of Defense activated thousands of reservists. Two dozen football players were activated, including Paul Hornung, Boyd Dowler...
|
1961 The 1961 NFL season was the 42nd regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 14 teams with the addition of the Minnesota Vikings, after the team's owners declined to be charter members of the new American Football League. The schedule was also expanded from 12 games per...
|
11 |
3 |
0 |
.786 |
1st in NFL West |
1 |
0 |
1.000 |
Won NFL Championship |
| GB The 1962 Green Bay Packers season was their 42nd season in the National Football League. The club posted a 13-1 record under coach Vince Lombardi, earning them a first-place finish in the Western Conference. The Packers ended the season by defeating the New York Giants 16-7 in the NFL Championship...
|
1962 The 1962 NFL season was the 43rd regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, CBS signed a contract with the league to televise all regular-season games for a $4.65 million annual fee....
|
13 |
1 |
0 |
.929 |
1st in NFL West |
1 |
0 |
1.000 |
Won NFL Championship |
| GB The 1963 Green Bay Packers season was their 43rd season in the National Football League. The club posted a 11-2-1 record under coach Vince Lombardi, earning them a second-place finish in the Western Conference. Both losses were inflicted by the eventual 1963 NFL Champions, the Chicago...
|
1963 The 1963 NFL season was the 44th regular season of the National Football League. On April 17, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle indefinitely suspended Green Bay Packers running back Paul Hornung and Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras for gambling on their own teams, as well as other NFL games;...
|
11 |
2 |
1 |
.846 |
2nd in NFL West |
- |
- |
- |
- |
| GB The 1964 Green Bay Packers season was their 44th season in the National Football League. The club posted a 8-5-1 record under coach Vince Lombardi, earning them a second place finish in the Western Conference.-NFL Draft:...
|
1964 The 1964 NFL season was the 45th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season started, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle reinstated Green Bay Packers running back Paul Hornung and Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras, who had been suspended for the 1963 season due to...
|
8 |
5 |
1 |
.615 |
2nd in NFL West |
- |
- |
- |
- |
| GB The 1965 Green Bay Packers season was their 45th season in the National Football League. The club posted a 10-3-1 record under coach Vince Lombardi, earning them a tie for first place in the Western Conference with the Baltimore Colts. The Packers and Colts played a one-game playoff in Green Bay,...
|
1965 The 1965 NFL season was the 46th regular season of the National Football League.Because the Green Bay Packers and Baltimore Colts ended up tied in the Western Conference standings after the regular season ended, a conference playoff game was held in Green Bay. Although the Packers had defeated the...
|
10 |
3 |
1 |
.769 |
1st in NFL West |
2 |
0 |
1.000 |
Won NFL Championship |
| GB The 1966 Green Bay Packers season was their 46th in the NFL and resulted in a 12-2 record, coached by Vince Lombardi and led by quarterback Bart Starr. The team beat the Dallas Cowboys in the 1966 NFL Championship Game, the Packers' 10th NFL title...
|
1966 The 1966 NFL season was the 47th regular season of the National Football League, and the season after which was played Super Bowl I, though it was called the AFL-NFL World Championship Game. The league expanded to 15 teams with the addition of the Atlanta Falcons, thus an odd number of teams...
|
12 |
2 |
0 |
.847 |
1st in NFL West |
2 |
0 |
1.000 |
Won Super Bowl IThe First AFL-NFL World Championship Game in professional American football, later known as Super Bowl I and referred to in some contemporary reports as the Supergame, was played on January 15, 1967 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California.The National Football League ...
|
| GB The 1967 Green Bay Packers season was their 47th season in the NFL and resulted in a 9-4-1 record and a victory in Super Bowl II. The team beat the Dallas Cowboys in the 1967 NFL Championship Game, a game commonly known as the "Ice Bowl," which marked the second time the Packers had won an...
|
1967 The 1967 NFL season was the 48th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 16 teams with the addition of the New Orleans Saints. The league's teams were realigned into four divisions: the Capitol and Century Divisions in the Eastern Conference, and the Central and...
|
9 |
4 |
1 |
.692 |
1st in NFL Central |
3 |
0 |
1.000 |
Won Super Bowl IIThe second AFL-NFL World Championship Game in professional American football, later to be known as Super Bowl II, was played on January 14, 1968 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida....
|
| GB Total |
89 |
29 |
4 |
.754 |
|
9 |
1 |
.900 |
|
| WAS The 1969 Washington Redskins began with the team trying to improve on their 5-9 record from 1968, and they did by hiring legendary Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi, and Pro Football Hall of Famer Sam Huff came out of retirement to play for Vince Lombardi.-Offseason:During Super Bowl III,...
|
1969 The 1969 NFL season was the 50th regular season of the National Football League, and the last one before the AFL-NFL Merger. To honor the NFL's 50th season, a special anniversary logo was designed and each player wore a patch on their jerseys with this logo throughout the season.As per the...
|
7 |
5 |
2 |
.583 |
2nd in Eastern Capital |
- |
- |
- |
- |
| WAS Total |
7 |
5 |
2 |
.583 |
|
|
|
|
|
| Total |
96 |
34 |
6 |
.738 |
|
9 |
1 |
.900 |
|
Sources:
Books written about him
- Football's Greatest Coach: Vince Lombardi by Gene Schoor
Eugene R. Schoor was a New York-based author, journalist, ghost-writer, college boxing instructor , Florida state amateur boxing title holder, Navy Public Information Officer, public relations man, sports agent, boxing promoter, and restaurateur...
- The Lombardi Legacy: Thirty People who were Touched by Greatness by Royce Boyles and Dave Robinson
- Coach: A Season With Lombardi by Tom Dowling
- By Their Works: Profiles of Men of Faith Who Made a Difference by Stephen Singular
- When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi by David Maraniss
David Maraniss is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author. As a reporter for The Washington Post he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting for his stories about the life and career of candidate Bill Clinton in the 1992 campaign for the U.S...
Sources
- When Pride Still Mattered, A Life of Vince Lombardi, by David Maraniss, 1999, (ISBN 0-684-84418-4) ISBN 978-0-618-90499-0
- Claerbaut, David (2004), Bart Starr: When Leadership Mattered, Lanham, MD.:Taylor Trade Publishing ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
1-58979-117-7
- Davis, Jeff (2005), Papa Bear, the life and legacy of George Halas. New York:McGraw-Hill ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
0-07-146054-3
- Davis, Jeff (2008), Rozelle: Czar of the NFL. New York:McGraw-Hill ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
0-07-159352-
- Eisenberg, John (2009), That First Season:: How Vince Lombardi Took the Worst Team in the NFL and Set It on the Path to Glory. New York:Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
- Flynn, George L. (1976), The Vince Lombardi Scrapbook. New York:Grosset and Dunlap New York ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
0-448-12401-7
- Gruver, Edward (1998). The Ice Bowl:The Cold Truth About Football's Most Unforgettable Game. Ithaca, New York:McBooks Press, Inc. eISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
1-59013-080-4
- Kramer, Jerry, and Schapp, Dick (2006), Instant Replay, The Green Bay Diary of Jerry Kramer. New York:Doubleday ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
ISBN 0385517459 ISBNThe International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
ISBN 978-0385517454 (eISBN 978-0-307-48632-5)
- Levy, Alan H. (2003). Tackling Jim Crow, Racial Segregation in Professional Football. Jefferson, North Carolina:McFarland and Co., Inc. ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
ISBN 0-7864-1597-5
- Lombardi Jr., Vince (2003), The Essential Vince Lombardi:Words & Wisdom to Motivate. New York:McGraw-Hill ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
0-07-139096-0
- MacCambridge, Michael (2004, 2005), America's Game. New York:Anchor Books ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
ISBN 978-0-307-48143-6
- O'Brien, Michael (1987), Vince: A Personal Biography of Vince Lombardi. New York:William Morrow and Company, Inc. ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
0-688-07406-6
- Phillips, Donald T. (2001), Run to Win. New York:St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
0-312-27298-7 (hc) ISBNThe International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
0-312-30308-4 (pbk)
- Ross, Charles K. (1999), Outside the Lines: African Americans and the Integration of the National Football League. New York:New York Publishing Company. p. 149. ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
0-8147-7495-4
- Summerall, Pat and Levin, Michael (2010), Giants:What I learned about life from Vince Lombardi and Tom Landry, Hoboken, NJ:John Wiley and Sons, Inc., (eISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
978-0-470-90908-9)
- Wiebusch, John (1971), Lombardi.. Chicago:Triumph Books, ISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
1-572-43028-1
Further reading
- Cavanaugh, Jack (2008), Giants Among Men. New York:Random House. eISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
ISBN 978-1-58836-697-9
- Gifford, Frank and Richmond, Peter (2008), The Glory Game:How the 1958 NFL Championship Changed Football Forever. New York:Harper Collins eISBN
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering code created by Gordon Foster, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H...
ISBN 978-0-06-171659-1
- Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2001), What It Takes to Be #1: Vince Lombardi on Leadership. New York:McGraw-Hill.
- Lombardi, Vince Jr. (2003), The Lombardi Rules: 26 Lessons from Vince Lombardi:The World's Greatest Coach. New York:McGraw-Hill
External links