PRESEASON: Green Bay Packers (3-0) 41, St. Louis Cardinals 14
Saturday August 18th 1962 (at Jacksonville)
GAME RECAP (GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE)
(JACKSONVILLE) - The Packers combined their offensive and defensive talents for an easy 41 to 14 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals before 18,250 in the Gator Bowl here Saturday night. The Cardinals, fresh from a 21-21 knot with the New York Giants, figured to give the Packers a wicked time but the Bays' murderous defense was too much for them. The Packers scored six touchdowns and the defense scored two and set up another. The champions got off to a 13-0 lead the first two times they had the ball, Jim Taylor scoring both of them on shot short jabs. Coach Vince Lombardi started shifting personnel from the bench at this point already and the game turned into a stalemate until Willie Wood and Jess Whittenton returned interceptions for touchdowns for a 27-0 lead just after the second half kickoff. Sonny Randle, the Cards' great end, scored both St. Louis touchdowns and the first made the score 27-7 in the third period. In the final period, the Bays upped the count to 41-7 on Bart Starr's five yard pass to Max McGee and Taylor's one yard plunge. Randle scored his other touchdown in the last four seconds. Ron Kramer left the game early with a leg injury and Gary Knafelc and Lew Carpenter took his spot. Everybody played except rookie quarterback Bob Joiner and he was on the sidelines warming up at the end. The start of the game was delayed nearly 25 minutes due to a power failure that knocked out most of the field lights. The lights also went out in the press box early in the first quarter putting us on a "feel" basis. Just after the Pack's first TD, all of the lights went out for a minute. But enough of the Gator Bowl's electrical problems. On with the story. The Pack
scored the first two times they had their hands on the ball, chiefly through the pinpoint passing of Bart Starr, the running of Jim Taylor and the blocking of Fuzzy Thurston and Jerry Kramer. Green Bay won the toss and set sail 73 minutes in 12 plays for the icebreaker. Starr surprised the Cards with a pass on the Pack's first play, hitting McGee on a quickie over the line for 19 yards. After Starr hit Taylor with a 14-yarder, the Bays developed a third and eight situation which called for the automatic pass. However, Starr sent Taylor off left end and the Bayou Bull crashed 13 yards to the 20.
HOLDING PENALTY HELPS
A holding penalty on the Cards set the Bays up on the five and on third down Thurston and Kramer cleared a runway for Taylor around left end into the end zone at the 4:34 mark. Hornung converted. The Cards made a spectacular offensive start. Mal Hammack wheeled 36 yards around left end and seemed on his TD way but swift Willie Davis caught him from behind on the Packer 41. Three plays, including two penalties, later, Herb Adderley, flat on his back, intercepted Sam Etcheverry's pass, leaped to his feet and set sail 35 yards to the Card 45.
PACK EXPLODES AGAIN
The Big Pack exploded again - this time scoring in 10 plays. On the second play Starr, getting plenty of time to throw, threw to Taylor on a flare pass for 13 yards to the 32. Taylor ran four and Starr hurled to Dowler for nine for a first down. McGee juked Jimmy Hill out of his shoes near the goal line and Starr fired a perfect pass for a 19-yard gain to the one. Things got rather binding at the goal line and the Cards pushed the Bays all the way to fourth down before Taylor leaped over the line for the TD at 10:54. Hornung at this point produced his shocker when the conversion kick went under the crossbar. It was his first miss in 93 straight extra point boots. Both teams shut the door on each other the rest of the half. John Roach took over for the Pack at QB and rookies dotted the offense - Earl Gros, Ed Blaine, Gary Barnes and Oscar Donahue. Defensively, Ron Gassert and Ron Kostelnik worked in the line. Dowler and Roland Jackson exchanged punts until midway in the second quarter when the Pack threatened on a 27-yard pass from Roach to Lew Carpenter to the Card 33. The attack stalled and the two teams exchanged punts again. Just before the half, the Cards made their deepest penetration, reaching the 15 with one second left. The Packers drew a penalty, stopping the clock, and Gerry Perry missed a field goal from the 17. Earlier in the first quarter, he missed one from the 35. The Packers defense broke into the scoring column with a bang at the start of the second half, counting two touchdowns in one minute and four seconds on interceptions off QB Charley Johnson. Wood snared Johnson's first throw and returned 24 yards for the first TD at 2:24. After Hornung converted and Wood kicked off, Johnson tried another pass - this one in the left flat to his best receiver, Randle. Jesse Whittenton leaped in front of him and jogged 35 yards to the TD at 3:28. Hornung converted and it was 27-0. The Bays must have had the Cards wild. They committed another error, this time Joe Childress fumbling and Wood recovering. Green Bay couldn't budge and Hornung tried a whopping 51-yard field goal but it went short. After an exchange of punts, the Cards finally got into the scoring column, moving 67 yards in seven plays. Johnson did the deed on three passes, hitting Bob Conrad for 19, Frank Mestnik for 37 and Randle for 11 and the TD at 12:27. Just before the third period ended, the Pack nearly had their fifth TD when Hornung worked clear on the Card 30. But Starr's pass was just off his fingertips. Howard Williams and Paul Dudley got into the Packer defense in the third period. That Packer defense came within six yards of scoring its third TD when Ray Nitschke intercepted a Johnson pass on the Card 41 and returned 35 yards to the Card six. After Hornung gained one, Starr passed the last five yards to McGee for the TD at 4:13. Hornung's kick made it 34-7. A 10-yard run by Taylor on a draw and an interference penalty by rookie Norman Beal on McGee set the Packers in motion a few moments later on the Card 36. With third and nine, Roach passed to Taylor for a 30-yard gain and then Taylor leaped over for the TD at 11:49. The Cards moved to a touchdown in the final minutes, scoring on a 25-yard pass from Johnson to Randle with four seconds left. Perry converted. The Bays intercepted four passes and returned them 93 yards. Starr and John Roach completed 13 out of 23 passes for 176 yards. Green Bay was limited to only 72 yards rushing but the Cards threw Roach for frequent losses late in the game, which was deducted from the rushing. The Cards were held to 71 yards rushing.
GREEN BAY - 13 0 14 14 - 41
ST. LOUIS - 0 0 7 7 - 14
GREEN BAY ST. LOUIS
First Downs 15 16
Rushing-Yards-TD 24-73-3 14-68-0
Att-Comp-Yd-TD-Int 23-13-122-3-0 40-18-176-2-4
Sack Yards Lost 0 0
Total Yards 195 244
Fumbles-lost 0 1
Turnovers 0 5
Yards penalized -38 -33
SCORING
1st - GB - Jim Taylor, 4-yard run (Paul Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 7-0
1st - GB - Taylor, 1-yard run (Hornung kick failed) GREEN BAY 13-0
3rd - GB - Willie Wood, 24-yard interception (Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 20-0
3rd - GB - Jess Whittenton, 35-yard interception (Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 27-0
3rd - ST - Sonny Randle, 11-yd pass from Charley Johnson (Gerald Perry kick) GREEN BAY 27-7
4th - GB - Max McGee, 5-yard pass from Bart Starr (Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 34-7
4th - GB - Taylor, 1-yard run (Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 41-7
4th - STL - Randle, 17-yard pass from Johnson (Perry kick) GREEN BAY 41-14
RUSHING
GREEN BAY - Jim Taylor 11-49 3 TD, Paul Hornung 8-11, Tom Moore 2-8, Lew Carpenter 1-2, Earl Gros 1-2, Elijah Pitts 1-1
ST. LOUIS - Mal Hammack 2-40, Joe Childress 8-24, Charley Johnson 1-6, John Crow 3-(-2)
PASSING
GREEN BAY - Bart Starr 13-9-86 1 TD, John Roach 7-2-22, Paul Hornung 3-2-14
ST. LOUIS - Sam Etcheverry 17-10-85 1 INT, Charley Johnson 21-8-91 2 TD 3 INT, Joe Childress 1-0-0, John Crow 1-0-0
RECEIVING
GREEN BAY - Max McGee 4-46 1 TD, Jim Taylor 3-57, Boyd Dowler 2-13, Lew Carpenter 1-27, Gary Knafelc 1-14, Paul Hornung 1-(-1)
ST. LOUIS - Sonny Randle 4-46 2 TD, Bobby Joe Conrad 3-34, Mal Hammack 2-13, Frank Mestnik 1-37, Taz Anderson 1-13, John Crow 1-11, Bill Triplett 1-9, Jack Elwell 1-3
PACKERS TRADE BEN DAVIDSON TO WASHINGTON; BEARS NEXT
AUG 20 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The Packers are back home and, it might be added, they're hard at work. Green Bay walloped the Cardinals, 41 to 14, at Jacksonville, Fla., Saturday night and Coach Vince Lombardi, always happy with a score of those proportions, wasn't pleased with the Pack's offensive performance. Lombardi indicated that much work lies ahead before the Bays can reach the readiness necessary to defend their championship. And the training continues this week with an even more formidable foe coming up, the Bears in the Shrine Classic in Milwaukee Saturday night. The squad was reduced to 43 players today with the trade of second-year tackle Ben Davidson to the Redskins for a draft choice. Davidson, who stands 6-7 and weighs 265, was obtained from the Giants last year. The Bays not have 34 veterans, including Ben Agajanian, who is serving as a kicking coach and spare kicker, and nine rookies. The Packers were gone for 11 days, spending the past week in Dallas. The two-game tour produced a "round" victory score of 72 to 21, opening with a 31-7 verdict over the Cowboys. The Packers started off like they were going to trample the Cards with their offense, scoring the first two times they had the ball for a 13-0 lead. The defense scored the next two TDs, runbacks of interceptions by Willie Wood and Jess Whittenton, and set up the next TD on Ray Nitschke's 29-yard return of an interception to the Card 6. The sixth TD came on a 56-yard march. The score was 13-0 at the half and 27-7 going into the last quarter. Lombardi noted after the game that the Packers "sputtered all night long and never had the ball in the second half." Lombardi, after the first two TDs, substituted freely the rest of the way. The Bays wound up with 72 yards rushing which, for the defending rushing kings of the league, isn't much. Nearly half of that total, 34, was gained in the first two scoring advances, both of which were capped by Jim Taylor touchdowns. The final 49 minutes of the game produced 38 yards on the ground. Lombardi said that "our blocking wasn't sharp and I'm not satisfied with the play of Paul Hornung." Hornung settled for 11 yards in eight carries and missed an extra point kick. Taylor picked up 49 yards in 16 trips and finished with three touchdowns. Wally Lemm, coach of the Cardinals, said "the Packers played a solid game. They just knock the stuffing out of you. We stopped Hornung but we didn't stop the rest of them." Lemm admitted that the Cardinal defense was "physically beaten." Starr was on target with his passes, completing nine out of 13 for 86 yards and one TD. On the opening 73 and 45-yard touchdown drives, Starr completed five out of seven. On the game's opening play, Starr pitched a 19-yarder to Max McGee on a quick shot over the line. Starr later threw to McGee for a five-yard TD after Nitschke's interception. Starr worked one more series in the first quarter and then John Roach took over the throttle to start the second quarter. The Bays were limited to one first down from the time of the second TD until Roach opened a drive late in the game (not counting first downs on TDs). The first down was a 27-yard pass from Roach to Lew Carpenter to the Card 33 in the second quarter. That threat ended by a penalty and a nine-yard loss for Roach trying to pass. Lombardi praised the Packer defense after the game. "I thought our defensive line, linebackers and deep backs did a good job," he said. The Cards were listed to 71 yards
rushing, and 35 of that came on one run. They gained 118 yards in the air on 18 completions in 40 attempts but most of that came on the two TD drives. The Packers intercepted four passes - one by Herb Adderley while he was flat on his back and the others by Wood, Whittenton and Nitschke. Adderley's interception and return of 35 yards set off the Pack's second TD drive. Thus, all four interceptions bloomed TDs, two directly. The Pack's defense was an important factor in the victory. The Packers arrived from Jacksonville Sunday afternoon about 3 o'clock in their United Airlines charter, ending the long road trip. The team left GB Aug. 9 and opened at Dallas Aug. 10.
$164,431 BIDS FOR PACKER JOB ABOVE ESTIMATE
AUG 21 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - Low bids totaling $164,431 were received by the Stadium Commission Monday afternoon for construction of an office and locker room building for the Green Bay Packers at City Stadium. The cost is above the original architect's estimate of $150,000 for the project...WILL REVIEW COSTS: The Stadium Commission will review the bids with their architect and the Packer Corp., and if acceptable, they will be presented to the City Council for approval. The Packers have agreed to pay 40 percent of the cost when the contracts are signed, 35 percent more next January, and four percent per year from 1964 through 1971. This totals 103 percent of the construction cost. The building will be located at the north end of the stadium, about 20 feet back from the end zone seating. It will have a one-story portion in front for ticket sales, and
a two-story rear portion with locker rooms on the first and offices on the second floor. Existing locker rooms on the south end of the stadium will be turned into public toilets for the 6,000-seat addition built in 1961.
STARR KEPT CLEAN, HITS 67 PERCENT
AUG 21 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The cleanest uniform in Dad Braisher's equipment bag belongs to Bart Starr. He has been grounded but once in three games and you have to salute the Packers offensive line for its zeal in protecting the health and welfare of Mr. Starr. Bart actually hasn't been dumped yet trying to pass. The only time he met Mother Earth violently was in the Cardinal game in Jacksonville Saturday night. A signal on a running play apparently went awry and Bart found himself with the ball after a "handoff." He started running off the right side and, boom, the picture below explains it. Oddly enough, the quarterback did get his bumps some in the Cardinal game but Long John Roach happened to be the signalist at the time. He was thrown about three times. Starr is off to a fine start in the Dept. of Passing and, judging by the scores of the Pack's first three wins, in the Dept. of Offense. He's passing at a 67 percent completion clip - a handsome figure. Bart has attempted 49 passes and completed 32 for 505 yards and seven touchdowns in the wins over the College All Stars, the Cowboys and the Cardinals. Here's his record by game:
ALL-STARS: Attempted 22, completed 13 for 255 yards and five touchdowns. Boyd Dowler and Max McGee each caught two TD passes. Ron Kramer one. Pack won 42-20.
COWBOYS: Attempted 14, completed 10 for 164 yards for one touchdown, to Kramer. Pack won 31-17.
CARDINALS: Attempted 13, completed 9 for 86 yards for one touchdown, to McGee. Pack won 41-14.
Roach, in relief of Starr in each game, has attempted 15 and completed five for 74 yards and one touchdown, to Downer in the Cowboy game. Paul Hornung has been exercising his arm as well as his toe thus far. He has attempted four option passes and completed three. He hit two out of three for 14 yards vs. the Cardinals and one for 17 vs. the Cowboys. Starr and fellow passers face a much more difficult situation when the Bays meet the Bears in the Shrine classic in Milwaukee Saturday night. While all pro defensers are "difficult," the Bears have "changed their concept" of defense, Wally Cruice, the Pack's chief game scout, said Monday, quickly adding: "It's different from last year and tougher." At any rate, the Packer offensers will be looking at something new. That situation prevailed in Jacksonville, too, what with the Cards being under new coach Wally Lemm, but the Packer offense rolled to two quick touchdowns shortly after the opening kickoff. The Packer offense was pretty well throttled the rest of the night but for the most part the unit wasn't the same that started the game, what with substitutions. Coach Vince Lombardi put the Pack through a stiff offensive session Monday and more of the same was on tap for today. Vince wasn't happy with the Cardinals and the pictures offered no comfort on that score. The Bays defense scored two touchdowns directly on interception return for TDs by Willie Wood and Jess Whittenton and set the offense within six yards of a TD with another interception return, by Ray Nitschke. The Bays got down to 43 players Monday by training big Ben Davidson to the Redskins for a draft choice.
BEARS SURE TO BE HUNGRY; PACK, TOO
AUG 22 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The Bears have lost two straight no-count games. They should be exceptionally hungry when they play the Packers in Milwaukee Saturday night. The Packers have won three straight. They, too, will be hungry. Maybe it doesn't add up (how hungry is hungry?), but Packer Coach Vince Lombardi did no handsprings after the Pack's victories in Dallas (31-7 over the Cowboys) and Jacksonville (42-24 over the Cardinals). He termed the Pack's play in Dallas as "listless" (with a question mark) and "sputtering" in Jacksonville. We haven't noticed what George Halas called his team's play in the 19-14 loss to the Steelers and the 28-14 setback to the Eagles. Papa George certainly is not hand-springeth either. Regardless of the acrobatic abilities of Vince and George, their respective charges figure to go into the Shrine Classic on the run. This is the midway game of the preseason preparation period. The Packers and Bears, pro football's oldest rivals, present an overall problem to each other. The Bears are concerned with the Pack's world championship status, which covers all of the Pack's points. The Packers recognize all of the Bears' strongboys. One of the specifics bothering Lombardi, as it always does when Beartime approaches, is the Bears' defense, or rather defenses. The Bears are loaded with defenses - all kinds of them, and as Vince noted yesterday, "they'll probably throw the book at us. If they're on (with their defenses) there's nothing much you can do about it. But if they guess wrong you can score." Then, with a big grin, Lombardi exclaimed: "I don't know if we're ready for the works yet." Halas, via the AP, has commented on the state of the Bear situation, pointing out "we haven't been as good as we figured to be. We just haven't played up to expectations. I don't know what the trouble has been. And if I did, I wouldn't tell." He said the Bears have had a rash of early injuries "but that doesn't explain everything." End Angelo Coia is sidelined with a broken collarbone and ace pass receiver Johnny Morris has a side injury. Mike Ditka has been used sparingly because of a pulled leg muscle. Ditka and Morris both will play Saturday. The Packers spent considerable time on their rushing game in Tuesday's practice. The timing on rushing plays doesn't come easy and the Packers, even though they led the league in this department last year, aren't ripping any opponents on the ground. The Bays gained 125 yards rushing on the All Stars, 110 on the Cowboys, and 72 on the Cardinals - an average of 102 per game. Compare that with the Bays' 168-yard rushing average over the league haul last year and it's obvious that the rushers haven't exploded yet. The Bears like to hit. Green Bay's ground gain will get a good test, indeed!
CLOUD, EX-PACKER, NAMED NAVY AIDE
AUG 22 (Annapolis, MD) - Jack Cloud, former William and Mary fullback, has joined Navy's football staff as coach of offensive backs and defensive linebackers. Cloud's appointment as an assistant to Head Coach Wayne Hardin was announced Tuesday by Capt. William S. Busik, director of athletics. Cloud formerly was an assistant coach on the junior varsity and head coach of Navy's 150-pound Navy football team. Cloud, a native of Norfolk, Va., was an all-Southern Conference fullback for four years at William and Mary, 1946-49. Cloud played with the Green Bay Packers in 1950-51.
PACKERS BUILDING POTENT 1-2 GATE PUNCH
AUG 23 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The Packers are building up an amazing one-two preseason attendance punch. First, the Shrine Classic in Milwaukee, and second the Bishop's Charities Clash in Green Bay! They're back to back this year. This double-barreled non-league setup is the best in the league. One team may have one good preseason tradition going, such as the Rams and their annual Los Angeles Times Charity game, but no club has two with the potential of the Pack's pair. The Shrine game, a benefit for crippled children, is now a healthy fixture. Saturday night's contest vs. the Bears in County Stadium is the 13th annual in a series that started hopefully in old State Fair Park in 1950. The Bishop's Charities game is relatively new since the Labor Day Night engagement with the Eastern Champion Giants was started only a year ago. The Shrine game opened with an attendance of 17,191 and it dipped as low as 12,138 (in 1955), but an all-time Shrine record is virtually a certainty for Saturday night. The ticket sale may go all the way - 44,235. The best previous Shrine crowd was 42,560 a year ago. The Bishop's Charities set started in 1961 with a fine gate of 33,452. This was the largest crowd ever to see a preseason game in Green Bay and put the torch to the theory that Green Bay wasn't a good non-league town. The 1962 Bishop's Charities game is following and exceeding the attendance pattern of a year ago. Chairman Gene Sladky reported today that all $5 seats are already sold. "But," he quickly added, "there still remains over 12,000 seats priced at $4 and $3. The $4 seats are located from the 30-yard lines to the end zone and the $3 seats are in both end zones." Both games have built-in ticket organizations. Shrine clubs throughout the state get behind the sale of ducats from their charity project. Holy Name Societies from throughout the Green Bay diocese work on the Bishop's Charities game. Actually, the tickets are being handled via 100 places of business and via 185 committee members throughout Northeastern Wisconsin. Both games have tremendous appeal on the field. The Bears, who never played in Milwaukee since the early 1930s until the Shrine series, will be regular visitors. They are Green Bay's traditional rival and preseason or not they're always tough. The Giants, who happen to be Coach Vince Lombardi's "old team," fought the Pack fiercely in losing 20-17 in the Bishop's Charities debut a year ago. Now, they're returning with blood in their eyes - the result of the pasting in the title game last Dec. 31. The two game this year offer Lombardi and Staffers Phil Bengtson, Norb Hecker, Bill Austin, Red Cochran and Tom Fears an ideal chance - in home uniforms, at that - to sharpen the Bays' teeth for the championship race. While all enemies are murder, the Bears are particularly vicious and bothersome in the Western Division and the Giants are defending Eastern champions. When the Bays finish the two games, they should have a good idea of their 1962 potential. They end the preseason period against the Redskins in Columbus, Ga., Sept. 8. Though they aren't hosts as in the Shrine and Bishop's Charities game, the Packers are becoming welcome guests at the Salesmanship Club's charity production in Dallas. The Bays helped lure a record 54,600 at the 1962 game in the Cotton Bowl and the Texas group were quick to attend Green Bay an invitation to return in '63. The Bays also played there in 1961...WADE'S PASSING: The Packers tapered off some in their workouts today and concentrated on defensing the Bears. The big Bears probably will do some throwing, if Bill Wade's passing record is an indication. The one-time Ram has hurled 58 passes and completed 35 for 476 yards and two touchdowns in the Bears' two losses to the Steelers and Eagles. He had two intercepted in each game. Bill played the entire game vs. the Steels but sat out most of the second half against the Eagles while sophomore Dick Norman performed...The Packers will go into the Shrine struggle without the services of rookie defensive tackle Ron Gassert. His left knee heavily bandaged, Gassert watched the morning's practice from the sidelines. He will be sidelined for a "couple of days," Lombardi said...Four Bear veterans took sick Wednesday at the training camp in Rensselaer, Ind., but owner-coach George Halas said all will be ready for Saturday. Halas said he was informed by doctors that the players had an inflammation of the throat and lungs which would last about 48 hours. The illness was described as not serious, Halas said. Hit by illness were flanker back Jim Dooley, defensive back Richie Petitbon, defensive end Doug Atkins and offensive right guard Roger Davis.
CASARES OLD PILE-DRIVING SELF AGAIN
AUG 24 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - And what about the Bears? Rick Casares, the latest in a long list of great Bear fullbacks, lost the club's ground gaining title to scatster Willie Galimore last year. Rick hopes to get it back. "He's himself again," said Bear publicist Dan Desmond in referring to Casares' performance against the Eagles last Saturday night. The big pile-driver gained 82 yards in 14 attempts, averaging just under six per try. Casares was bothered some by injuries last year and wound up with 588 yards in 135 trips, while fleet Galimore picked up 707 in 153 tries. This is a rather strange finish since the fullback is the Bears' big weapon but it's also a credit to the spunky Galimore who played "inside" most of the year. He had been pulled from the "safety" of flanker to the meat-grinding at left half. Desmond said Casares is in the best shape he's ever been in and has managed to escape the rash of muscle pulls that enveloped the Bears' training camp two weeks ago. The Bears likely will rely heavily on Rick in the Shrine Classic in Milwaukee Saturday night. The Bears apparently have come up with a new star in Charley Bivins, the 214-pounder who has been sharing left half with Galimore. Bivins surprised everybody by catching seven passes, mostly on the short swing variety, for 91 yards against the Eagles and seven for 36 against the Steelers in the non-league opener. Bivins, a big back type of runner with power, has developed into an exceptional receiver. He likely will be the Bears' No. 1 reserve at both running spots, backing up Casares and Galimore. Some of the credit for Bivins' pass receiving must go to Bill Wade, the Bears' QB. "I might throw a little softer when I'm throwing to Charley," he explained. Wade has completed 35 out of 58 passes for 476 yards and two touchdowns, which prompted Packer Coach Vince Lombardi to remark yesterday "that's better than Starr." Wade, the former Ram starting his second year in Chicago, out-distanced Bart Starr on attempts and completions and yards but the Bay perfectionist has the edge in TDs, with seven; in completion percentage, 67, on 32 out of 49 against Wade's 60; and in yards, 505. The Bears likely will unveil some promising rookies and tops in this group is Ronnie Bull, the club's first draft choice. Bull, saddled with injuries earlier in the training season - not to mention a high fever that kept him out of the All Star game, plays at left half or on defense...The aforementioned Desmond, after running down the sickness and injuries which have been plaguing the Bruins the last few days, relieved any anxiety quickly by announcing that "you can be sure we'll show up for the game."...The game might be a sellout of more than 44,000. Less than 2,000 tickets were left today. Bill Anderson, County Stadium manager, urged fans to start early and that goes for folks driving down from Green Bay, too. Kickoff is set for 8 o'clock...The Packers are going to Milwaukee on the 4 o'clock North Western this afternoon. They'll headquarter at the Astor Hotel...One of the Pack's nine rookies may be hobbled for the game. That would be Ron Gassert, defensive tackle, who twisted his knee in practice Tuesday. The other eight likely will play.
WRITER CLAIMS PACKERS COULD BE SPLIT UP, STILL HAVE 2 GOOD TEAMS
AUG 24 (Chicago) - The Green Bay Packers were Western Division champions in the NFL last year with an 11-3 record. Then they crushed the New York Giants, 37-0, in the championship game. But it wasn't what they did that gained them the respect of the football world. It was how they managed it despite a back-breaking series of mishaps. Jerry Kramer, their brilliant blocking guard, broke an ankle during the season. Then the Army grabbed Paul Hornung, Boyd Dowler and Ray Nitschke. And fullback Jim Taylor was badly injured for the showdown with the Giants. The Packers go into the 1962 season all healthy and accounted for. Here's the bad news for the rest of the league...PROBLEMS LOADED: Personnel: Coach Vince Lombardi has all kinds of problems here and each of them is loaded with whipped cream. Except for reserve safety Emlen Tunnell, the entire squad is back from last year. Now where do all of those good looking rookies fit in? You could probably split this talent-rich Packer bunch in half and field two respectable NFL clubs. Just bet that Lombardi, the ultimate conservative, will come up with 36 fire-eating monsters for the league opener. Rushing offense: Haul out the superlatives, put "very" in front of each one and you have this department covered. Every position is filled by a genuine all-league candidate. Let's put it this way. Hornung and Taylor would be outstanding runners ever with a mediocre line...BLOCKING UP FRONT: And with Jim Ringo, Fred Thurston, Jerry Kramer, Forrest Gregg and Ron Kramer up front, the Packers would get plenty of yardage even with the most mediocre backs. But put them both together and what do you have? First and 10 again and again. Passing offense: Maybe Bart Starr isn't the world's greatest long passer, but he's brutally consistent on those third and eight situations. Max McGee, the shifty split end, is his favorite target with Dowler, the flanker, and Ron Kramer, the massive tight end, are highly capable alternates. But one of the best Packer pass plays isn't even a pass. It's Hornung sweeping the end with football in hand ready to do just the opposite of what the defense is set for...121 YARDS PER GAME: Rushing defense: The Packers surrendered an average of 121 yards a game on the ground last year. Willie Davis, Henry Jordan, Dave Hanner and Bill Quinlan form as solid a defensive line as there is in the league. Bill Forester, the defensive brain, returns for his 11th year of linebacking. Paired up with Dan Currie and Ray Nitschke, the savage tackler, the Packers again are flush in the linebacking ranks. Pass defense: It may be getting a little sickening now, but Green Bay is remarkably solid here, too. The four deep backs, Jesse Whittenton, John Symank, Willie Wood and Hank Gremminger, had five interceptions each last year. The best weapon the Packers have on pass defense, however, is Joran, the mad bull at tackle who plays pin the quarterback on the ground every Sunday...GET BALL AWAY: Kicking: Now that Dowler has learned to get the ball away quickly, he rates with the best punters in the league. And Lombardi always has McGee for those hurry-up boots from the end zone. Hornung hit on 15 of 22 field goal tries last year. The Packers are well set here. New faces: Why worry about the new ones when the old ones are so gratifying to behold? But, for what it's worth, rookie fullback Earl Gros (LSU) is bigger (6-3, 220) and supposedly faster than Taylor. And Ed Blaine (Missouri) is reported to be a holy terror at guard. Surprise: This might be John Roach, the second string quarterback. If Starr runs into injury trouble, Lombardi has an able replacement. Roach is a tough, experienced pro who can step in without taking too much edge off the highly synchronized offense.
PACKERS TAKE THREE 'STRINGS' INTO SHRINE GAME
AUG 25 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The Packers will take at least three "strings" into the 13th annual Shrine Classic against the Bears in County Stadium tonight. The largest crowd in the history of the Shrine series is expected - 44,235, which is a sellout. That would smash the record of 42,650 a year ago. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 o'clock. The colorful Shrine ceremonies will be conducted between halves, plus a salute to Miss Ellen Mary Thiel of Menasha, queen of the game and a symbol of more than 115,000 handicapped children aided by Shrine hospitals. The Packers will be going for their 17th straight preseason victory - a string that was started in 1959, when Coach Vince Lombardi took over the Bays' helm. Green Bay lost a 14-0 decision to the Giants in Bangor, Me., Sept. 5, 1959, and then won 16 straight non-leaguers, including two in '59, six in '60, five in '61 and three thus far this season. The Lombardimen lost only one other preseason game. That was in the 1959 Shrine game when the Bears scored in the last few seconds to post a 19-16 victory. The Packers will be seeking a fifth straight win over the Bears - league and otherwise. The Bays won the loop nightcap in 1960 in Chicago and then won three in a row in '61, the Shrine game and the two league games. In addition, the Bays will be seeking their third straight Shrine victory. Wearing their home colors for the first time, the Packers would like to oblige the huge throng. But this will be a most difficult task because the Bears have lost their first two preseason games. While these games are strictly no-count, the Bears never like to lose to anybody and especially Green Bay. The Bears can be expected to open up
considerably and probably throw the book at the Pack. Chicago is handicapped some by injuries but the only noticeable change will be in the starting lineup. John Adams, the onetime fullback, will start at tight end in place of Mike Ditka, who has been injured. Ditka is expected to see some action. The Packers were in fine condition until Wednesday when rookie defensive tackle Ron Gassert twisted a knee. He probably won't play, thus cutting the Pack's active rookie force down to eight - Oscar Donahue, Gary Barnes, Earl Gros, Howard Williams, Dick Davis, Paul Dudley, Ed Blaine and Bob Joiner. The Packers' vaunted running attack, which topped the league last year, will receive a severe test. The Bays' rushers have been held pretty well in check thus far and last time out, vs. the Cards a week ago tonight, they were limited to 72 yards. This, of course, refers to Paul Hornung and Jim Taylor, the Bays' big ground guns. Taylor gained 49 yards vs. the Cards, Hornung 11. Timing's the big thing with rushing, and the Bays figure to have some of it back tonight. Taylor and Hornung are due to break loose. Bart Starr's passing and the receiving of Boyd Dowler, Max McGee and Ron Kramer have been the major factors in the first three wins. Starr hit on 67 percent of his passes, which indicates that he has been giving enemy defenses a big problem. The Bears' unpredictable defense will bear watching. While the Bears have had trouble with injuries and illness, their two big guns, quarterback Bill Wade and fullback Rick Casares, are in great shape. Wade has completed 35 passes in the first two games and Casares gained nearly 100 yards the last time out.
