Green Bay Packers (1-0) 23, Chicago Bears (0-1) 12
Sunday September 13th 1964 (at Green Bay)
GAME RECAP (GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE)
(GREEN BAY) - The Packers smashed the Bears' powerful defense with two touchdowns, three field goals, 294 yards and a golden guy named Paul Hornung in City Stadium Sunday afternoon. That - plus the Packers' own staunch defense - added up to a 23 to 12 Green Bay victory over 42,237 fans in the 1964 league opener. This was revenge at its juiciest since the Bears beat the Pack twice last year and stole their championship. And this is the first time anybody kicked the Bears out of first place in the Western Division since the '62 season. With the crucial opener safely out of the way, the Packers next host the Colts, who were upset by the Vikings Sunday. The Bears play the Vikings in Minneapolis. Hornung was making his first league appearance since drawing a one-year suspension and the Golden Boy ignited the Packer offense - just as he did during their championship years of 1960-61-62. Given a tremendous ovation when introduced before the game, Hornung scored 11 points, booted three field goal - one a rule-book 52-yarder, rushed 15 times for 77 yards, threw two passes and completed one for nine yards, and kicked off five times - twice into the end zone and once over the end line. And all on an empty stomach. He couldn't eat the usual pregame meal. Hornung's kick tied the distance mark set by Ted Fritsch against the old New York Yankees in Yankee Stadium in 1950. The Packers scored in every period and held a 7-0 edge at the end of the first quarter, 17-3 at the half, and 20-12 going into the final period.
SPARKLING CATCH
Bart Starr passed for both Packer TDs. Max McGee made a sparkling catch of a 16-yard Starr pass for the first TD in the first quarter, climaxing a 12-play, 71-yard march. Tom Moore worked himself scot free and took a Starr pass for a 33-yard TD play in the second quarter. Hornung was a bit wide on a 42-yard field goal try in the first period; hit his 52-yarder with no time left in the half; hit a 29-yard field goal in the third period, and a few minutes later had another 29-yarder blocked; and finally booted a 20-yard field goal in the fourth period. The rule-book field goal was a real rarity. The rule says that after a fair catch the offensive team has an option of putting the ball in play with a free kick (for a field goal) or by scrimmage. Elijah Pitts fair caught Bobby Joe Green's punt on the Packer 48 with eight seconds left in the half. The teams lined up similar to a kickoff, except that Hornung dropped back only three yards to insure greater accuracy and Starr held the ball. His kick cleared the center of the crossbar by a couple of feet. The Packers held the upper hand throughout. They were able to move the ball for stretches of 42, 81, 41,47, 24, 31 and 62 yards. The Bears moved three times - 41 yards to set up Bobby Jencks' first field goal of eight yards in the second period, 42 yards for the Bears' only TD on Rudy Bukich's pass to Mike Ditka in the third period, and 51 yards for Jencks' 36-yard field goal in the third period.
BIG DIFFERENCE
The Packers ran off 57 plays against the Bears' 50, but the big difference is in the yardage. The Bears were held to 130 yards all day, including only 46 rushing, while the Packers had 197 rushing and 97 passing for their 294 total. Jim Taylor, who did his fumbling for the season in this game, losing it three times in the second half, led the Bay rushers with 79 yards in 16 trips. Hornung followed with 77, while Moore had 19 in four carries. Starr added 22. Bart finished with eight completions in 16 throws for 127 yards. Bill Wade worked the first half, completing only four in 11 throws, and Bukich came forth in the second and hit 7 of 16. Rudy was nicked for interceptions by Herb Adderley and Dan Currie in the fourth quarter. The Packers displayed their intentions right away. They moved 42 yards right after the opening kickoff, but the drive skidded on the Bear 35 and Hornung was wide on a field goal try from the 42. The Bears moved some, too, but the Bay defense stiffened at midfield and the Bays took over on their own 19. The Packers were holding on the first play so they started a 91-yard TD drive from their own 9. The Bays got of the hole on Starr's 15-yard pass to Boyd Dowler and then moved into Bear territory with Starr's 29-yard pass to Ron Kramer on the 25. From that point, four running plays moved it to the 16, from where Starr and McGee connected for the TD. After Jencks' field goal early in the
second quarter and an exchange of punts by Green and Jerry Norton, who got off a 61-yarder, the Packers struck for their second TD, getting position on Green's 25-yard punt on the Bear 47. Moore, going into Taylor's fullback slot, hit left end for five yards and Hornung, on the option, passed to Kramer for nine yards to the Bear 33. Then, Moore snaked through the line and into the clear on the eight-yard line where he took Starr's pass and scored. He was 10 yards behind the closest defender, Roger LeClerc. Hornung's rule-book job ended the scoring for the half.
PROVERBIAL BLOOD
The Bears came out with that proverbial blood in their eyes - and a new quarterback, Bukich, to start the second half. Rudy completed five passes, including a 36-yarder to Johnny Morris, to reach the Packer 14. At this point, Lionel Aldridge nailed Bukich for a 15-yard loss and Jencks had to settle for a 36-yard field goal. The Bears got the ball right back on Taylor's first fumble on the Packer 42. Bukich passed to Ditka for 18, Bull and Bivins ran 18, and, after a pass lost seven yards, Bukich hit Ditka for the TD. Jencks' try for the point was low but the score looked dangerous, 17-12. The Packers made a scoring big the next three times they had the ball and hit twice on Hornung field goals. His first was for 29 yards just before the third period ended. His first was for 29 yards just before the third period ended. His next was blocked by J.C. Caroline early in the fourth quarter. Hornung set up his third field goal himself with a 40-yard run to the Bear 19. Four plays later he field goaled from 20 yards. In the final five minutes, the two clubs were generous to each other. Bukich threw a pass right at Currie, who appeared a bit surprised at the interception. Then Taylor fumbled and Johnson recovered after which Adderley intercepted Bukich's pass. Then, Taylor fumbled again to another Taylor - one Roosevelt Taylor. The Bears got nowhere in a final stab and Green punted on the last play.
CHICAGO - 0 3 9 0 - 12
GREEN BAY - 7 10 3 3 - 23
CHICAGO GREEN BAY
First Downs 10 18
Rushing-Yards-TD 22-46-0 36-197-0
Att-Comp-Yd-TD-Int 28-11-111-1-2 18-9-136-2-0
Sack Yards Lost 4-28 3-39
Net Passing Yards 83 97
Total Yards 129 294
Fumbles-lost 0-0 4-3
Turnovers 2 3
Yards penalized 5-25 3-30
SCORING
2nd - CHI - Bob Jencks, 8-yard field goal GREEN BAY 7-3
2nd - GB - Tom Moore, 33-yard pass from Bart Starr (Paul Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 14-3
2nd - GB - Hornung, 52-yard field goal GREEN BAY 17-3
3rd - CHI - Jencks, 36-yard field goal GREEN BAY 17-6
3rd - CHI - Mike Ditka, 13-yard pass from Rudy Bukich (Kick failed) GREEN BAY 17-12
3rd - GB - Hornung, 29-yard field goal GREEN BAY 20-12
4th - GB - Hornung, 20-yard field goal GREEN BAY 23-12
RUSHING
GREEN BAY - Jim Taylor 16-79, Paul Hornung 15-77, Bart Starr 1-22, Tom Moore 4-19
CHICAGO - Ronnie Bull 8-25, Charlie Bivins 3-15, Rick Casares 3-7, Billy Wade 3-7, Joe Marconi 3-(-3), Jon Arnett 2-(-5)
PASSING
GREEN BAY - Bart Starr 16-8-127 2 TD, Paul Hornung 2-1-9
CHICAGO - Billy Wade 11-4-28, Rudy Bukich 16-7-83 1 TD 2 INT, Jon Arnett 1-0-0
RECEIVING
GREEN BAY - Ron Kramer 3-48, Max McGee 2-26 1 TD, Boyd Dowler 2-24, Tom Moore 1-33 1 TD, Jim Taylor 1-5
CHICAGO - Mike Ditka 7-74 1 TD, Johnny Morris 3-33, Gary Barnes 1-4
“The Packer Picnic Club tailgates before the September 13, 1964, opener against the Chicago Bears. From left, are George and Betsy Yonan of Chicago and Mr. and Mrs. James Kimberly, formerly of Neenah. The club, made up largely of prominent people from Appleton, Neenah and Menasha, had rented tailgating space for 65 cars across from City Stadium since its opening in 1957.” Source: Green Bay Press-Gazette archives
'IT HAS TO BE MY MOST SATISFYING VICTORY,' PAUL
SEPT 14 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - A man totally at peace with the world, Paul Hornung lounged on the straight back chair in front of the locker bearing the chalk-scrawled "5" and inhaled deeply from an "old-fashioned" cigarette. Surrounded by reporters, he studies the emerald green carpeting which adorns the Packers' dressing room floor as he answered the inevitable question. "Yes, it has to be just about my most satisfying victory," the fabled Golden Boy, making his first formal NFL appearance after sitting out a year's suspension, said quietly, almost humbly. "Winning was the most important thing, but naturally, I wanted to have a good day coming back. I've had a little bit longer to wait for this one than the other boys," Hornung pointed out, adding with something akin to a sigh, "It was a long time coming." Did he feel he had had that "good day"? "Yes, I do," was the considered but forthright reply, accompanied by a slow smile. "You always feel real satisfied when you win, even if you don't have a good game." The events leading to his record-trying 52-yard field goal were as much a surprise to him as they were to everyone else, the unusually svelte (he's playing at 212 compared to 220 in 1962) Notre Dame alumnus confided. "We never practice the play," Hornung said. "I didn't even know what the heck we were doing. I hadn't been confronted with the rule since I've been in the league. Of course, the league explains it to us every year. Jerry Kramer said, 'Ask for a free kick right away.'
So I said to the referee, "If I make this, will it be three points?' He said 'yes' and then we were squared away," the all-purpose halfback explained. In this particular moment of glory, Hornung found time to commend the enemy, "The Bears,' he pointed out in their defense, "had a few injuries that hurt 'em. They had a couple of guys playing on guts alone." Just a few feet away, bruising Ray Nitschke was not entirely happy with his performance, an opinion the battered Bruins might well share - for different reasons. "I was a little too anxious when we were blitzing," Ray insisted. "I was giving it away." "But they knew they were in a ball game," he added with obvious satisfaction. "Think we were ready for this one. Last year, we weren't ready and they were." Nitschke's linebacking comrade, the exceedingly dapper Dan Currie, was highly amused over his fourth quarter interception of a Bill Wade pass. "I couldn't have gotten out of the way if I tried," he laughed. "He speared me. Those are the kind you just accept and don't say too much about."...LOMBARDI 'TOLD ME': It was suggested to Bart Starr that he had taken judicious advantage of the Bear's defensive injuries, but he demurred, asserting, "I couldn't tell the Bears were hurting on defense. I knew some of their regular boys were out of there, but I don't think I consciously aimed at those spots." Starr, who held the ball on Hornung's lusty free kick, explained with a smile, "It was the first time I've ever been involved in one, but I was all for it. Coach Lombardi told me about it on the sidelines just as Willie Wood caught the ball. It was a big help - if we had tried an ordinary field goal, we'd have to stand 7 yards farther back which is quite a ways (59 yards) even with the wind. It was a great kick." Over in the Bears' somewhat subdued quarters, massive Mike Ditka still was lamenting the 'bomb" that misfired in the third quarter. "Just one more step," he said, a little sadly, "and I'd have had it." Turning to the Packers, he found them "a better ball club offensively this year." Then, perhaps fearful that he might slight the Bays' defenders, he added, "Of course, they're always good defensively. But they can be beat defensively." To what does he attribute the offensive improvement? "I've got to say Hornung," Ditka replied with hesitation. "They didn't have Starr in that second game against us last year, either. He's a very smart man." Linebacker Joe Fortunato was even more forthright. "We played bad ball today," he said sourly. "They just beat us and that's it. We didn't play up to our capabilities." Joe tempered this last somewhat by adding, "The Packers didn't play a bad ball game, but we contributed a lot to it." He also tossed a parting bouquet to the Pack's "new" center, Bob Skoronski. "He played a good game," Fortunato declared. "He's going to do a good job."
ELECTRONIC AGE ON GRID? DON'T BE TOO SURE
SEPT 14 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - According to appearances on the field and in the press box at City Stadium Sunday, tiny electrons are becoming equally as important as huge guards and tackles in professional football. But don't be too sure. Not only was there a battery of television cameras poking out of the top floor of the press box. Not only was there another camera mounted on power-driven golf cart on the field. Not only were there two long-snooted microphones aimed from the sidelines into each team's huddle. Not only were there red-hatted directors, earphoned announcers and seemingly miles of cable around the sidelines. But on both the second and third floors of the press box, there were special TV cameras, video tape equipment and tiny receiving sets. One belonged to the Bears and the other to the Packers for observation purposes. The Bears have literally been sold on its value. They bought the $16,000 worth of equipment and intend to use it for all games. The Packers are not quite convinced. At least temporarily, they are just renting it for home games. Packer Assistant Coach Red Cochran, who largely handles the observation post for the Packers, admits he's not completely sold on it but adds, "We still have to get used to it." The entire rig consists of a camera not much bigger than a home movie buff would use, a recorder about 2x3 feet and 10 inches deep, and a five-inch monitor screen. Assistant Coach Tom Fears operated the recorder, which, with a series of red and gray buttons, not only tapes the proceedings but allows them to be played back within seconds. Cochran and Assistant Coach Norb Hecker completed the three-man observing team. Each play is numbered by a speedometer-type reader on the recorder and Fears makes notes of the recording number and the type of play run off so that the tape can be backed up to the play they want to rerun at any time. A typical operation was on Bart Starr's touchdown pitch to Max McGee in the corner of the end zone in the second quarter. "Let's see it again," Fears said before the teams even lined up for the extra point. Four seconds later, the play was relived on the tiny screen with all three coaches examining it. "Now, once more," Fears announced. Again the play came. "See there, Petitbon is head on," Fears noted. Earlier, Cochran asked a rerun of "That first red light we ran," and Fears, after quickly consulting his notes, reported, "That was the second play of the game." Punching a gray button, he wheeled the tape back to the point and the play was run again. "You see, they jump around but still end up in a 4-3," Red then pointed out. All of which was fine, but Cochran late acknowledged that the electronics operation didn't really help in any specific instance. "You can't handle it like a projector," he lamented. "You can't slow it down. When it runs at the same speed, you lose something. But the main thing it does is let you check what you may not have been sure of the first time through such a which way the line is slanted or what type of coverage they used." Coach Vince Lombardi, without time to adequately check with his observation team, felt that it was on no specific help "that I know of."...Even radio was making use of television Sunday. The Canadian Broadcasting Company carried a French broadcast of the game back to Canada and in front of the play-by-play announcer was a monitor screen, which he used to double check ball carriers and tacklers...How much does TV control the game? Just after J.C. Caroline blocked the Packer field goal attempt at 10:31 of the fourth quarter, the field director ran a full five yards onto the field yelling "Stop it...stop it." Time for a commercial.
'WE ALMOST FAKED OURSELVES OUT ON FREE KICK,' VINCE
SEPT 14 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - A long-awaited victory, already being accepted with some nonchalance, was almost lost in the postgame shuffle Sunday afternoon - at least in one corner of sun-drenched City Stadium. Nearly 10 minutes had elapsed since the Packers had avenged recent indignities at the Chicago Bears' hands with a resounding 23-12 decision, when an eager press corps invaded Vince Lombardi's inner sanctum to shower him with questions. Mightily intrigues with the strategy that had triggered returnee Paul Hornung's record-tying 52-yard field goal in the closing seconds of the first half, the scriveners blurted, almost in unison, "What about that free kick? Was that in your plans?" Obviously enjoying their puzzlement, Lombardi smiled broadly and pointed out, "That's been in the rule book a long time." Well, then, had the Packers emphasized this stratagem during the training season? "We always talk about it," Vince, still wearing that enigmatic smile, replied. "But the only time you can use it is in the last two or three seconds of the first half or the last few seconds of the game. Every training season, a league representative visits camp and explains, 'Remember, after every free kick (Vince thrust his right arm into the air, two fingers extended in imitation of the official), you are entitled to a free kick." Had the Pack "worked on it" last week as a weapon for the Bears, a Chicago scribe wanted to know. Lombardi shook his head emphatically, declaring, "We've never worked on it in our lives." "How far was it, by the way? Fifty-two yards? That's great, that's tremendous." He paused, then added with a grin, "I would say Mr. Hornung's quite an athlete." Had the play been called from the bench, he was asked. He nodded a vigrous affirmative, pointing out, "We call all placements, all punts, all field goals. We told Wood (Willie) and Pitts (Elijah) to fair catch it." "The chances of your seeing it in your lifetime or my seeing in in mine again are nil," Lombardi noted. The move had "faked out" the 40,000-odd Packer faithful, it was noted. "We almost faked ourselves out," Vince said dryly. "You saw the confusion." Asked to assess Hornung's performance, Lombardi observed, "I've seen him play a lot of games - I wouldn't attempt to compare any of them, it's too difficult. But he played a great one today. He's quite an athlete." He then elicited a collective chuckle from his audience by asserting, apropos of nothing in particular, "I've turned over a new leaf - I'm going to be very patient with the press." Recalled to the subject at hand by another question, he said, "No, there was no special reason for playing Moore as much as I did in the second half. There was nothing wrong with Taylor. It's just that Moore is too good a back to be sitting on the bench." The Packers had accumulated no new injuries in the course of victory, Vince revealed. "But Hank Jordan has a real bad leg - Kostelnik (Ron) played most of the second half. Jerry Kramer has a low grade infection in the chest, too. He was running a temperature today." Asked to comment on his "new men," Lombardi chuckled, "I didn't play anybody. I do know Aldridge (sophomore Lionel) played real well. Dave Robinson (apparent successor to the retired Bill Forester)? I won't know about Robinson until I see the pictures." He also declined to evaluate the Bears, merely asserting, "I never say anything about the opposing team, good or bad." Did he think, a dogged wordsmith persisted, the Bears appeared as strong as last year? "You're asking me the same question in different words," Vince shot back. Voluntarily assessing the Pack's overall performance (this thus far had been overlooked, somehow, in the lengthy quiz), the Packer major-domo said, "We stopped ourselves a number of times. But I'm real happy about the way things turned out." An attempt to extract a prediction on the NFL's Western Division race was quickly dismissed. "We've got 13 more games - one game doesn't make a season and don't," Lombardi sternly warned, "count the Bears out of it by any stretch of the imagination. The Bears are a tremendous ball club." Reaffirming his satisfaction with his own forces, Vince summed up with, "We played a real fine ball game, outside of the fumbles and a few mixups. We don't usually do those things. But that's all right," he smiled. "We won and that's the main thing."...Although never a nonchalant loser, the Bears' timeless George Halas accepted this first blot on his defending world champions' late with surprising aplomb. Flashing a Biblical bent, he said matter-of-factly, "Green Bay did unto us what we did until them last year." And waxing philosophically, the Bruins' 70-year-old owner-coach added, "This season will be one of peaks and valleys for all teams. So, at the moment, we're batting .667 (this figure, presumably, includes two victories over the Packers last season). For the Bears, as for the others, there will be disappointments, as today, but we will have peaks. I did indicate last week that I felt we were not ready physically, mentally or technically for this game, which is a fact," he pointed out. "I still feel that way, The Packers outplayed us thoroughly, no question about it. They did a great job offensively and defensively and deserved to win." Did he feel that the deaths of halfback Willie Galimore and end John Farrington were still a morale factor? "We're not using that as an alibi for print," Halas replied after brief reflection, "but I have no doubt that it's still with us." He did admit, however, that injuries ("I still don't know who many we had.") influenced the verdict. "We had several hurt. One of them, Richie Petitbon, did not play the entire second half. I think he had a slight concussion, and we don't take a chance with a thing like that. Larry Mooris actually was injured twice. He went back in after he was hurt the first time and got hurt again," Halas disclosed. "And Bill George had a recurrence of a banged up leg." He paused, then appended with a sly grin, "It sounds like to much of an alibi - but it's a good one." His switch to Rudy Bukich at quarterback in the second half was not borne of any particular dissatisfaction with Bill Wade, George informed. "It was sort of a pregame plan anyway, to alternate quarterbacks. There was a strong wind against us and Bukich has a strong arm." Asked if he had any pregame thoughts about using the now famous free kick, Halas replied, "No, but we talked about it during the training season." "It was a natural for the Packers, in that situation," he went on. "It was a good play, but not a brilliant play." He repeated, with more emphasis, "It was not a brilliant play, but a good play. If the same thing had happened to us, we would have done the same thing." Had the Packers impressed him as title timber? "Yes," he said. "They looked like a heckuva good ball club." And Paul Hornung? Has he lost anything? "Hornung," Halas declared, "has lost nothing, Hornung makes a great difference."...PACKER PATTER: Members of the press corps, even most of the veterans, were no less astounded than the 42,327 assembled customers when the Packers deployed for that electrifying free kick - and with good reason, it developed. Harry Golden,
associated sports editor of Madison's Capital Times, said, "That's the first time I've seen that since 1916, when I saw it in a college game." Lloyd Larson, sports editor of the Milwaukee Sentinel and a former Big Ten football official, reported, "I ran into it in one of the first games I reffed about 35 years ago, so I learned it the hard way. It's one of the oldest rules in football - it's as old as the offsides." It was a new experience, however, for Clem Collard, longtime press box custodian. "That's the first time I've seen it in my 43 years of watching pro football," he said. As might be expected, the gridiron rarity triggered some humor. As Willie Wood fair caught a punt on the Packer 45 in the third quarter, some wag jested, "Field goal try, field goal try."...Bill Wade has his troubles most of the afternoon, but he hit a surprised Bill George perfected with a "sideline" pass with only 1:41 left in the game. Overthrown, the ball nestled into George's hands as he viewed the action from in front of the Bear bench...Head linesman Ed Marion narrowly escaped a knockout when he was inadvertently decked by a lunging combatant as Ray Nitschke hurled the Bears' Ronnie Bull for a two-yard loss in the first quarter. An "official" timeout was required for repairs...A new dimension was added to the repertoire of City Stadium fanatics when Wilner Burke's Packer band blared the famous "Charge!" theme as the Packers drove goalward after the opening kickoff. The faithful responded with vigor...Two familiar roles played "spectator" roles. Long Dan Tehan, veteran headlinesman, is hobbled by a balky ankle and viewed the proceedings from the press box as an NFL observer. Jim Huxford, longtime member of the "chain gang," sat out his first opener in 15 years. Jim, who debuted with the crew in 1950, is recovering from a mild heart attack suffered in June.
PACKER PREMIERE FLASHES PROMISE FOR '64 FUTURE
SEPT 15 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The Packers indicated Sunday that they (1) don't like to be scored on and (2) they can grind out a touchdown and also explode for a quickie teedee. These two factors, spiced with some hard hitting, produced Green Bay's 23 to 12 victory over the Bears in City Stadium Sunday. While it's only one game, the performance gives much promise for future games - and the Colt game here next Sunday in particular. Coach Vince Lombardi, reviewing the game after a look at the pictures, said, "We played a good game," and added that "we were hitting hard." This was perhaps the Packers' best opener under Lombardi - not counting the landslide over the Vikings two years ago. The victory gives the Pack an even break in six openers, the other being the history 9-6 win over the Bears in Vince's first game...'GREAT CATCH BY MAXIE': The Packers drove 91 yards for their first touchdown and Bart Star closed it out with a 16-yard pass to Max McGee in the end zone in the first quarter. There was no mystery about the play, Vince said, "it was just a great catch by Maxie." McGee did an ordinary turnout and got behind the Bear defender. The second TD, in the second quarter, was an exploder. The Bays had first and 10 on the Bear 33 when Starr faked off to Paul Hornung and went back to pass. Tom Moore went straight downfield and into the open spaces, took the ball on the eight and scored with nobody but official Herman Rohrig closed by. "The linebacker was supposed to go with him, I think," Vince explained. Closest man to Moore when he caught the ball was Roger LeClerc, and he was around the 18 when Starr put the ball in the air. Told that we crossed our fingers when the ball zoomed toward him, Moore laughed after the game, "I'll bet you thought I was going to drop it." The Packer defenders had a fine habit of slamming the door shut after the Bears scored - except once. After Bob Jencks' first field goal at 5:53 of the second quarter, the Bays didn't allow a first down the rest of the half, forcing Bobby Joe Green to punt three times. "They came out fired up in the second half," Vince said and the Bears took the kickoff and marched 51 yards to a second field goal by Jencks - from the 36. The Bays didn't get much chance to put on a drive of their own because on the second place Jim Taylor fumbled and the Bears recovered on the Packer 42. The Bears scored in five plays from there. But the Bears never got a first down the rest of the game - some 20 minutes. In that time, they ran off only 16 plays, including three punts. The Packers meanwhile worked 31 plays, including two field goals by Hornung. Lionel Aldridge came out with a fractured hand, but Vince reminded that "he'll be all right." The big defensive end will likely wear a light cast. Jerry Kramer and Hank Jordan, who were handicapped by illness and an injury, respectively, appeared on the mend today as the Bays loosened up after viewing pictures of the Bear game...OTHER LOMBARDI'S THOUGHTS: On Hornung's value: "His leadership is the obvious thing. He plays well under pressure. And he has the ability to make the big plays when they have to be made." On Jim Taylor's three fumbles: "When you go for that extra yardage, you're going to get popped hard. Still, Taylor played a good game." On the $50 fine he assessed Dave Robinson for not being taped in time for Saturday practice: "You've got to be able to take those things and laugh at them. And that's true of the coaches, too." On the confusion of the Pack's try for the free kick after a fair catch: "It was really something on the sidelines. There we were...40 players...all jabbering."...The Packers went into action Sunday with the best wishes of Bill Forester, retired defensive co-captain. He sent the following wire to the team from Dallas: "Best of luck today, Play the way only this team is capable, and nobody can touch you."
THREE YARDS MORE ACCURATE THAN 12: FREE KICKER PAUL
SEPT 15 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The choicest four-letter word in our town Monday was k-i-c-k. Nobody was k-i-c-k-ing, mind you - what with the Packers' 23-12 win over the Bears. The folks were merely taking about the 52-yard field goal by Paul Hornung on a once-in-a-
lifetime free kick. Fans around here pride themselves in knowing football but this maneuver stumped 99.9 percent of them. Which is no disgrace because it happens only (roughly) once in a lifetime. Since it was the first time it was successful in the history of the NFL, you can bet more teams will try it. And this is a warning to punters. Beware of the fair catch around midfield - especially in a tight game. Elijah Pitts, who made the fair catch on the Packers' 48-yard line, said he didn't know "what was going on. I heard them talking about it on the sidelines when the Bears had the ball down there but I didn't figure a kick." Ron Kostelnik and Pitts both marveled at Hornung being able to kick it that far. "He must have great power in his leg. And he was only back three yards," Kostelnik said. Actually, Hornung could have gone back a dozen yards or so if he so decided. "But you can't get the accuracy on that kind of kick, which would have been like a kickoff," Hornung explained. Bart Starr set the ball up on the 48 - just as he would on the snap-back from center on a field goal. The Bays lined up in regular kickoff formation and the Bears went back in a kickoff-receiving formation. They could, of course, run it back for a touchdown - had the kick been short and had the receiver evaded the 11 Packers. Probably the happiest guy in the press box after the kick was Mark Duncan, the NFL's new supervisor of officials, who was beaming like the cat who stole the milk when the scribes asked him about it. "Why sure it's in the rule book. It happened about eight years ago in San Francisco, only Gordy Soltau missed the kick. Never heard of it before in the league. The rule has always been in the book," Duncan said in answer to a flock of questions. Dad Braisher, the Pack's property chief who played football at Oshkosh Normal over 40 years ago, recalled that "the rule was in the book when I played and I've seen it work." In fact, Dad went one kick better: "Did you ever hear about the onside punt?" he asked, and answered: "You could punt off to one side as long as it didn't go beyond the line of scrimmage. They had me out there to catch the ball, and it was a good way to get killed because everybody would gang up on you. They took the rule off the books the year I graduated." Braisher was probably one of a few in the entire stadium who ever saw a field goal on a free kick. Like Vince Lombardi said, "The chances of seeing it in my lifetime or your lifetime are nil." Leave it to the Packers to perform the spectacular. There were 21 field goals kicked in NFL play over the weekend, but the Bays were the only team to get one on a free kick. Put that in your scrapbook!
NORTON FLYING HIGH (53.5), TOO
SEPT 16 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - Jerry Norton is off to a flying start, too. The Packers' punting expert and spare defensive halfback kicked twice against the Bears Sunday, both in the second quarter, and came out with an average of 53.5 yards per boot. This is an improvement over the 1963 opener when Jerry, cold off the street, averaged 48.6 yards on five kicks - also against the Bears. Norton had been obtained earlier in the opening week from the Cowboys. The 33-year-old Norton, who is now in his 11th pro season after previous service with the Eagles, Cardinals and Cowboys, reckoned that "I got some help from the wind Sunday on both kicks."...LOT OF FOOT: Ther was a 10-mile wind out of the south (right up from Texas), but regardless got a lot of foot into at least one of his boots - a 61-yarder that actually carried 76 yards in the air. Bart Starr had just been chased and tackled for a 15-yard loss and Norton delivered a boot from the Packer 38 that sailed deep into the end zone. He actually kicked from the 29. Norton's next punt, which was also forced when Starr was tackled for a 15-yard loss, went 46 yards - from the Packer 41 to the Bear 13 where Billy Martin returned three yards before he was snowed under by a flock of Packers. Norton, by the way, is a two-handed punter. "Most of them hold the ball with one hand, but I use two," Jerry explained. The Texan has taken up a rapidly-growing Wisconsin sport along with the Madisonite, Hank Gremminger. They've started practicing bow and arrow shooting in Norton's back yard. "I can't hit a thing with it, but we're learning, and it is a lot of fun," Norton said. Jerry turned up today as the Packers' lone leader in the first batch of official individual statistics released by the NFL office...STARR SECOND: His average is well ahead of the identical 48.8s compiled by Bill Lothridge of Dallas and Yale Lary of Detroit. Starr ranks next with a second in the passing department behind Norm Snead of the Eagles who upset the Giants Sunday. Starr completed half of his 16 passes for 127 yards and threw two touchdown passes. Snead completed 12 of 21 for 171 yards and two TDs. John Unitas, who brings his famous arm to City Stadium next Sunday, is third, General John hit 11 of 26 for 209 yards and two touchdowns. The top three throwers went untouched by an interception. Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung rank sixth and seventh, respectively, is rushing with 79 and 77 yards. The two Viking stars, Tommy Mason and Bill Brown, top the list with 137 and 103 yards after the first week. Jimmy Brown is third with 89. The Packers went back to work Tuesday. First, they watched movies of their victory over the Bears, and then it was out on the practice field for some touch football for the linemen and a passing drill for the offensive and defensive backs and pass receivers. The squad then back to listen to the weekly scouting report by Wally Cruice who viewed the Vikings' 34 to 24 victory over the Colts in Minneapolis. Everybody was out and running Tuesday - so the injury problem is nil. Lionel Aldridge is having no trouble with his broken hand. He completed a pass to Willie Davis for a long gain in the touch game.
PERSONALITY PARADE
SEPT 16 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - Perennial all-pro Forrest Gregg is scheduled for a reunion this weekend and, though such affairs are generally frivolous, the towering Texan is hardly to be blamed if he approaches this one with mixed emotions. It is not, as may already have been deduced, of the conventional variety. When the Packers deploy against the explosive Baltimore Colts at City Stadium Sunday afternoon, the gifted offensive tackle will be confronted by his No. 1 nemesis, the aging but still highly obstreperous Gino Marchetti. "That's my old pal," Gregg says with a grin of the professional rivalry which has produced some of the NFL's most violent reverberations over the last nine seasons. "I guess I've played against him more than anybody else. And it's always been rough for me, I can tell you that," the 30-year-old veteran (he will turn 31 Oct. 18) added dryly, wholesome respect in his tone. Those who delight at the suggestion of a vendetta may be disappointed, however. Gregg, one of the mildest of men off the field, insists there is "nothing personal about it - we don't have a 'thing' going. It's just that he's been a top defensive end in the league for a long time, and I feel if I don't come up with a good performance against him, I'm going to be look pretty bad." Did this indicate he had to be "up" for his encounters with the cyclonic Colt? Erupting
goodnaturedly, Forrest booed, "You'd BETTER get up. They've been saying he's been too old for five years now (Marchetti is 37). I wish somebody would tell him that, because I don't think he's convinced of it." Fortunately for Gregg and thus for the Packers, he should be facing a big Gino at his best. "I came out of the Bear game in real good shape," he confided. Gesturing to the middle finger of his right hand, adorned with a strip of adhesive tape, the Gainesville, Tex., (70 miles north of Dallas) resident added, "All I got out of it was this." Dismissing the gash as a trifle although three stitches were required, Forrest explained with great unconcern, "I really don't know how it happened. Probably hit a face mask or a shoulder pad." Surprisingly, considering his pre-eminence (he is rated by most knowledgeable observers as the game's finest), the curly-haired Southern Methodist alumnus is not big by the NFL's offensive tackle standards. In fact, he may be spotting his Sunday adversary as much as five pounds..."LIGHTER ONES": Gregg, who ordinarily scales 240 to 242, admits, "I'm one of the lighter ones, I imagine. Most of them weight about 250 or 260." Although he did not specifically mention the word "championship," perhaps by design, he is optimistic about "Operation '64," observing, "We've got a lot of talent and I think the club as a whole has a good attitude, a real good attitude. With any luck at all, we should win a lot of ball games. We're working together real good - it's a pretty close unit." The Birthright, Tex., native, understandable known to his colleagues as "Trees," retired at the end of the 1963 season to take a coaching job at the University of Tennessee and then reconsidered, to the unalloyed delight of Vince Lombardi, his teammates and the legions of Packer faithful. Any further thoughts on this subject? "I sure don't," was the immediate and direct reply. "I'm just going to play as long as I feel good - and as long as I can do the job. That's the way I feel right now.'
QUESTION: HOW DID COLTS ALLOW VIKES 313 RUSH?
SEPT 17 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The question is now how the Vikings rushed for 313 yards on the Colts. But how the Colts permitted such a thing to happen. This is printed with all due respect to Bill Brown and Tommy Mason, who battered the Colts for 240 yards between 'em, but it must be remembered that the Packers are playing the Colts in City Stadium Sunday. If the Vikings were here Sunday, we'd be wondering if and how the Packers could stop that pair. Anyhow, we were a bit curious about how the Colts were hit for so much since the Packers always found the Colt defenders extremely rugged to rush against. In the last six games, the Packers combined rushing totals of 168 and 179 in 1963; 87 and 111 in 1962; and 211 in 1961. This averages out to 152 yards per. The question was put to Harry Hulmes, the Colts' publicitor who is here to service the press, radio and TV people, and he offered a variety of answers, which boiled down to this: "The Vikings played an inspired game and we seemed to be dead on our feet" and "We were hurting at linebacker." The first answer could explain the entire business since the word from Minneapolis is that the Vikings were a shade this side of being delirious. Also, Colt Coach Don Shula forwarded this answer via Hulmes: "There's not too much that can be said about the game in Minnesota. We just ran into a real good Viking team that was ready to carry the fight to any opponent. They did reveal some deficiencies in our defense that we'll try to get straightened out this week." Hulmes reported that Steve Stonebreaker was hurt and played very little. He's the starter at left linebacker. Bill Pellington is 36 and needs a little more time to get started. "We had to do some shifting around with Jackie Burkett and Ted Davis (a rookie) and John Diehl, Harry pointed out. The publicist also noted that Gino Marchetti "has had to work himself into condition in actual competition. He tired some and
we learned that he may been some relief along the way." "The Vikings controlled the ball, and they had it for 74 plays against our 49." "They caught us on a blitz on Mason's 51-yard touchdown run. Tarkenton (Viking QB) checked off twice on the play and Mason went up the middle and nobody touched him," he added. "Our tackling was pitiful. Mason would run out to our left side, jog around a little and then take off," he added. That, of course, was last Sunday. The Colts can be expected to be an entirely different team three days hence. Speaking of rushing, Hulmes reported that "we feel we have the best fullback since Alan Ameche coming up." He referred to rookie Ted Lorick, the Arizona State star who likely will get more duty Sunday. Lorick, at 215 and 6-1, is faster than Ameche and can get outside. He carried twice against Minnesota for 10 yards. The running back load for the Colts is carried by Tom Matte and Jerry Hill, although Matte never carried vs. the Vikings. The Colts actually had only 18 rushes all say, with Moore making 6 (for 26), Hill 7, Lorick 2, and John Unitas 3. Lorick's best day in preseason was against the Steelers. He gained 80 yards in 11 carries and caught two passes for 84 yards. Moore is playing left half and probably will start here. Matte opened in Minnesota, but Moore replaced him early and went the distance. The Packers emphasized offense in yesterday's drill and Coach Vince Lombardi put the Bays on the charging sled today and topped off the practice with a session on defense.
EYE ON UNTAS, PACK PLAYS 'LONG BALL'
SEPT 18 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - John Unitas is coming to town. And the Packers' seven defensive outfielders are looking for the long ball. Horb Hecker, coach of the unit, was hitting "fungoes" to the fleet-footed ball chasers during a portion of practice Thursday and, like he said, "Let's go out deep and get the ball." Hecker throws the ball out of reach, as it were, and each fielder must get it. This is a daily practice routine, but with the whip-armed and unpredictable Unitas coming in, the drill takes on special significance. The group is composed of Herb Adderly, Jess Whittenton, Hank Gremminger and Willie Wood in the front four and replacements Tom Brown, Jerry Norton and Doug Hart. Adderley carried a special grin Thursday and he reminded that "I've had some luck against Unitas." The Packers intercepted four of Unitas' passes last year and Adderley stole three of them. This is an exceptionally good team since General John had only 12 intercepted all season. Unitas is proud of that dozen, too, because it represents a marked improvement over 1962 when 23 of his passes were intercepted. Wood won't forget Unitas - and his pet receiver, Raymond Berry. "I had my worst experience in football against him," Willie laughed. Wood was referring to the Packer-Colt game in Baltimore in 1960. Willie was a rookie that season and during the first half Whittenton pulled a muscle. Wood was sent forth to replace Jess at right corner. Unitas and Berry went to work - on our Willie. Unitas threw four touchdown passes that day and completed 20 of 29 passes for 324 yards in Baltimore's 38-24 win. And Berry caught 10 for 137 yards and three touchdowns. Berry, by the way, hasn't caught a TD on the Pack since that although he as out the last three games with injuries. Wood allowed that it was a good lesson but "I never give it a thought, now." Willie, of course, has developed into one of the game's top defensive backs. "Berry is no longer my responsibility. The only time I get him is when he comes into my zone," Wood said. Whittenton is "on" Berry and Jess may be busy Sunday because Unitas didn't throw much to Raymond in the loss at Minneapolis last Sunday. Also, Berry, who had been hurt much of the last two seasons, is in his best condition since 1961. Incidentally, Unitas has played 15 games against Green Bay and during the span completed 224 out of 407 passes for 3,110 yards and 27 touchdowns. He had two four-TD games vs. Green Bay and three with no TD passes, including the one here last year. The Bays intercepted 23 passes in the 15 games, topped by the five here in '61 when the Pack won 45-7...From Baltimore comes word, via Colt publicity Harry Hulmes, that Steve Stonebreaker has recovered from injuries enough to start at left cornerbacker. Also, Bob Boyd, the regular left cornerbacker, is still in the hospital with a kidney stone. He could get out in time to make the trip Saturday and then likely would play. If he is sidelines, Wendell Harris will take over his position. It appears that Lenny Moore will start at left half in place of Tom Matte. Hulmes reported that Joe Don Looney, the former Oklahoma star obtained in a trade with the Giants, had one of his best days in practice Thursday. Looney, the Giants' first draft choice, could see some action Sunday...And speaking about good practices, the Packers came in with an excellento yesterday that pleased Coach Vince Lombardi, who watched and directed part of the drill from atop the towner in the center of the two fields. Vince climbs up on rare occasions and yesterday he noted that "things look different from up here." Former president Dwight D. Eisenhower was scheduled to stop in briefly at today's practice, meet the Packers, and renew acquaintances with Lombardi, who had known him from his days at West Point.
STARR, UNITAS TIE IN YARDS 'THROWN'
SEPT 19 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The Packers were more successful than the Colts last Sunday, but they were tied in at least one department - yards lost attempting to pass. This proves, among other things, that John Unitas and Bart Starr, opposing pitchers in City Stadium Sunday, aren't afraid to eat the football when necessary. Each passer was dumped for 39 yards lost attempting to throw. Unitas was thrown five times and Starr bit the dust three times on slugs of 15, 14 and 10 yards. The Packers threw Bill Wade and Rudy Bukich back a total of 33 yards attempting to pass while the Colts threw Fran Tarkenton 25 yards trying to pass. Wade was thrown once; Bukich three times. One Colt statistics looks a little unusual. Fullback Jerry Hill is the leading Baltimore pass receiver - with a minus yardage. Leaders are based on number caught, and Hill has three but they were "stretched" out to nine yards the wrong way. This business indicates that Unitas used Hill considerably as a safety valve against the Vikings, meaning that he threw short to the fullback when downfield receivers were blanked. The Vikings apparently had Hill covered, too. Three of Unitas' completions went for a total of 157 yards - an average of 51 per. He pitched two to Jimmy Orr for 87 yards and one to Lenny Moore for 70. The Colts were due in this afternoon and had scheduled a light workout at 2 o'clock on the Pack's practice fields. The light rain isn't expected to hamper them. A year ago, the Colts' Saturday drill was washed out completely by a heavy downpour. The Packers closed out their practice week with a warmup this morning. The Packers went right through a steady rain Friday morning and the highlight was a visit by "Mr. President," Dwight D. Eisenhower. The Bays were working on their goal line action when the general's car pulled up to the curb. Coach Vince Lombardi went over to greet him and then brought him to the center of the field where Vince introduced him to the squad. Ike took off his hat as he spoke and received a clap of applause when he finished. Awed by the size of the Packers, he told of his light weight, 150 pounds, when he played fullback at West Point and wished the Packers the best of luck, repeating his wish a couple of times. The Packers were highly impressed with Mr. President's visit. It was a momentous occasion.
PACKERS SEE NO MYSTERY; EXPECT COLT 'FIREWORKS'
SEPT 20 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - There is no mystery about the Colts. They'll be all fired up. The Packers can expect this at City Stadium today - and maybe more, since the Baltimores are coming off an unimpressive showing in their opener against the Vikings. The Colts, who won four of their last six games in '63, are a solid contender. The mere presence of John
Chicago Bears coach George Halas and Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi at Lambeau Field in 1964. (Photo credit - Chicago Tribune file)
Unitas makes them a title possibility and, what's more, they have added a potentially explosive ground game to go with their strong air arm. The Colts not only were beaten on the scoreboard at Minneapolis they were outnumbers in plays almost 2 to 1. Thus, an about-face is a certainty today. The Packers reached excessive heights in demolishing the Bears last Sunday. But they can't come down too far in view of the Colts' blistering attitude. The whole thing will get underway at 1:05 this afternoon and a sellout audience of 42,327 will witness the fireworks. No rain is expected, but it might be cloudy. The Packers will be going for their fifth straight win over Baltimore, covering the last two seasons. The Colts last beat the Packers in Baltimore 45-21, but since then the Bays won 17-6, 17-13, 31-20 and 34-20. The Colts hope to unveil a running game today and don't be surprised if they spring young Tony Lorick loose. The noted rookie is a real comer and the Colts feel he could be their best fullback since Alan Ameche. Lorick will share a running back spot with Jerry Hill, while Lenny Moore works at the "option" position. The Colts' air game is wrapped around five people - plus, of course, the interior line which must protect. Unitas keys the pass catching foursome - Raymond Berry at the split end, John Mackey at right end, Jimmy Orr at flanker, and the fleet-footed Moore. This unit represents a good, tough strain on the Packers' defense, which limited the Bears to 130 total yards last Sunday. But the Colt offense is much more explosive and Unitas often eats up 130 yards in a couple of passes. The "thing" in past Colt games has been the rush on Unitas and the Pack might be handicapped here since swift Henry Jordan is still bothered by an injury, although Ron Kostelnik did exceptionally well in relief of Henry last Sunday. In view of the 463 yards permitted by the Vikings last Sunday, the Packer offense might feel that a picnic is in the offing. However, the Colts' major firing-up likely will occur in their defense and as a result the Bay scoring machine will be severely pressed. Bart Starr and Co. ran off 57 plays vs. the Bears and displayed some exciting possibilities, what with Paul Hornung back in the harness. Starr passed for touchdowns to Max McGee and Tom Moore and Hornung kicked three field goals. In addition, Jim Taylor and Hornung rushed for nearly 160 yards between 'em. The Bays will need all their offensive weapons. It has been a full year since Starr worked against the Colts. He engineered a 31-20 victory over Baltimore here last year, but he was on the bench in the 34-20 win at Baltimore, suffering from a broken hand. John Roach, who starts for Dallas today, pitched the win. PS - How many free kicks today?