Bart Starr

Bryan Bartlett "Bart" Starr (born January 9, 1934 in Montgomery, Alabama) 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 the Most Valuable Player of the first two Super Bowls. He earned four Pro Bowl selections and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977.

The son of an Air Force NCO, Bart Starr played high school football at Lanier High School in Montgomery, Alabama, where he earned a spot in the school's Hall of Fame. He played college football at Alabama, and was a 17th round pick (200th overall) in the 1956 NFL draft. After his playing career, Starr was the head coach of the Packers for nine seasons (1975-1983), compiling a 52-76-3 record. As Vince Lombardi's quarterback, Starr's Packers won NFL Championships in the 1961, 1962, 1965, 1966, and 1967 seasons. Following the NFL championships in 1966 and 1967, he led the Packers to convincing victories over the champions of the rival AFL in the first two Super Bowls and was named the Most Valuable Player of both games. He is the only player to quarterback a team to five NFL championships.

Starr was drafted in the 17th round of the NFL Draft in 1956, out of the University of Alabama. He was a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach. In that season, Lombardi pulled starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr, and he held the starting job henceforth.

In just two seasons, Starr led his team to NFL Championships in 1961 and 1962. In 1966, Starr was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press (AP), the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) and UPI. Starr was responsible for calling plays when he was quarterback, as was the norm at the time. One of his most famous play calls was in the Ice Bowl against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL championship game on the final day of 1967. Instead of handing off (as the play was designed), Starr sneaked the ball himself, and with the winning touchdown, the Packers won their third straight NFL championship, the fifth in seven years. Two weeks later in Miami, the Packers defeated the AFL champion Oakland Raiders 33-14 in Super Bowl II, Lombardi's final game as head coach of the Packers.

Starr's playing career ended at the conclusion of the 1971 season. In 1965, while with the Packers, he and his wife Cherry helped co-found Rawhide Boys Ranch, in New London, Wisconsin, a facility designed to help at-risk and troubled boys throughout the state, and is affiliated with it to this day.

In 1999, Starr was ranked number 41 on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. He is one of five Green Bay Packers to have his number (15) retired by the team. The others are Tony Canadeo (3), Don Hutson (14), Ray Nitschke (66), and Reggie White (92). Of the five, only Starr is still living. Starr has an NFL award named after him. The Bart Starr Award is given annually, by a panel of judges, to an NFL player of outstanding character.

Bart Starr #15
Quarterback

In 1999, Starr was ranked number 41 on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.

He is one of five Green Bay Packers to have his number (15) retired by the team. The others are Tony Canadeo (3), Don Hutson (14), Ray Nitschke (66), and Reggie White (92).

Starr has an NFL award named after him. The Bart Starr Award is given annually, by a panel of judges, to an NFL player of outstanding character.

Packers Coach

Immediately after his retirement as a player, he served as an assistant coach (quarterbacks) in 1972, when the Packers won the NFC Central division title at 10-4. Starr became head coach of the Packers three years later, in 1975. His regular season record was a disappointing 52-76-2 (.408), with a playoff record of 1-1. Posting a 5-3-1 record in the strike-shortened season of 1982, Starr's Packers made their first playoff appearance in ten years (and their last for another 11 years). They defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 41-16 in the expanded wild card round of 16 teams on January 8, 1983, then lost to the Dallas Cowboys 37-26 in the divisional round the following week. After a disappointing 8-8 finish the following year, Starr was dismissed in favor of his former teammate, Forrest Gregg.