We laughed about that comment. As publisher of the "Ray Nitschke Packer Report," Nitschke was able to enjoy the team's return to glory, but he never allowed the new heroes the luxury of becoming too fond of themselves. Upon the election of former teammate Henry Jordan to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on the eve of Super Bowl XXIX in Miami Gardens, Florida, Nitschke flew down to Florida to participate in the game's coin-toss ceremonies, joining three other 75th Anniversary Team representatives--Otto Graham (1950s), Mean Joe Greene (1970s) and Gale Sayers (1960s), all three of whom had been announced as representatives of their respective decades in the ceremony months prior to the PFHOF electionas well as three of Jordan's fellow Class of 1995 newcomers, all of whom represented the 1980s: Kellen Winslow, Lee Roy Selmon, and then-U.S. And certainly, a week ago Sunday, he was smiling down on Cowboy Stadium and the Green Bay Packers Super Bowl victory. The 23-year-old man was arraigned on Feb. 23 after being arrested for driving his 2016 Toyota Two people have been charged with possession of methamphetamine after a traffic stop in Garfield Kindergarten round-up is for all parents interested in learning more about the kindergarten program. He lost both his parents by the age of 14, causing a lot of trouble in school. Ray Nitschke, according to Hall of Fame quarterback and teammate Bart Starr, was a "classic example of Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hyde." Off the field he was a thoughtful caring person. Klaas walked inside to grab a few drinks, but Nitschke suffered a heart attack while sitting in the parked car. He was a fullback and linebacker for the Illini, and the Packers drafted him as a linebacker on the third round in 1958. He was adopted by an older brother, and grew up as a self-acknowledged bully. The film's executive producer, Jim Rivett, said that Nitschke was the first "Packer Wife" to publicly acknowledge her alcoholism. He also was a humanitarian, loved children and relished being an ambassador for Green Bay and the NFL. He feuded with Mike Ditka and scoffed at the notion that Butkus was a younger, improved version of himself. The Eagles paid me my last year. Besides Klaas, Nitschke is survived by two sons, John and Richard. A common response for the muted, new inductees is to look around the room at legends such as Jim Brown, Roger Staubach and Mean Joe Greene. Nitschkes legacy stretched far beyond the football field. They called me a mezzanine rookie the second year until you played in a certain number of games. Coming up the middle or filling a hole on a running play, I thought Nitschke was better than Butkus. Who Is Ray Nitschke's Wife? Nitschke leaves three adopted children: John, 34; Richard, 32; and Amy, 26, and one granddaughter, Jacqueline Rae, 17 months. No one ever instilled fear in their opponents quite as Nitschke did. Raised by two older brothers, Nitschke praised Proviso coach Andy Puplis and other high school coaches for keeping him on the right track. The review in Kirkus Reviews concluded, "This lacks the wider appeal of, say, an Instant Replay and it's antithetical to the juicy Ball Four genre. His character is listed in the credits as "Private One" because his jersey is emblazoned with the number "1". (Carr) could play every position. Not only is Ray Nitschke one of the best LBs in NFL history, he had an act at making something out of nothing. I'm like, 'I guess I better get ready.' We played basketball together. Nitschke, his wife and family would come back to Frankfort every summer for a number of years and a few weeks before he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in 1978 he sent me a personal invitation to join him for the ceremonies. Reality becomes difficult to fathom. None. " Champion: The Legacy of Jackie Nitschke, " premiered in Green Bay this week. ", On whether Nitschke ever messed with Gillingham on the practice field: "Never. if everything could be upended in one morning like that, maybe someday I'll wake up another day and everything gets flipped back the way it should be just as suddenly. So I said (to Peppler), 'Well, do I need to come back there?' Ray Nitschke's life was the embodiment of the power of love, the power of family, and the power of an individual to transform himself into a better person. Pro Football Hall of Fame (inducted 1978) 5 NFL championships 2 Super Bowl championships 2 All-Pro selections 1 Pro Bowl selection. Nitschkes mother died from a blood clot when he was 13. He was a total family man. The heaviest I ever got there was a little over 260. I chuckle to myself, `Well, yeah, OK.' But when it came down to the business of football, he was as tough as they come.". He knows which Hall of Famers speak with fire, which are circumspect. Yary witnessed the fury before he entered the NFL in 1968 with the Minnesota Vikings as the first draft choice. Fred weighed about 118 pounds when he died. [15][16] Green Bay had clinched the NFC Central division title the week before at Minnesota for their first playoff berth in five seasons. While at Illinois, Nitschke smoked, drank heavily, and fought at the drop of a hat. He said, 'Bill, you don't know the AFL and NFL have merged? I was the executive secretary of the National Soaring and Hang Gliding Festival and Paul Alfred Corey and his sister Carol, the owners of the PAC Inn, and Gustafson Oil Company had arranged through Detroit Lions general manager Nick Kerbawy to have the perennial All-Pro linebacker, who had recently retired, in the Port City to be part of a five-judge panel to select the first National Soaring Queen. Nitschke was married on June 26, 1961, to Jackie Forchette. ", On Ray Wietecha, his first line coach: "I thought he was a very good coach. I used to be a bouncer in a bar and so I knew you can't let a guy up. It was his passion for the game, and the way he could flip a switch once he walked over the painted sideline. Ray Nitschke was born on December 29, 1936, in Elmwood Park, Illinois, United States. Ray played in the 230s, but he hit like he was 300 pounds. I walk up to the car and he says, 'Bill, I want to apologize. Rivett says up to 14 people can live at the Jackie Nitschke Center for a month while they get sober. In this day and age of egotistical professional athletes, my friend Ray Nitschke would also have been a unanimous selection for the Nice Guy Hall of Fame. He always tried to intimidate offensive guys. Then what year did the World Football League come in? In 1999, he was ranked number 18 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, making him the highest-ranked player coached by Vince Lombardi, second among Packers behind Don Hutson, and third among linebackers behind Lawrence Taylor and Dick Butkus. Every day until the season begins, well unveil new members of the list, with the No. I remember when they'd grab Bart by the belt of his jersey and pile-drive him into the ground. While he wasnt bombing his classes or getting into fistfights, he played quarterback and safety at Proviso High in suburban Chicago. In 1996, with wife Jackie dying of cancer, Nitschke was in tears as he related to inductees that his wife had implored him to go to the ceremony in Canton, where he belonged. [1] He had been driving to the home of a family friend, according to his daughter, Amy Klaas, who was with him when he was stricken. Nitschke was the leader and captain of the Packers defense throughout the entire 1960s. Nitschke died of a heart attack in Venice, Florida at the age of 61 in 1998. His was pierced by a bolt from the tower. [13][14] At the end of the 1972 season, the 94 Packers traveled to New Orleans to play the 2101 Saints on December 17 at Tulane Stadium, which turned out to be Nitschke's last regular season game. https://www.britannica.com/facts/Ray-Nitschke, 66 (Green Bay Packers, 19591972) 33 (Green Bay Packers, 1958). He thought that was a privilege. So, how much is Ray Nitschke worth at the age of 62 years old? Hall of fame middle linebacker for the Green Bay Packers who was named MVP of the 1962 NFL Championship Game and was a 1964 Pro Bowl selection. On March 8, Nitschke took a drive with his daughter, Amy Klaas, and her one-year-old daughter to a friend's house. Remembering the mean, tough Packer Ray Nitschke, who loved Frankfort. Having played with the Green Bay Packers and the number of championships they won, the number of Hall of Famers that played for (coach Vince) Lombardi, who happens to have his name on the trophy, seemed to signify a purity of someone who accepted his role in the game and played it with a fervor.. Maybe it was the missing teeth or the oversized facemask, but no NFL player wanted to meet No. . Left: Nitschke's helmet from the coaching tower incident in September, Ray Nitschkeawards, championships, and honors, "Ray Nitschke, 61, linebacker during Packers' glory years", "Packers get last laugh in slapstick game", "Chicago Tribune - Historical Newspapers", "Larger-than-life pro wrestling icon would love to have had career with Green Bay Packers", "Hard nosed Ray Nitschke just a softie over induction", National Football League 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ray_Nitschke&oldid=1142190700, Players of American football from Illinois, Illinois Fighting Illini football players, National Football League players with retired numbers, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, NFL player missing current team parameter, Infobox NFL biography articles missing alt text, Infobox NFL biography articles with old NFL.com URL, Pages using multiple image with auto scaled images, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Career statistics and player information from, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 00:49. [22][23][24][25][26] The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1978. . That's how we became connected. The late Jackie Nitschke was married to Lombardi-era Packer Ray Nitschke. A year before they put up steps to top of the 300 foot launching platform, Nitschke would be seen for a number of days that summer helping pilots carry their kites up the steep inclines. He said, 'No, we'll send you the paperwork and you can sign it.' Cincinnati Bengals left tackle Anthony Munoz didnt get to hear Nitschke speak at the luncheon. I just want to get along.' The following browsers are supported: Chrome, Edge (v80 and later), Firefox and Safari. The discussion was heated, but remained private. Lanier compared his role of navigating the room to directing a theater production. Nitschkes rage was effectively channeled. Said Remmel: I remember sitting in hotel lobbies when the team was on the road and watch Ray obligingly pose for photographs and sign hundreds of autographs. It all went for naught, as panelist Bennett Cerf, who had attended the game, guessed his identity immediately. How tough was Nitschke? This is the first of two parts with Bill Lueck. The Associated Press contributed to this story. The Nitschke Luncheon is a solemn initiation for the new inductees, who are not allowed to speak. When I told Green Bay what I was offered, they matched it. And Gale told me if you let him know he can't just get away with abusing you like he does with Hyland, you'll get his respect. Presenter: Phil Bengston. AKA Raymond Ernest Nitschke. So I started beating him down and they didn't pull me off of him until I had him on the ground. Bengtson, after Lombardi left, said you and Freddie can't be roommates anymore. '", On any special memories of farm life: "I used to rope steers. Among all of us offensive linemen, we supported Zeke 100 percent. We always wondered why Zeke wasn't with another team starting. View popular celebrities life details, birth signs and real ages. His wife is Jackie Forchette (26 June1961 - 1996)( her death)( 3 children). [6], Nitschke entered Proviso Township High School in Maywood shortly before his mother's death. He was probably remembering another Coach Lombardi quote: There is no room for second place. You're a starter now.' His father died when he was three and his mother when he was thirteen and he was raised by an older brother. He played for 15 seasons before retiring in 1972. Guard Bill Lueck was the second of two first-round draft picks selected by the Packers in 1968, just days before Vince Lombardi stepped down as coach to concentrate on his general manager duties . Mean In The Middle smiled down from heaven as the Green Bay Packers were about to win the Super Bowl. [8] Nitschke was also offered scholarships from college football programs around the country. ", On Phil Bengtson as head coach: "I had no issues with him. 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He was a wonderful human being. He almost always went after Bob Hyland. "I never saw him turn down an autograph or a request to pose for a photo.". Raymond Ernest Nitschke (Wildman) Position: LB 6-3 , 235lb (190cm, 106kg) Born: December 29 in Elmwood Park, IL More bio, uniform, draft, salary info Hall of Fame 1x Pro Bowl 2x All-Pro 2x SB Champ 5x NFL Champ HOF All-1960s Team 33 66 SUMMARY Career G 190 AV 120 Int 25 Yds 385 TD 2 Ray Nitschke Overview Game Logs Career Postseason 1958 1959 1960 Jackie Nitschke's influence transformed this football madman into a loving husband and father of three adopted children. He was the MVP of the 1962 NFL Championship Game, accepting the prize of a 1963 Chevrolet Corvette. I know I hit him hard and he hit me hard, and I think that's where it should be left.". Ray Nitschke won two Super Bowl championships. It wasnt just the All-Pro honors or the five championships that made Nitschke great. 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