Packers Daily Links: Super Bowl Ring Has 105 Diamonds
Members of the Packers organization received their Super Bowl rings in a ceremony last night. That and more in today's Daily Links...
The Packers organization received their Super Bowl rings at a ceremony inside the Lambeau Field Atrium last evening. The story and description of the ring comes from Mike Spofford of the Packers official website. "The shape of the ‘G’ itself consists of 13 diamonds, one for each title dating back to 1929, and surrounding the entire crown are 92 diamonds, one for each year the Packers have been in existence," writes Spofford. Pictures of the ring can be seen at Packers.com.
The rings are flashy to be sure. Team president Mark Murphy had the quote of the evening. “(The players) wanted big and they wanted bling,” Murphy told Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette. “I think we were successful in that.” Murphy, head coach Mike McCarthy, cornerback Charles Woodson and wide receiver Donald Driver all spoke to the media following last night's ring ceremony.
Head coach Mike McCarthy donned a cowboy hat for the occasion. "Just as his Green Bay Packers players had boldly and confidently worn 10-gallon hats and bolo ties for the annual preseason Welcome Back Luncheon in September – to notify the football world of their plans to be playing in Super Bowl XLV in Arlington, Tex., come February – the coach stood in the very same Lambeau Field atrium and seized the opportunity for symmetry as the team celebrated its accomplishment during its private ring ceremony," writes Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com. McCarthy said he followed both Murphy and Ted Thompson in addressing the team last night, so he had to be a little creative.
The Packers wouldn't divulge specifics about the cost of the ring. "As for the cost, the Packers are standing behind the company line: They say the NFL 'pays for up to 150 rings at $5,000 per ring. Further information about the rings was not disclosed,'" writes Michael Hunt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. With over 100 diamonds on the ring, you'd have to imagine the price tag ran in excess of $5,000.
Cornerback Charles Woodson had an impact on the ring's design when the words "Mind, Goal, Purpose, Heart" were engraved on the inside of the ring, the same inspirational words he told the team after the NFC championship win over the Chicago Bears to reach the Super Bowl. “I put a couple of imprints on there,” Woodson told Packer Report. “I think the one that I think is the most special is just inside of the ring — what I said to the guys after the Chicago game leading up to the Super Bowl is engraved on the inside of the ring. I think that’s what I’m most proud of because for that two weeks, as I was talking up there, (it was) for those guys just to remember to stay focused on the task at hand and the task was to go down to Dallas and win the Super Bowl. Everyone did that, everyone stayed focused, everyone was ready to play when the lights came on. That’s the reason why we’re here tonight.”
One more Super Bowl celebration, the trip to the White House to meet the President of the United States, is on hold for the time being. Jason Wilde writes, "Team president Mark Murphy said he hoped the team would make a trip to Washington, D.C. but it 'really is kind of tied in with getting some resolution on the labor situation. Players don’t get many opportunities to go to the White House. I hope that the timing works out where we’re able to do that.'" In a few other notes on the ceremony, Wilde noted that it didn't appear that former Packers Al Harris was in attendance, even though the cornerback had said he would receive a Super Bowl ring.
Vic Ketchman of Packers.com, an employee of the team, has an insider's view of the ceremony. "The evening included a video that explained the manufacture of the ring," writes Ketchman. "It was followed by the table-by-table presentation of the rings." The video was reportedly made by NFL Films. He also said that play-by-play radio voice Wayne Larrivee was the event's toastmaster.
NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com, appropriately got the reaction of a Chicago Bears player to the Packers receiving their rings.
The lingering lockout hovering over last night's ceremony is touched upon by Mike Vandermause of the Press-Gazette.
A photo gallery from last night's event appears at Packer Report.
Comments from Mark Murphy, Mike McCarthy, Charles Woodson and Donald Driver are collected by Mike Vandermause.
Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher caught the ire of Packers fans when he insisted he thought the Bears are the better football team.
Former Packers defensive coordinator John Meyer was inducted into two Halls of Fame.
Former Packers quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel is undergoing treatment for Guillain-Barre syndrome, "a potentially debilitating disease."
Video: More on other Super Bowl rings from WBAY-TV in Green Bay...
Brian Carriveau is the editor of the Maple Street Press Packers Annual. To contact Brian, email [email protected].
Comments (4)
June 17, 2011 at 07:41 am
Here's to reading this post again next June.
GO PACK GO!
June 17, 2011 at 07:48 am
Donald Driver looked like he was the happiest guy on the face of the earth with that ring on.
Congrats to him and everyone on the Packers team and in the organization for this accomplishment. The hard work paid off!
June 17, 2011 at 11:20 am
By far the most beautiful piece of jewelry I've seen in my entire life.
And the details are amazing. 13 diamonds to represent the 13 championships. 92 diamonds to represente the 92 years of the Packers. the 4 diamonds outside to represent the 4 Super Bowls, and all organized in a very classy way, not like some past rings. The Lombardy trophy with the XLV symbol (BTW, I'm positive Jerry Jones designed that symbol with the ring in mind, so that when his team won it, it would have an extra symbolism.), Lambeau field, the jersey number the same format of the 29' season, the first championship...
It's all so damn perfect.
June 17, 2011 at 03:25 pm
Looking forward to seeing the boys pull up to the Welcome Back Luncheon in their indy cars this year.
One word.... Indianapolis, Indiana, Super Bowl, baby! ;-)