Little interest in saving giant football

Ashwaubenon — Construction crews demolished the large replica football near the former Packer Hall of Fame on May 23, prompting some readers to ask why it was not preserved.

Short answer: Nobody said they wanted it, and Brown County officials weren’t sure it could be salvaged if someone had.

“I think when we had first heard about interest in anything, we heard a lot about seats. We heard a lot about the basketball floor,” said Jeff Flynt, Brown County deputy executive. “And that day of the seat sale, people were saying ‘can we take signs,’ and I think somebody found some (large) umbrellas. We didn’t hear anybody say, ‘hey, can you salvage that football?’”

The former hall of fame and its football were in the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena complex, which is being razed to make way for a new expo hall, expected to open in early 2021.

Flynt said one inquiry was made after the site was turned over to Miron Construction, at which point it was too late.

Also, it’s not clear it could have been saved.

The football, made out of plastic foam and paint on a plaster base, was constructed around a pillar supporting a canopy attached to the former hall of fame building. Because of that and the way it was attached to the pillar, successful removal might have been difficult.

“We had asked our facilities people how would you do that? They talked about cutting it in half and peeling it like a banana, and even then, they said it was just guess,” Flynt said. “If Miron thought there was value, they would have salvaged it.”

SARAH KLOEPPING / USAT The giant football outside the former Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame was torn down May 23 during the early stages of the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena and Shopko Hall demolition project.