The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
The Hall of Fame is full of NFL treasure, here’s how the goods get to Canton
Seven years ago, Joe Horrigan, the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s former executive vice president and longtime historian, followed Peyton Manning across the country to wait for a monumental moment in NFL history.
Manning, a hobbled version of himself, was on the cusp of breaking Brett Favre’s career passing yards record, and there was a chance he would do it in Indianapolis against his former team. Horrigan stationed himself at the 20-yard line at Lucas Oil Stadium, only to leave empty-handed and with a pending trip to Denver.
Manning snapped the record the following week. Play stopped, celebration ensued, and Horrigan approached Manning to collect the football. Two quarters later, the Hall of Fame quarterback was benched with a 0.0 passer rating. The next morning, Horrigan left Denver with the memento he had been chasing: a ball that, within 48 hours of the game, was propped on plastic casing inside in the Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, for public viewing.
“The ball doesn’t represent that single play,” Horrigan said at the time. “It represents thousands and thousands of hours that (Manning) put into his game — as a high school player, as a kid in pee-wee football, to all the games he played in the pros and all the people and coaches he worked with. They’re all a part of that ball and that record.”
There has been a Hall of Fame presence on the sideline of nearly every record-breaking moment and major feat in pro football, and no stage is bigger than the Super Bowl. The process of deciding which items to pursue and actually acquiring donated artifacts to enshrine in Canton is a laborious one that can span days, weeks and even months, much like Horrigan’s travels for Manning’s record ball.
The communication starts early, according to Jon Kendle, the Hall of Fame’s vice president of museum and archives. Kendle and the Hall of Fame’s collection committee have internal discussions about what might work from a big game and then rely on
relationships with the league, its teams and its players (among others) to acquire items that represent the game in its entirety — everything from pylons to artifacts from halftime shows.
The Hall has already initiated conversations about acquiring items from Super Bowl LVII, though nothing has been agreed upon or sent to Canton. The mix of items is likely to be eclectic.
“Every team is a little bit different in how they work, but it really is about the relationship-building, not just throughout the season but sometimes years of communication and explaining exactly what we do and how we do it and why we do it,” Kendle said. “A big part of our mission is to not only honor the greatest of the game but to preserve the game’s history and to promote its values.”
From Super Bowl LV in Tampa, the Hall acquired items from the Weeknd’s halftime performance, including costumes of some of the dancers and choir members. From Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans, the Hall received a football signed by Beyoncé, who performed during halftime. Last year, Ronald Torbert’s
game-worn official’s jersey and his yellow penalty flag were among the roughly 30 artifacts the Hall acquired from Super Bowl LVI. It also received a football signed by all the artists who performed at halftime, including rappers Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, 50 Cent and Kendrick Lamar, as well as singer Mary J. Blige. The show was the first at a Super Bowl halftime to feature hip-hop artists as the main act.
The collection from last year’s game also includes a handful of puppets that were used in an NFL commercial during the game. Computer-generated imagery brought the puppets, which looked like NFL stars, to life, resulting in one of the league’s more memorable marketing campaigns.
“What might we not have in our collection that people would be interested in visiting to see?”
Kendle said he and others at the Hall ask. “. . . The more unique for me, the better.”
Finding the items is part of the battle. Acquiring them is the other. The Hall of Fame is a nonprofit, so all items are donated, some for a brief time, others permanently. Super Bowl items are typically on a one-year loan. There’s no negotiation of payment with players and no legal haggling with teams. Instead, the Hall of Fame works with the NFL, teams, players, agents, halftime artists and others to get permission to display the items.
“Sometimes a fan will come to us and say, ‘Hey, I ended up with this particular item from the Super Bowl. Is there something that you would be interested in?’ ” Kendle said. “And then we get together as a collection committee and we discuss, ‘Does this fit into our collecting policy?’ ”
Which item to properly commemorate a record or game is often dependent on what someone is willing to send to Canton. Take Kadarius Toney’s 65-yard punt return in the Chiefs’ win over the Eagles in Super Bowl LVII. It was the longest punt return in a Super Bowl, and could warrant interest from the Hall. But what item best represents the moment?
“I’m looking through pictures of that play, and I’m looking at the player’s uniform,” Kendle said, clarifying that no items are locked in to be sent to Canton from the game. “Does he have something on his shoes that is distinct and cool? Is he wearing a unique glove? ... We might make the ask, and they might say, ‘I don’t want to give up my shoes, but certainly you can have the gloves.’ ”
Depending on their size and fragility, items are shipped via fine arts shippers or FedEx. Sometimes they’re personally escorted into the Hall, as Horrigan did with Manning’s football.
On the whole, Kendle has found that most people are willing to share.
“Whether it’s a donation, whether it’s a loan, they’re usually willing to find something to help us here at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, to promote their legacy and honor their performance,” Kendle said. “And that is pretty cool.”