From Vince Lombardi's plays to Cris Carter's shoes, 10 things we loved at new HOF exhibit

APPLETON - The Green Bay Packers won't play a meaningful game for another two months or so. 

But as far as the History Museum at the Castle is concerned, football season kicks off this weekend.

"Gridiron Glory: The Best of the Pro Football Hall of Fame," a traveling exhibit featuring hundreds of artifacts from more than 100 years of pro football history, opens Saturday at the downtown Appleton museum. 

An exhibit put together by the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, it's in town through Jan. 6 and is making its only visit to Wisconsin. 

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"Gridiron Glory" and its 200-plus artifacts was installed at the museum over a span of about two and a half weeks. It came in seven semi-trailers and the process was helped along with three employees from Canton who assisted with preparation. 

It's broken down into several themed locations on three floors, with space dedicated to specific football dynasties, certain records and milestone moments, technology and innovation, African American history, how the sport has impacted American life and more. There's also a hometown tribute portion dedicated strictly to the Packers, who celebrate their 100th anniversary season this year and helped partner up with the History Museum to bring the exhibit to the Fox Cities. 

It's a historic and educational experience, complete with interactives, video presentations and more and is designed for all ages — though little ones might tremble upon laying eyes on the cast of Cortez Kennedy's bulging bicep. 

There's everything from game-worn jerseys from Brett Favre and John Elway to helmets and equipment from the sport's earliest days to a heating coil that didn't do its job during the Ice Bowl. There's even a Lombardi trophy — one of just one or two in existence that hasn't already been won.

Since we got a chance to check things out before the big weekend opening, including Friday's kickoff party, here are 10 of the coolest things that'll be on display for the next six months. 

Cris Carter's shoes

Key game: Dec. 17, 1994. The Detroit Lions top the Minnesota Vikings 41-19 at the Pontiac Silverdome. 

Significance: Worn the day he broke the single-season receptions record. Carter finished the season with 122 catches, 10 more than the previous record holder, Shannon Sharpe. 

Why this is cool: First, they're big. Cris Carter had otherwordly hands and, apparently, his feet weren't so bad either. But what stands out about his mid-'90s kicks is that they're basically a pair of Nike basketball shoes. These sneakers were ideal in the days of the Metrodome's AstroTurf but wouldn't cut it now in the era of field turf (or, you know, grass).

Barry Sanders jersey

Key game: Dec. 21, 1997. Detroit Lions 13, New York Jets 10

Significance: Barry Sanders wore this jersey the day he surpassed 2,000 rushing yards in the 1997 season. He was the third ever to run for more than 2,000 yards in a season. (Four others have done it since.)

Why this is cool: NFL fans of a certain age will remember the Hall of Fame running back jumping, spinning and juking his way to 2,000 yards for a mediocre Lions team in the late '90s. The scuffed-up jersey is one of many pieces of equipment worn by NFL legends on record-setting occasions. Others include a helmet from Michael Strahan's 22.5-sack season (Favre took a dive!) and the jersey Ben Roethlisberger had on when he put up 503 passing yards in a 2009 game against the Packers (that secondary!)

Allegheny Athletic Association ledger

Key game: Nov. 12, 1892. Allegheny Athletic Association vs. Pittsburgh Athletic Club

Significance: The document, also dated Nov. 12, 1892, is the earliest evidence of a player being paid to play football. It's been dubbed "pro football's birth certificate."

Why it's cool: On the most basic level, it's a handwritten tab written with beauty and care. Nobody has penmanship like this anymore. Once you dig in, you see a gentleman named W. Heffelfinger was paid $500 cash for playing in this game. Compare that to what new Minnesota Vikings QB Kirk Cousins will make per game next season. Before any bonuses kick in, Cousins is paid about $1.4 million per game. At least ol' Heffelfinger was paid in cash.

Dutch Clark's uniform

Key game: No specific game here, but the Hall of Fame QB played from 1931 to 1938, mostly for Detroit. 

Significance: It's the full helmet, jersey, pants and shoes from the quarterback and kicker who was named All-NFL six of the seven seasons he played. He led the league in scoring three times — in part because he kicked field goals and extra points. 

Why it's cool: Looking at it now, it seems unfathomable somebody could enjoy playing football in this getup. The shoes look like a cross between a boot and a dress shoe and appear sturdy for kicking but miserable for anything else. The jersey is like a discarded long underwear top. And the helmet? Let's just say it's no surprise the guy known as "The Flying Dutchman" retired after his seventh season. 

Super Bowl XXXI pylon

Key game: Jan. 26, 1997. Super Bowl XXXI: Green Bay Packers 35, New England Patriots 21

Significance: It's a pylon from an end zone in the Louisiana Superdome from the night the Packers secured their third Lombardi trophy. It's signed by Super Bowl MVP Desmond Howard.

Why it's cool: Rachel Knapp, curatorial assistant for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, said the hall does their best to collect items beyond the expected jerseys and balls. This is an example, with the added bonus that the game's MVP took a Sharpie to it. 

Three Rivers Stadium elevator panel

Key game: Dec. 23, 1972. Pittsburgh Steelers 13, Oakland Raiders 7

Significance: It's the panel from the elevator from the now-demolished home of the Steelers. The elevator is where the team's owner, Art Rooney, was when Franco Harris pulled off his "Immaculate Reception." 

Why it's cool: This is another example of the oddball items the Hall of Fame has in its collection. As the story goes, with time ticking away in the AFC divisional playoff game and the Steelers behind, Rooney took the elevator down to the locker room with plans to console his team. Little did he know, one of the most famous plays in NFL history was about to happen and the Steelers were going to pull out the miraculous win. (I'm sure the play was just as exciting in whatever replays he saw later that night.) Before the venue was destroyed in 2001, the panel was spared. 

Joe Stydahar's NFL Championship watch fob

Key game: Dec. 21, 1941. NFL Championship Game: Chicago Bears 37, New York Giants 9

Significance: Before there were Super Bowl rings, there were watch fobs. 

Why it's cool: These days, so much of an athlete's success is measured in championship rings. It's funny to think back to the '40s, then, when instead of the gaudy, diamond-heaped jewelry pieces, NFL champs earned fobs for their pocket watches. This one — displayed through a magnification lens because it's so small — belonged to the Hall of Fame tackle nicknamed "Jumbo Joe." How many watch fobs you got, Tom Brady?

Quarterback hand casts

Significance: The exhibit features casts of the hands of three retired quarterbacks as they grip a football. They're the mitts of Jim Kelly, Troy Aikman and Warren Moon.

Why it's cool: If you haven't handled a football in a while — the full-size NFL model — they might be bigger than you think. It takes big hands to chuck one downfield, and that's what you'll see from Aikman's mold. What might surprise you is the small throwing hand Moon was working with. Makes his standing as the 10th all-time passer (by yardage) that much more impressive. 

Bill Belichick Super Bowl attire

Key game: Feb. 3, 2002. Super Bowl XXXVI: New England Patriots 20, St. Louis Rams 17

Significance: It's the sideline jacket Patriots coach Bill Belichick wore during his first Super Bowl win.

Why it's cool: It's a rare piece of the exhibit that looks like it belongs on a rack at a Goodwill store. The Adidas sideline jacket — a windbreaker, basically — was the go-to top for the man NFL fans see as the league's top villain. (This was before the Hoodie Era, apparently.) It's a little humbling to see even one of the greatest football coaches ever (evil genius or not) rocked such a dad jacket while pulling off one of the biggest Super Bowl upsets ever. 

Vince Lombardi's play diagrams

Significance: He's Vince Lombardi and they're his play diagrams. 

Why it's cool: It's fun to think of football's most iconic coach sitting down with a marker to draw up his master plans. The Lombardi Power Sweep probably first existed on one of these projector gels. It's also fun to see how simplistic offensive plays were back in the Lombardi era. Anyone who's played even a few snaps of "Madden" can look at this little pass play and see it's not accomplishing a whole lot in 2018.

If you go

What: "Gridiron Glory: The Best of the Pro Football  Hall of Fame," a traveling exhibit from the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Where: The History Museum at the Castle, 330 E. College Ave., Appleton

When: Opens Saturday and on display through Jan. 6. Museum is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. 

Admission: $15 adults, $10 children (ages 5-17), free for children age 5 and younger and museum members

Info: myhistorymuseum.org

Here comes Kramer

In celebration of the "Gridiron Glory" exhibit and Green Bay Packers great Jerry Kramer's induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the History Museum at the Castle is hosting a special event on July 24. Kramer will be at the museum for a conversation with Ann Kreiter about his life and career. The event runs 6 to 8 p.m. and will be capped at about 200 people. Tickets are not yet on sale to the general public, but will be $175 for premium seating and $75 general admission. While museum members get first dibs on tickets, keep an eye on myhistorymuseum.org to see when the they'll go on sale to the public.