A Sunday With A Jerry On Top Green Bay Great Excited By Super Bowl Return

Jerry Kramer has had tickets to the last three Super Bowls.

“I had golf dates set up, parties,” the former Green Bay great said. “After the Packers lost, everyone asked me, ‘Are you still going to go?’ Hell no, I don’t want to go hear any more about those SOB Dallas Cowboys.”

Kramer’s going this year because the Cowboys aren’t and his beloved Packers are. He’s in New Orleans, with two of his sons, to watch Green Bay stomp, he hopes, New England on Sunday.

“It’s been a wonderful fall,” gushed Kramer, who grew up in Sandpoint and became an All-American offensive lineman at Idaho. For Kramer, too.

He has been nominated for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, selected to John Madden’s all-time Super Bowl Team, seen the Packers rise to NFC dominance and watched his son’s high school football team win an Idaho state championship.

“It doesn’t get any better than this,” Kramer said via telephone from his Parma, Idaho, home, a couple days before his departure for New Orleans. “And it doesn’t have to.”

But a Green Bay victory sure would be nice.

Kramer has always been a Packer backer, since his playing days in the 1960s when Green Bay won the first two Super Bowls. He threw the most celebrated block in NFL history, clearing Dallas’ Jethro Pugh out of the way for Bart Starr’s game-winning sneak in the renowned Ice Bowl game.

He has become more dedicated to the Pack in recent years, mainly because he’s friends with several players.

“I know eight or ten of ‘em, and they’re nice kids, polite and very respectful,” Kramer said, reeling off the names of Brett Favre, Mark Chmura, Adam Timmerman and Robert Brooks.

“Now I’m not just watching a group of guys, but kids I know and I’m getting emotional. Now I hate getting beat. When Brett was going through the rehab deal, I happened to see him in the airport and we talked about it for an hour. You’ve gotta love his attitude. He’ll stick it in your ear, but he’s a nice kid.”

Kramer went to Green Bay for the NFC title game two weeks ago. Three of his children live in Green Bay and have season tickets. Kramer asked them to save him a seat, not knowing the red carpet treatment would practically greet him as he exited the plane.

“I’ve been out of the game 29 years. You don’t expect to be interviewed by Fox,” he said. “I started doing interviews and the NFL had a party the night before the game. The Commissioner (Paul Tagliabue) invited me to sit in his box, so I got a lot of exposure during the game. “Plus I got to sit with Willie (Davis), Bart (Starr) and Ray Nitschke. It was a real kick.”

One cannot mention the Packers without reliving a glorious football era. The names - Davis, Nitschke, Starr, Hornung, Wood - are legend in Wisconsin and beyond.

And, of course, the late Vince Lombardi. He demanded everything from precise execution of the famed Packer sweep to faithful attendance at the team’s annual Thanksgiving dinner. Lombardi felt so strongly about making Thanksgiving a family event that he went through the lockerroom seeking RSVPs.

“Hornung,” Lombardi would growl, wanting to know how many relatives Paul Hornung was bringing.

“Four.”

“Starr?”

“Three.”

“Kramer?”

“I don’t know,” Kramer once responded, still mad about a confrontation with Lombardi earlier that day.

“What do you mean you don’t know?” Lombardi barked.

“I don’t know if I’m comin’,” replied Kramer, his will starting to bend under Lombardi’s gaze.

“Yer comin’,” Lombardi instructed.

“Five,” a sheepish Kramer answered.

Kramer grew to love Lombardi, after he got over hating him.

“He could be very harsh, cruel, but what seemed cruel in the short run was kindness in the long run. He was extremely hard on young players,” said Kramer.

Lombardi milked every ounce of talent and perspiration from his players. “He could see a gap between where you were and what you could become,” Kramer said. “He felt it was his God-given responsibility to close that gap.”

Kramer’s gap narrowed considerably. Drafted in the fourth round from Idaho, he became a three-time Pro Bowler in his 11 seasons.

By his estimate, he’s been nominated for the Hall of Fame 10 times, including this year. He doubts he’ll make it when the new members are announced on Saturday. “If it finally happens, that’s wonderful,” he said. “If not, I’ve got absolutely nothing to bitch about.”

The Packer mania of today sprouted from the long roots grown during Kramer’s playing days. The Packers were a symbol of pride and accomplishment, drawing legions of adoring fans. Kramer sees the same bond between team and fan today.

“The same basic qualities that we had are there - the poise, the promise, the character, the will, the drive,” he said. “Those are the things made us a good team.”

Kramer illustrated the Packer tradition with a story from the NFC title game two weeks ago.

“I saw Bart (Starr) in the commissioner’s box and I put my hand out,” Kramer said. “He says, ‘Don’t give me a hand,’ and he gives me a big hug. We’re like brothers and time hasn’t changed that at all.”

The 64-year-old Kramer spends his time these days with business interests (a telecommunications company, public speaking, autograph signings and commercials), playing golf and fly-fishing. And rooting on the Packers.

“It’s going to be a pretty good game,” he said. “But the Pack is back and it’s been a long time.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo