John Dorsey

According to Pro Football Reference, John Dorsey turns 61 today, although Wikipedia lists his birthday as occurring yesterday. In any case, the 6’2” 240-pound former linebacker has spent nearly 40 years in pro football since being drafted by the Packers in the fourth round out of Connecticut, where he was a Little All-America.

The hard-nosed Dorsey found a natural ally in new head coach Forrest Gregg and set a team record for special teams tackles as a rookie with 35. In six seasons in Green Bay, Dorsey appeared in all 76 non-replacement games and started nine in 1986 and six in ’88. An injury sidelined him in 1989, and he never made it back on the field.

The Packers hired Dorsey as a scout in 1991, and he was named Director of College Scouting in 1997. John jumped to Seattle with Mike Holmgren in 1999 but returned to Green Bay a year later. He continued to helm the College Scouting department through 2012 when Ted Thompson made him head of Football Operations.

Dorsey departed a year later to become GM for the Chiefs and helped build up a championship roster over four seasons before being fired. After being out of the game for a year, he returned as the Cleveland Browns GM in 2018, but was fired after just two seasons. The abrasive Dorsey has been described as someone who “wears on people,” but his skill at finding talent is undeniable.

Dorsey once recalled his apprenticeship under Ron Wolf, “We learned decisiveness. We learned how to build a team, how to work with coaches, how to build a draft board, how to make hard decisions. We learned how to make the pieces work, and if they didn’t, how to find a solution to whatever lies ahead.”

Dorsey spent 2020 as a front office consultant for the Eagles, and this year returns to the NFC North as a Senior Personnel Executive in Detroit.

All custom cards except for rookie one are colorized.

Vai Sikahema

The first NFL player from Tonga, Vai Sikahema, was born on August 29, 1962 in that small Polynesian nation. He was raised a Mormon, and his family emigrated to Mesa, Arizona when he was seven. After starring at Mesa High, Vai enrolled at Brigham Young in 1980. He spent 1982 and’83 on a church mission in South Dakota before finishing his college years in ’84 and ’85.

The St. Louis Cardinals drafted him in the tenth round in 1986, and the 5’9” 190-pounder made the Pro Bowl as a rookie return man. When the Cardinals moved to Arizona in 1987, Sikahema returned home. In his second season, he not only went to the Pro Bowl again but was named All-Pro, too. In his first two seasons, Sikahema led the league in punt return yards with 522 and 550 respectively and scored three times.

After five seasons with the Cards, Sikahema signed with the Packers as a Plan B free agent in 1991 and averaged 9.2 yards per punt return and 21.7 per kickoff return in his one season in Green Bay. He then signed with the Eagles in 1992 and spent two seasons in Philadelphia, the highlight being his fourth punt return TD, 87 yards against the Giants in ‘92, which he punctuated by punching out the padding on the goal post in a memorable video highlight.

Upon retirement in 1994, Sikahema began a 26-year career as a local sportscaster in the Philadelphia area. He retired in 2020. Overall, he averaged 10.9 yards per punt return and 21 yards per kickoff return.

Custom card in Topps style.

A Card for Everyone: Zud Schammel

Francis William “Zud” Schammel was born on August 26, 1910 in Waterloo, Iowa. Although he starred as a fullback in high school, he was converted first to tackle and then guard at the University of Iowa. As a 6’2” 235-pound senior, Schammel was named All-America at guard and then played in the East-West Shrine game, where one of his teammates was Oregon State tackle Ade Schwammel, destined for the Packers. Zud, however, stayed at Iowa for the next three years as an assistant coach for the Hawkeyes before signing with Curly Lambeau in July 1937, by which time Ade Schwammel had retired, so Packer fans never got to see Schammel and Schwammel side by side.

Zud appeared in eight games for the Packers in ’37. He even scored a touchdown on a five-yard lateral following an interception by Milt Gantenbein on October 24 against the Rams. Two days later, Lambeau traded him to Brooklyn for tackle Bill Lee, but Schammel refused to report to the Dodgers, so Curly substituted rookie tackle Av Daniel instead on the 29^th.

Zud re-signed with Green Bay in 1938, but did not make the team and never played in the NFL again. He did serve as a referee for the league in 1940 and also officiated both football and basketball games in the Big 10 in the early 1940s. He later moved to Arizona and operated his own cement company. He died in Phoenix at age 62 on January 11, 1973, survived by his wife, two children and one grandchild. He was inducted into the University of Iowa Hall of Fame in 2003.

Custom card is colorized.

A Look Back at 2003

Green Bay won another Central Division crown in 2003, but the team struggled until winning its last four games to reach the playoffs with a 10-6 record. One of those being the stirring performance by Favre against the Raiders just days after the passing of his father. They scored 442 points (fourth) and gave up 307 (11^th) and were 5-3 both at home and on the road. They went 7-2 against losing teams, but just 3-4 against winners.

The playoffs were a classic good news/bad news split. Green Bay won a thrilling overtime battle with Seattle in Lambeau Field on Al Harris’ pick six to open the postseason. However, a week later in Philadelphia, the Packers gave away a victory by allowing the Eagles to tie the game after completing a fourth and 26 pass to forgettable Freddie Mitchell in the closing minutes. In overtime, Favre tossed up a pop fly interception that led to the Eagles’ winning field goal.

Favre started all games and completed 65.4% of his passes for 3,361 yards, 32 touchdowns and 21 interceptions, averaging 7.1 yards per pass. Backup Doug Pederson completed both his passes for 16 total yards.

Ahman Green set a franchise record by gaining 1,883 yards rushing and ran for 15 scores, while also catching 50 passes for five TDs. One of those touchdowns was a 98-yard run against the Broncos in the season finale.

Donald Driver again paced the receivers with 52 catches, although deep threat Javon Walker led in receiving yards with 716 on 41 catches. Robert Ferguson added 38 catches, and Bubba Frank dropped to an 8-yard average gain on his 30 catches. Green and Ryan Longwell each scored 120 points.

On defense, Darren Sharper had five interceptions, Mike McKenzie had four. KGB netted 10 sacks and Cletidus Hunt added four. Marco Rivera was a second team All-Pro. He, Favre, Green, Franks, KGB and Mike Flanagan all made the Pro Bowl. Top draft pick Nick Barnett proved to be a good choice, but the rest of the draft was barren, heralding Mike Sherman’s downfall. In one bit of good news, James Lofton was elected to the Hall of Fame.

Custom cards in 1960 Bazooka baseball style.

A Look Back at 2002

Green Bay repeated its 12-4 record from 2001 in 2002, scoring 398 points (sixth) and giving up 328 (12^th) as the defense slipped a bit. The Packers did win the Central Division, though, going 8-0 at home, 4-4 on the road, 7-1 against losers and 5-3 against winning teams. The team started the season 8-1 but drifted into the playoffs with a 4-3 closing march that included a 42-17 loss in the finale that cost Green Bay the first seed.

Ultimately, the seeding wouldn’t have made any difference. In the first round in snowy Lambeau Field, the Packers were shellacked 27-7 by Michael Vick and the Atlanta Falcons. It was the first time in franchise history that the team lost a home playoff game.

Once again, Favre started all games. He completed 61.9% of his passes for 3,658 yards, 27 touchdowns and 16 interceptions, but his yards per pass figure dropped a full yard to 6.6. Backup quarterback Doug Pederson completed 19 of 28 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown.

Ahman Green paced the rushing attack with 1,240 yards and seven touchdowns, and he also grabbed 57 passes for two more scores. Both Bill Schroeder and Antonio Freeman were gone, replaced by Donald Driver and Terry Glenn. Driver, in his fourth season, caught 70 balls for 1,064 yards and nine touchdowns. Glenn, acquired via trade, caught 56 passes for 817 yards and two TDs. Tight end Bubba Franks averaged just 8.2 yards on his 54 receptions but did score seven times. Ryan Longwell led in points with 128.

On defense, Darren Sharper stole seven passes and rookie Marquess Anderson nabbed four. KGB took down 12 quarterbacks. Vonnie Holiday added 6 sacks and Cletidus Hunt 5.5. Sharper was named All-Pro and Favre to the second team. Favre, Green, Sharper, Franks, Driver and guard Marco Rivera all were picked for the Pro Bowl. Top draft pick Javon Walker did not show much as a rookie, but fifth rounder Aaron Kampman would prove to be a find.

Custom cards in 1952 Topps baseball style.

David Beverly

Today is punter David Beverly’s 71^st birthday. Beverly still holds the team marks for most punts (495) and yards (18,785), although he averaged just 37.9 yards per punt with a net of a mere 34.4. He had just two punts blocked, though.

He was born in Selma, Alabama and played quarterback in high school before an injury caused him to miss his senior season. At 6’3” and 195 pounds, he joined the Auburn squad as a walk-on and that propelled him to the NFL where he began his career in 1974 for the Oilers. Two games into the 1975 season, Houston gave the punting job back to starting quarterback Dan Pastorini, and Beverly was released. Fortunately for him, the Packers were engaged in the disastrous four-game Steve Broussard experience.

Rookie coach Bart Starr brought in Beverly in game five, and he kept the job for the next six seasons. In that time, David racked up three of the top four seasons in franchise history for number of punts: 106 in 1978, 86 in 1980 and 85 in 1977. In that time, he completed four of six passes for 129 yards and ran the ball nine times for 18 yards, either as punter or holder on fakes. When Starr drafted Ray Stachowicz in the third round in 1981, Beverly asked for his release and got it. That ended his pro career.

Second and third custom cards are colorized.

A Look Back at 2001

Ron Wolf’s final draft was not a good one. He traded Matt Hasselbeck and the 17^th overall pick to move up to the tenth slot in round one to snag Florida State defensive end Jamal Reynolds. Unfortunately, Reynolds was beaten out by 2000 fifth round pick Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila (KGB) and would appear in just 18 games over three seasons in Green Bay. Other notable 2001 selections–Robert Ferguson, Bhawoh Jue and Torrance Marshall–never developed either and the team would feel those misses over time.

Still, 2001 was a strong season, highlighted by Air Force vet Chris Gizzi leading the team on the field carrying the American flag in the first game after 9/11. The Pack finished 12-4, one game behind the Bears whom they beat twice. They scored 390 points (fifth) and gave up 266 (fifth). They were 7-1 at home and 5-3 on the road, 7-3 against losing teams and 5-1 against the rest. They won six of their last seven games and won their Wild Card game over the 49ers at home 25-15. However, in the divisional round against the Rams, Brett Favre tied a playoff record held by Bobby Layne and Norm Van Brocklin by tossing six interceptions, and the team was crushed 45-17.

Favre started all games and threw all the team’s passes, completing 61.6% of them for 3,921 yards, 32 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, averaging 7.7 yards per attempt. He relied heavily on runner Ahman Green, who gained 1,387 yards on the ground, caught 62 passes and scored 11 touchdowns.

With Green leading the team in both rushing and receptions, wideouts Bill Schroeder and Antonio Freeman chipped in with 53 catches and nine touchdowns and 52 catches and six scores respectively. Tight end Bubba Franks caught 36 passes for nine TDs but averaged just 8.9 yards per catch. Returner Allen Rossum added a punt return TD, and Ryan Longwell led in points with 104.

On defense, Darren Sharper snared six interceptions and Tyrone Williams four, while KGB recorded 13.5 sacks and Vonnie Holiday seven.

Favre and Green were both second team All-Pros, and they and Franks were selected for the Pro Bowl. Notably, this was the first season that the offensive line group of Chad Clifton, Mike Wahle, Mike Flanagan, Marco Rivera and Mark Tauscher were all together, and that starting five would be a highlight of the Packer squads in the early years of the new millennium.

Custom cards in Topps Baseball style.

Joe Spencer

Born on August 15, 1923 in Cleveland County, Oklahoma, two-way tackle Joe Spencer had a long life in football. He attended Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State), and the connections he made there and other places kept him employed as an assistant coach for 25 years. Spencer’s time at A&M was interrupted in 1943 by World War II, and he spent three years in the Army before returning to college in 1946.

Although the Eagles drafted Spencer in the 19^th round in 1945, he signed with Brooklyn of the All-America Conference in 1948 and played in 13 games for the Dodgers. One season later, he was set free and signed with the Browns. He appeared in 11 games as a reserve for the champion Browns in ’49 before being dealt to Green Bay in 1950.

The Packers gave up rookie end Gordie Soltau to obtain the 6’3” 240-pound Spencer, although the Browns then sent Soltau on to San Francisco where he starred for a decade as an end and kicker. Spencer helped shore up both the offensive and defensive lines for the Packers in 1950, starting all 12 games, intercepting a pass and recovering two fumbles. He started seven games in ’51 and injured his knee during training camp in 1952.

Spencer began his long coaching career as an assistant at Austin College in 1953 and was named head coach there in 1955. In 1961, former Brown teammate Lou Rymkus tapped Spencer to coach the offensive line for the Houston Oilers. Rymkus was gone four games into the season, but Spencer stayed on through 1965, under four more head coaches.

Former A&M teammate Neill Armstrong brought Joe to Edmonton in 1966 to coach the Eskimos line for two seasons. In 1968, Weeb Ewbank, who knew Joe from the Browns, hired Spencer to replace Chuck Knox as the Jets’ line coach for their Super Bowl season.

Spencer left New York for the Cardinals in 1971 and then spent two seasons as an assistant at the University of Kansas. He returned to the pro game in 1974 with the Chicago Fire of the World Football League under head coach Jim Spavital, another A&M teammate. When the Fire folded in 1975, Joe found work as the O-Line coach for Kansas City and stuck around for six seasons and three head coaches. In 1981, he joined the staff of Bum Phillips in New Orleans for the last five years of his coaching career.

Joe died of cancer on October 24, 1996 at age 73 in Houston. He was survived by his wife and two sons. A year later the Austin College Alumni Association created the Coach Joe Spencer Award for Meritorious Service and Lifetime Achievement in Coaching to be given annually to a coach who has had an association with the college in some way and who possesses consistent evidence of a successful career in the coaching profession.

Custom cards are colorized.

A Card for Everyone: Charlie Ane

Charlie Ane the third was born on August 12, 1952 in Los Angeles when his father, Charlie Ane Jr. was a senior at USC before being picked in the fourth round of the 1953 draft by Detroit. The elder Ane played center and tackle for the Lions through 1959 and was selected for the Pro Bowl twice. He later returned to his native Hawaii and worked as football coach at five high schools, including as a head coach at two.

The younger Ane attended Michigan State and then signed as an undrafted free agent with Kansas City in 1975. He played with the Chiefs for six seasons, never missing a game. Although he was a center who started three times, he was primarily a long snapper. After being cut by the Chiefs in 1981, that’s what he signed with the Packers as for his final NFL season.

Having someone other than the regular center do the long snapping has a long history. It was generally done by another position player for many years. For example, linebacker Bobby Bell performed the task in Kansas City for many seasons. Some credit George Burman with being the first full-time long snapper in 1971. Burman had been a backup lineman who also did long-snapping with the Bears and Rams, when George Allen traded for him upon joining the Redskins in ’71. Allen talked Burman out of retirement by promising that his entire job would be long snapping.

So the younger Ane was fairly early to the role when he joined the Packers. After retiring. Charlie the third, now known as Kale Ane, also returned to the islands. Eventually he became the head coach at the Ponahou School in Honolulu where both he and his father had gone to high school. In fact, for the first few years, Charlie Jr. was Kale’s assistant there. Charlie Jr. died in 2007, but Kale coached and served as athletic director there for over 20 years, racking up 149 wins and two state championships. This year he left Ponahou to take on the coaching job at McKinley High at age 69.

Custom card is colorized.

Tommy Joe

Happy go lucky country boy Tommy Joe Crutcher was born on August 10, 1941 in McKinney, Texas, the ninth of 14 children, and grew up working on his family farm with his siblings. At McKinney High, he played fullback and linebacker and helped lead the team to the state semifinals as a junior. After an injury-plagued senior year, Tommy enrolled at Texas Christian where he would star on offense and defense. He gained over 1,500 yards rushing at TCU and was named All Southwest Conference as a senior in 1963, even drawing some All-America notice.

Vince Lombardi selected Crutcher in the third round in 1964. Originally tried as a linebacker, Tommy was shifted to fullback in September with the Packers awash in young linebackers: fellow rookie Gene Breen, fellow Texan and first-year Packer Lee Roy Caffey and second-year man Dave Robinson. When Robinson was injured in October, though, Crutcher was switched back to defense as the fourth linebacker. On November 29, Tommy got to play some offense in mop up duty against the Cowboys, recording his one NFL carry for a five-yard gain.

Crutcher switched from number 37 to 56 in 1965 and returned to defense. He even got to start six games, four in relief of an injured Caffey and two when Ray Nitschke was banged up, and was seen as someone good enough to start at linebacker for many teams. He provided valuable depth for the three-peat Packers through 1967, and his sunny personality, replete with colorful country sayings and his own clever nicknames for many of his teammates, made him a great team player.

The Packers traded him and tackle Steve Wright to the Giants in 1968 for tackle Francis Peay, so Tommy got his chance to start at last. He played strongside linebacker in ’68 and weakside in ’69 and then was traded to the Rams in 1970 for two draft picks. He spent that season on Injured Reserve before the Rams packaged him with their fourth-round pick back to Green Bay for the Packers’ fourth rounder in 1971.

Crutcher spent two more seasons as a backup linebacker in Green Bay before retiring to the 25,000-acre farm he had accumulated by investing his championship game shares from the 1960s. In 1987, Bob Greene wrote a humorous column about Tommy in the Chicago Tribune, relating the story of a missing Super Bowl ring. It seems that Crutcher’s ring from Super Bowl I disappeared one night after he brought three women back to his hotel room with him. Since two of those women were married, he chose not to report the theft, but instead purchased a replica from the original ring company for $700. Years later, the ring turned up, with the possessor hoping to sell it. Greene acted as the intermediary and told Crutcher that the man had been offered $18,000. Tommy laughed and told Greene, “Hell, I’m nostalgic, but I ain’t $18,000 worth of nostalgic.”

When Crutcher died at age 60 on February 16, 2002, Packer spokesman Lee Remmel recalled, “He was a tough, hard-nosed football player in the Texas tradition. He played with a great love for the game and always had a smile on his face.” He was survived by several of his brothers and sisters.

First four custom cards are colorized.