What's Happening Blog

On Wednesday, September 8, the Pro Football Hall of Fame will offer a special football seminar, Football 101: Ladies Night at the Hall of Fame. Special guests for the women-only evening of fun and instruction are Hall of Famer Joe DeLamielleure and his wife Gerry. The Hall of Fame husband and wife team will share their unique perspectives as “celebrity instructors” for the informal women-only clinic. Joining Joe and Gerry DeLamielleure will be WHBC sportscasters and radio personalities.

In addition to an entertaining evening of football insight, registrants will be treated to dinner provided by Quaker Steak & Lube.

Tickets for the Football 101: Ladies Night at the Hall of Fame program are $20 and can be purchased online at Profootballhof.com. Doors open at 5 PM with dinner served from 5 until 6:30. The Football 101: Ladies Night at the Hall of Fame program will begin at 6:30 PM. Those in attendance will also have an opportunity to tour the Pro Football Hall of Fame and experience all the recent renovations including the exciting new Super Bowl Theater film presentation Road to the Super Bowl and will be eligible win special door prizes from WHBC and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2010 – Russ Grimm, Rickey Jackson, Dick LeBeau, Floyd Little, John Randle, Jerry Rice, and Emmitt Smith – will be surrounded by greatness on August 7, when they are formally enshrined as the Hall of Fame’s newest members. Already, 80-plus previously elected Hall of Famers will be on stage to salute the 2010 Class of Enshrinees.

“It is truly amazing to see that many all-time greats of the game gathered in one place at the same time,” commented Hall of Fame President/Executive Director Steve Perry. “The Enshrinement Ceremony is truly one of the greatest sports events any fan could ever wish to witness.”

Among those attending this year are Troy Aikman, Bruce Smith, Lynn Swann, Joe Montana, Gale Sayers, Alan Page, Roger Staubach, Art Monk, Dan Marino, Howie Long, Franco Harris, Warren Moon, Joe Greene, Eric Dickerson, Marcus Allen and Steve Young.

The most recent count suggests the San Francisco 49ers will be the most represented team at the Enshrinement Ceremony with nine returning Hall of Famers. The Dallas Cowboys, Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders and Washington Redskins will have seven, while the Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings, and Pittsburgh Steelers will each have six.

Among the returning Hall of Famers are representatives from each of the 10-, 20-, 30- and 40-year Hall of Fame anniversary classes. Attending from the Class of 1970 will be Hugh “The King” McElhenny. Deacon Jones, Bob Lilly and Jim Otto will represent the Class of 1980, while the Class of 1990 will be represented by Bob Griese, Franco Harris, Ted Hendricks, and Bob St. Clair. Every member of the Class of 2000 – Long, Ronnie Lott, Montana, Dan Rooney and Dave Wilcox will also be present. A complete list of returning Hall of Famers can be found at Profootballhof.com.

Enshrinement Ceremony tickets are still available. Sideline tickets ($30) may be purchased online at Profootballhof.com; or by calling (800)-913-9788. A variety of special fan packages are also available.

Guests who visit the Pro Football Hall of Fame can now enjoy a tour of historic Fawcett Stadium. The venue, located directly across the street from the Pro Football Hall of Fame, is home to the annual Enshrinement and the Hall of Fame Game that kicks off each NFL preseason.

Beginning Tuesday, June 1 and continuing throughout the summer, tours of Fawcett Stadium will be offered to Hall of Fame visitors. The tours are included in the price of admission to the Pro Football Hall of Fame at no additional cost.

Guests wishing to tour should gather at Gates 1 & 2 located on Harrison Avenue, the street that runs parallel with I-77. A Hall of Fame volunteer will greet groups and provide a 10-minute presentation on the history of the stadium. Then, fans can walk onto the same field where this summer the Class of 2010 will be enshrined and the Cincinnati Bengals and Dallas Cowboys will open the NFL preseason. Visitors who plan to return to the Hall of Fame should be sure to have their hand stamped prior to leaving the museum for the tour.

The schedule for Fawcett Stadium tours are weather permitting.

Monday-Saturday: On the hour from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Sunday: 2:00 p.m., 3:00 p.m., 4:00 p.m.

*No tours will be offered during the week preceding and the week following the Enshrinement and Game in August.

For more information visit: www.profootballhof.com

Two Hall of Fame offensive linemen, Larry Little and Ron Mix, will be on hand at the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Thursday, February 18 for a special event in conjunction with Black History Month.

The special program focuses on the experiences Little and Mix had on and off the football field during their pro football careers that began during the tumultuous 1960s.

Little and Mix will speak starting at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday evening. The two football legends will not only discuss their Hall of Fame careers but also talk about what life was like for them away from the game. Following their roundtable discussion, the duo will participate in a question-and-answer session with the audience.

Mix, a nine-time All-AFL pick during his career with the Los Angeles/San Diego Chargers from 1960-69 and the 1971 Oakland Raiders, was an integral part of a historic event following the 1964 season. Mix was one of the white players who joined African American players in a boycott of the January 1965 AFL All-Star Game originally slated for New Orleans. The boycott of the game was staged after several African American players were victims of racial discrimination in the city. The boycott forced the game to be moved to Houston and also triggered a number of changes in New Orleans. Mix was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979.

Little, an undrafted rookie out of Bethune-Cookman, a historically black college in Daytona Beach, Florida, signed with the Chargers in 1967. After spending two seasons with San Diego, he was traded to the Miami Dolphins in the summer of 1969. It was in Miami that Little developed into one the preeminent guards in pro football and helped fuel the Dolphins to great success. Although effective as a pass blocker, it was Little’s intimidating style as a pulling guard on running plays for which he became best known. A veteran of three Super Bowls, Little earned All-Pro honors six seasons and named the NFL Players Association’s AFC Offensive Lineman of the Year three times. He was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993.

The cost for the special program is $10 and includes admission to the museum after 5:00 p.m. The Hall of Fame will stay open until 8:00 p.m. on Thursday evening to allow guests time to tour.

Visit Profootballhof.com for more information.