Bryan Bartlett Starr was an American professional football quarterback and head coach for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League.
55 Facts About Bart Starr
2.
Bart Starr played college football at the University of Alabama, and was selected by the Packers in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, where he played for them for 16 seasons until 1971.
3.
Bart Starr led his team to victories in the first two Super Bowls: I and II.
4.
Bart Starr was named the Most Valuable Player of the first two Super Bowls and during his career earned four Pro Bowl selections.
5.
Bart Starr was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Packers Hall of Fame in 1977.
6.
Bart Starr has the 2nd highest postseason passer rating after Patrick Mahomes.
7.
Bart Starr's career completion percentage of 57.4 was an NFL best when he retired in 1972.
8.
For 32 years, Bart Starr held the Packers' franchise record for games played.
9.
Bart Starr was first in the US Army but transferred to the US Air Force for his military career.
10.
Bart Starr was an introverted child who rarely showed his emotions and his father pushed Starr to develop more of a mean streak.
11.
Bart Starr attended Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, and tried out for the football team in his sophomore year, but decided to quit after two weeks.
12.
Bart Starr's father gave him the option of playing football or working in the family garden; Starr chose to return to the football field.
13.
Bart Starr seriously considered the University of Kentucky, coached by Bear Bryant.
14.
Bart Starr changed his mind and committed to the University of Alabama.
15.
Bart Starr did not start for Alabama as a freshman, but he did play enough minutes to earn a varsity letter.
16.
Bart Starr entered his sophomore year as Alabama's starting quarterback, safety and punter.
17.
Bart Starr's punting average of 41.4 yards per kick ranked second in the nation in 1953, behind Zeke Bratkowski.
18.
Bart Starr completed 59 of 119 passes for 870 yards, with eight touchdowns that season.
19.
Cherry remained in Jackson, Alabama, while Bart Starr returned to the University of Alabama.
20.
That summer, Bart Starr suffered a severe back injury during a hazing incident for his initiation into the A Club.
21.
Bart Starr covered up the cause by fabricating a story about being hurt while punting a football.
22.
Bart Starr rarely played during his junior year due to the injury.
23.
Supposedly healed from the back injury, Bart Starr rarely played in his senior season.
24.
The Packers were convinced that Bart Starr had the ability to succeed in the NFL and would learn quickly.
25.
Bart Starr spent the summer of 1956 living with his in-laws and throwing footballs through a tire in their backyard in order to prepare for his rookie season.
26.
Bart Starr began as a backup to Tobin Rote in 1956 and split time with Babe Parilli until 1959, Vince Lombardi's first year as Packers coach.
27.
In 1963, the Packers fell short of qualifying for their fourth consecutive NFL Championship Game appearance, with injuries to Bart Starr keeping him from finishing a few games.
28.
In 1964, with Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung struggling to continue their strong running game, Bart Starr started to become more of the focus of the Packers' offensive attack.
29.
Bart Starr led the league with a 97.1 passer rating.
30.
Bart Starr came back and started the 1965 NFL Championship Game against the Cleveland Browns.
31.
Bart Starr threw for only 147 yards, but that included a 47-yard touchdown pass to Carroll Dale.
32.
In 1966, Bart Starr had arguably the best season of his career, throwing for 2,257 yards, 14 touchdown passes, and only 3 interceptions.
33.
Bart Starr was named the first-ever Super Bowl MVP for his performance.
34.
Bothered by a hand injury for much of the season, Bart Starr threw for only 1,823 yards and 9 touchdowns, with a career-high 17 interceptions thrown.
35.
Bart Starr won his second consecutive Super Bowl MVP award for his performance, where he threw for 202 yards and a touchdown pass, a 62-yard strike to Boyd Dowler.
36.
Bart Starr had originally planned to retire after the second Super Bowl win in January 1968, but without a clear successor and a new head coach, he stayed on.
37.
Bart Starr threw for 15 touchdown passes in 1968, leading the NFL in completion percentage and passer rating.
38.
Bart Starr struggled to stay healthy again in 1969, but still led the league with a 62.2 completion percentage and an 89.9 passer rating, but only threw for 9 touchdowns and 1,161 yards.
39.
Bart Starr was able to stay healthy for most of the entire 1970 season, but his age was showing, throwing for only 1,645 yards and 8 touchdowns, the last touchdown passes of his career.
40.
Bart Starr announced his retirement in July 1972 at age 38.
41.
Bart Starr's playing career ended with the 1971 season, having posted the second-best career passer rating of 80.5.
42.
Bart Starr pursued business interests and was then a broadcaster for CBS for two seasons.
43.
When Devine left for Notre Dame after the 1974 season, Bart Starr was hired as head coach of the Packers on Christmas Eve.
44.
Bart Starr tallied only three other non-losing seasons as Packers coach.
45.
On January 13,1984, Bart Starr was named the head coach of the Arizona Firebirds, a proposed expansion team for the NFL in Phoenix.
46.
Bart Starr was voted NFL Most Valuable Player by both AP and UPI in 1966, and was chosen Super Bowl MVP in 1966 and 1967.
47.
Bart Starr was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977.
48.
Bart Starr is one of six Green Bay Packers to have had his number retired by the team.
49.
In 1973, Bart Starr received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.
50.
Bart Starr was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981.
51.
Bart Starr even donated the Corvette he received as MVP of Super Bowl II to help Rawhide during their early years.
52.
Bart Starr was affiliated with Rawhide Boys Ranch until his death.
53.
In June 2015, Bart Starr's family reported that he was undergoing stem-cell therapy in a clinical trial.
54.
Bart Starr managed to attend a ceremony at Lambeau Field on November 26,2015 retiring QB Brett Favre's jersey number, and a fall 2017 reunion of the Ice Bowl Packers.
55.
Bart Starr died at the age of 85 on Sunday, May 26,2019, in Birmingham, Alabama after a period of failing health caused by a serious stroke he suffered in 2014.