Today is the 53rd anniversary of the “Ice Bowl” — the 1967 NFL Championship game. Considered one of the top moments in NFL history, the Green Bay Packers defeated the Dallas Cowboys 21-17 with a Bart Starr QB sneak touchdown with only 13 seconds left to play.
The conditions were less than idea, according to the National Weather Service: “The game was played in brutal cold and windy conditions. The kickoff temperature in Green Bay was -13°F, with a wind chill of 36 below zero. Temperatures were so cold, in fact, that referees had to shout signals so that the metal whistles wouldn't stick to their lips. Even so, nearly 51,000 fans watched the coldest game in league annals.”
We’ve read extensively about the Ice Bowl, and there are varying accounts as to what the wind chill was at its lowest point. From the Packers’ perspective, the cafe under Ariens Hill is named “46 Below,” with this description: “This bistro is named in homage to the Ice Bowl, the legendary 1967 NFL Championship game at Lambeau Field during which the wind chill temperature famously plummeted to 46 below zero.”
Regardless, the game will live forever in NFL lore, but will one day be no longer remembered by the generation which attended it, watched it, listened to it, and read about it at the time. Hopefully, future generations of Packers fans will marvel at what happened that day, and at the ability of fans to watch the game in those conditions without any of the cold weather gear that came about decades later.
For any weather history geeks out there (from the National Weather Service):
— The coldest and longest cold stretch (nine days) during the 1967-1968 winter season began the day of the Ice Bowl. Seven of nine days during that stretch did not exceed 0°F.
— The winter in which the Ice Bowl was played (1967-1968) ranked 2nd all-time for the least snowiest (20.6 inches). The record is 19.2 inches during the winter of 1960-1961.
— The Ice Bowl ranked 1st all-time for the lowest average temperature for any December 31 in Green Bay: -6.5°F for the day.
— The Ice Bowl ranked 1st all-time for the lowest minimum temperature for any December 31 in Green Bay: -19°F reached just before midnight that evening.
— The Ice Bowl ranked 5th all-time for the lowest maximum temperature for any December 31 in Green Bay: +6°F reached at midnight early that morning.
Below are a few video screen captures of crowd scenes just before the game-winning play, from CBS live coverage, of which only a few minutes are know to exist. Networks routinely taped over broadcasts to save money, even if what they taped over was irreplaceable history. The “bottom line” is always the most important thing.
View our 50th Anniversary tribute to the Ice Bowl HERE.
See the 1967 NFL Championship game program HERE.
