Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame Inducts Vince Lombardi

Nov. 4, 1976 – Six years after his death, Vince Lombardi is inducted into the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame at a banquet attended by about 800 at the Arena in Milwaukee. His widow, Marie, flies in from West Palm Beach to accept Vince’s plaque. “When he was very ill, he said to me in his frustration that he wanted to go back to Green Bay,” Marie says. “We’ve come full circle. Now he’s back home where he truly belongs. For that I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.” Also inducted are Pat Harder, who starred in football at the University of Wisconsin before going on to a pro career with the Cardinals and Lions, and Eddie Matthews, who helped the Milwaukee Braves win the World Series in 1957.