20 Sports Collectors Digest / August 16, 2019 http://www.sportscollectorsdigest.com
H
is legendary NFL career spanned more than 30 years
and even now, at age 86, Gil Brandt is still talking foot-
ball and the contributions he’s made to the game.
Brandt worked for the Los Angeles Rams from 1955-57,
then the San Francisco 49ers from 1958-59. He moved to the
Dallas Cowboys in 1960, where he stayed through 1989. Brandt
was the Cowboys’ chief talent scout from the team’s birth in
1960, and along with Tex Schramm and head coach Tom Landry,
they formed the triumvirate which guided the Cowboys for their
fi rst 29 years.
It’s no surprise that, last November he was enshrined in the
Cowboys’ Ring of Honor. And this past February, Brandt learned
he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Class of 2019,
along with Tony Gonzalez, Ed Reed, Champ Bailey, Ty Law,
Kevin Mawae, Pat Bowlen and Johnny Robinson.
Brandt’s autograph, as he signed in early-June at the 33rd
annual TRISTAR Collectors Show in Houston is now: GIL
BRANDT, HOF 2019.
“It was a great pleasure to be here. I’ve never seen a fi rst-
class operation like TRISTAR Productions runs,” Brandt said.
“Adding HOF ’19 to my signature took a little repetition to get
it right.”
Brandt, a Wisconsin native, said the Hall of Fame announce-
ment “hit me more than I ever expected.” He added, “I’m so fl at-
tered to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. I didn’t
realize everything that goes into being inducted.”
During his days in Dallas, Brandt was a part of two Super
Bowl championship teams, fi ve NFC Championships and 13
division championships. Plus, the Cowboys had 20 straight win-
ning seasons from 1966-85.
“I thought we had the greatest bunch of people, really high-
character guys,” said Brandt, fi lled with decades of stories about
countless past Cowboys.
At the TRISTAR show, Brandt and former Cowboy Cornell
Green were signing autographs – and Brandt quickly shared a
Green basketball-related story. He also told of how Green played
for six weeks with his hip pads on backwards.
“There are so many stories, so many memories. We had
smart players, guys with great character,” Brandt said.
Stories included behind-the-scenes reports on the team’s
Super Bow VI win over Miami, 24-3, played Jan. 16, 1972 in
New Orleans.
He also recalled the Ice Bowl, which offi cially was the 1967
National Football League Championship Game, played at Lam-
beau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
The Dallas Cowboys (9–5), champions of the Eastern
Conference, traveled to meet the Western champion Green Bay
Packers (9–4–1) – and the game-time temperature was minus-15
degrees with an average wind-chill around −48.
Lambeau Field’s turf-heating system malfunctioned, and
when the tarpaulin was removed from the fi eld before the game,
it left moisture on the fi eld. The fi eld began to freeze gradually
in the extreme cold, leaving an icy surface that became worse as
more and more of the fi eld fell into the shadow of the stadium.
“The Ice Bowl was unbelievable,” Brandt said. “The day
before the game, it was about 30 degrees; it was beautiful.
“The next day, it was 15-below-zero.”
The morning of the game, at the team’s hotel in Appleton,
Wisconsin, Brandt spoke with some bus drivers, each wearing
super-sized boots to stay warm.
Brandt asked where they bought the boots, but was told the
store was closed on Sundays.
So he asked if anyone had a size-12. He asked to wear them
at the game, and paid $25 for the boots.
“It’s so important that we know the history of the game of
HOF evaluator
Gil Brandt turned evaluating NFL
talent into a Hall of Fame career
byRossForman
Football HOF
Since being elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Gil Brandt has added
“HOF 19” to his autograph.