Two years after he co-founded the Packers with Curly Lambeau, George Calhoun began writing a piece called The Dope Sheet, which served as the official press release and game program from 1921-24.
Honoring Calhoun, the first publicity director, the Packers are running this weekly feature as their release, which is being made available to fans exclusively on Packers.com.
A complete edition of the Dope Sheet will be available each week during the season in PDF format, located in the Packers.com Game Centers.
Here are some highlights from the Preseason Week 1 Dope Sheet:
IN 2003: Green Bay won the two meetings, both at Lambeau Field, a 35-13 victory Oct. 5 and a 33-27 triumph in overtime, Jan. 4, in the Wild Card playoffs.
- Game 1 saw Ahman Green rush for 118 yards and two TDs in his first meeting with the team and coach (Mike Holmgren) who traded him before the 2000 season. Brett Favre added two TD passes, and Green Bay's defense shut out Seattle in the second half.
*Al Harris ended the second meeting on a sudden-death 52-yard interception return, the first time a defensive TD decided an NFL overtime playoff. Shaun Alexander (three) and Green (two) combined for five rushing TDs.
ANOTHER TRADITION: One of countless Packers traditions, Monday marks the annual Bishop's Charities Game (along with the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption). Monday is the 44th contest in the series.
*In 1961, the Diocese of Green Bay approached Vince Lombardi about playing a second charitable contest in Green Bay (the Shrine game was already a fixture in Milwaukee).
*Lombardi, a devout Catholic, agreed to the contest. The original contract gave the Packers, their opponent and the church each one-third of the gate receipts.
*During the 1970s, the Packers and the church changed the contract so the Diocese would receive a flat donation, rather than a percentage.
*For more than 30 years, the church handled much of the game's business-related tasks, including the game program and advertising sales, using a network of volunteers covering 14 Northeastern Wisconsin counties. The Packers assumed many of those tasks beginning in 1994.
*To date, the series has raised more than $2.8 million.
*In 2003, the game took on a successful and rewarding relationship with the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. Launched in 1992, the entity is a non-profit public charity dedicated to increasing the adoptions of the more than 150,000 children in North America's public foster care system. The late Dave Thomas, an adopted child himself, created the foundation in support of the vision that every child deserves a permanent home and a loving family.
*Last season, Tennessee snapped the Packers' 12-year winning streak. Green Bay's last loss in a Bishop's game was 1990. The 2003 contest resumed after a two-hour, 33-minute rain delay.
*Overall in the series, the Packers are 24-18-1.
IN GREEN BAY, EVEN SCRIMMAGES SELL OUT: The Packers Saturday night drew a sellout, what could be the largest crowd ever to see an NFL scrimmage. Turnstile count was 60,217 for the annual intrasquad scrimmage, 'Family Night, presented by FOX 11.'
*The team sold every available seat, about 58,000 tickets, and distributed the balance to premium seat holders as part of their season-ticket packages, and also gave more than 1,200 to Wisconsin Boys & Girls Clubs.
*One year ago, the Cleveland Browns hosted the Buffalo Bills in a preseason scrimmage and drew 37,818.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PACKERS: This week marks the 85th anniversary of the team's inception. On Aug. 11, 1919, a score or more husky young athletes, called together by Curly Lambeau and George Calhoun, gathered in the dingy editorial room of the old Green Bay Press-Gazette building on Cherry Street and organized a football team. They didn't know it, but that was the beginning of the incredible saga of the Green Bay Packers. Lambeau and Calhoun struck the initial spark a few weeks before, during a casual street-corner conversation. It was apparently a "Why not get up a football team?" remark, but once they were interested they wasted no time.
