They are some of the most well-known names in modern football history, for various reasons.
Vince Lombardi: really nothing else need be said. The league's championship trophy is named after him -- and that's just for starters.
Dan Devine: Extremely successful college coach -- at Missouri and Notre Dame -- who often gets overlooked because of the Bear Bryants and Bo Schembechlers of the world.
Bart Starr: Hall of Fame quarterback -- the field general of all those great Packers teams in the 1960s.
Forrest Gregg: A key cog of those bruising o-lines during the '60s dynasty.
Mike Holmgren: Quietly has built a case for his own Hall of Fame induction someday, as a coach.
All of the above men have been head coach of the Green Bay Packers. If you look at the list, which is chronological, you'll see that the best of the lot are the top and bottom of a sandwich, which within contains the likes of Devine, Starr, and Gregg.
But wait -- we're forgetting someone.
Ray Rhodes? Well, yes, Rhodes came between Holmgren and Mike Sherman, for one year. But that's not who I'm talking about.
Lindy Infante? You mean the last coach before Holmgren and Brett Favre arrived in the Bay? Well, yes, there was Lindy, but this post isn't about him, either.
I'm talking about Phil Bengston.
You're more than excused for your furrowed brow and your "WHO?"; I understand.
Bengston was Yankees right field after Babe Ruth; Red Wings right wing after Gordie Howe; Bulls shooting guard after Michael Jordan.
But in truth, Bengston was the Packers' coach after Lombardi.
Not a tough act to follow, eh?
The Packers were coming off their third straight NFL championship -- and second straight Super Bowl win -- when Lombardi retired and moved into the GM's chair. For the '68 season, Lombardi announced that Bengston, one of his assistants, would take the helm on the sidelines.
But the Packers were an aging team who maybe didn't accord Bengston the same respect and benefit of doubt that they would have for the coach if Lombardi had stuck around.
Bengston (right) was the luckless Lombardi assistant tabbed to replace the legendary coach in 1968
Bengston was head coach of the Packers from 1968-1970, and in those three years, the team went 20-21-1. In the glory years, it would have taken the Packers seven or eight seasons to lose 21 games; Bengston's teams managed to do it in three. His quiet, low-key style was not only a stark contrast from Lombardi's, but it did nothing to ingratiate the veterans to him, many of whom felt Bengston was in over his head. In 1971, he was replaced by Devine, who came over from Missouri. By '72, Devine had led the Packers into the playoffs, behind a marketing campaign of "The Pack is Back." Devine was also blessed with following Phil Bengston instead of Vince Lombardi.
By the way, Starr and Gregg proved to be far better players than coaches, but then again, that's not unusual in pro sports. So it's not surprising that Lombardi and Holmgren, the top and bottom of that aforementioned coaching sandwich, were highly successful coaches who were nondescript players, for the most part.
Bengston resurfaced as interim coach of the 1972 Patriots -- a far easier act to follow. He died in 1994 at the age of 81.
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