Super Bowl: Where Were You the Last Time Green Bay Went To the Big Game?
The last time Green Bay went to a Super Bowl was in January of 1998. That does not sound like a long time ago, but it is 13 years.
There was no Bowl Championship Series in college football, and only 64 teams went to March Madness.
In 1998, the Detroit Red Wings swept the Washington Capitals to win the Stanley Cup. Scotty Bowman was the coach, and Steve Yzerman was still the captain.
In basketball, the Chicago Bulls beat the Utah Jazz to win the NBA Finals, and the University of Kentucky won their seventh National Championship in NCAA Men's Basketball.
The New York Yankees swept the San Diego Padres to win the World Series.
Do you remember all of this? Do you remember where you were?
I was in eighth grade in my hometown in Michigan. My older brother was a senior, heading in to his second semester when the Packers last went to a Super Bowl.
Here is where all of the projected Packers starters where when John Elway and the Denver Broncos beat the Packers in Super Bowl XXXII.
Quarterback and Running Backs
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Aaron Rodgers was an eighth grader in Chico, Calif. He would go on to attend Pleasant Valley High School in September of 1998. Eventually, Rodgers would attend Butte Community College en route to the University of California-Berkeley.
Brandon Jackson was even younger than Rodgers. He was in sixth grade in Horn Lake, Miss. He would later attend Horn Lake High School, followed by the University of Nebraska.
Korey Hall (projected starter on packers.com), was in seventh grade. He grew up in Glenns Ferry, Idaho. Hall would later attend Boise State and would be drafted by the Packers in 2007, 10 years after they last won a Super Bowl.
Wide Receivers and Tight Ends
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Donald Driver is one of the older players on the Packers squad. He was in his junior year at Alcorn State, an FBS (then I-AA) school. He will be drafted by the Packers in the 1999 draft the next year.
Greg Jennings was a little younger. He was in eighth grade in Kalamazoo, Mich. Jennings would begin high school later this year at Kalamazoo Central, where he would excel in football but also basketball and track.
Andrew Quarless is one of the youngest on the Packers squad. The last time they went to a Super Bowl, he may have just been starting to play football. Quarless was a little fourth grader in Uniondale, N.Y.
New York allows kids to start football as young as six. Quarless would have been about nine.
Offensive Line
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T.J. Lang had barely begun playing football in 1998. In Michigan, youth have to be in third grade to play football. Lang was only a fifth grader in White Lake, Mich.
Josh Sitton was in middle school in Florida. He was actually in sixth grade. Sitton would later attend Catholic High School in Pensacola, Fla. and Central Florida University. On a side note, I wonder how he is adjusting to the cold?
Scott Wells, another older Packer, was actually in high school. He was a sophomore at Brookville (PA) Area High School. Wells would transfer to Brentwood Academy for his junior and senior years. Then, he attended the University of Tennessee.
Daryn Colledge lived in Fairbanks, Alaska in 1998. He was an eighth grader. He would later begin high school at North Pole High School, where he would go on to be a first team all state defensive lineman.
Chad Clifton was playing with another famous quarterback in 1998. At the University of Tennessee, he was in his sophomore season with Peyton Manning at quarterback. The Vols would lose to eventual Co-National Champions Nebraska in the 1998 Orange Bowl, after going 11-1.
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Defensive Line
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Ryan Pickett was a senior at Zephyrhills High School in Florida. He was named one of the top 25 players in the country by the National Recruiting Advisor. Pickett would enroll at Ohio State in the fall of 1998.
B.J. Raji, who scored the most memorable touchdown of the playoffs, was only in sixth grade in Compton, Calif. He would later attend Westwood Regional High School and Boston College.
Cullen Jenkins was wearing orange and black in 1998. He was a junior at Belleville High School in Michigan. Jenkins would later attend Central Michigan and debut for the Packers in 2004.
Linebackers
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Before Clay Matthews became a beast in the NFL, he had to start somewhere. Matthews was in sixth grade in California in 1998. According to his dad, he was a late bloomer and undersized. He later attended USC as a walk-on.
A.J. Hawk was in eighth grade in Centerville, Ohio. He would begin high school at Centerville High School later that year. He currently holds records for most tackles in one game, most tackles in one season, and most tackles in a career.
Desmond Bishop was also in eighth grade, but on the other side of the country in Fairfield, Calif. Later that year, Bishop would start high school at Fairfield High School. He would play in the California North-South Shrine All-Star Game in his senior season.
Erik Walden was living in Georgia attending middle school. He was in seventh grade and would later play at Middle Tennessee State.
Secondary
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Does anyone remember Charles Woodson in 1998? He had just won a share of the National Championship with Michigan after they beat Washington State in the Rose Bowl. Woodson had also just won the Heisman Trophy, becoming the first defensive player to win the award. He would declare eligibility for the draft around the time of the Super Bowl.
Tramon Williams was a freshman at Assumption High School in Louisiana. He would later attend Louisiana Tech University as a walk-on. He later became the starting defensive back. I guess everyone underestimates him, huh?
Charlie Peprah was in eighth grade in Texas. He would attend Alabama and get drafted by the New York Giants. He would make his debut for the Packers in 2006.
Nick Collins was a freshman at Dixie County High School in Cross City, Fla. He played quarterback, running back and defensive back. Collins also lettered in basketball and baseball.
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