Chapter One
Ice
Ed Sabol could not sleep the night before a title game. He and his son Steve had
been working pro football championships for NFL Films since 1962, and every year
he was nervous, as if he had never done this before. Were his cameras in the
right locations? Would there be a dramatic story line? Would the weather create
problems again? By seven on the morning of December 31, 1967, he already had
been awake for two hours, and now he was standing at the window of his hotel
room, staring out into the northern darkness. Friday seemed unforgiving in Green
Bay, with heavy snow and a fierce wind, but on Saturday there was a brilliant
winter sun and the temperature had soared toward thirty. Local forecasters had
predicted more of the same for today's one o'clock game.
The telephone rang. Steve, who had been asleep in the other bed, fumbled for the
receiver.
"Good morning, Mr. Sabol."
The wake-up message came in a gentle singsong voice.
"It is sixteen degrees below zero and the wind is out of the north. Now have a
nice day."
"Dad," Steve said. "You're not going to believe this!"
The same words of disbelief we ... read full excerpt from When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi ebook
