Joe Namath jersey
In the summer of 1967, George Veras was a ball boy for the New York Jets at the Hofstra University summer training camp. Among his duties was handing out jerseys, under the direction of equipment manager Bill Hampton, Sr.. Hampton’s two sons, Clay and Drew, are equipment managers today for the Jets and the Jacksonville Jaguars respectively.
Veras got his job as ball boy through his uncle, Jets team orthopedic Dr. James A Nicholas, who had operated on Namath's knees and was the co-inventor of the Lenox Hill De-rotation knee brace with Jack Castiglia.
At the end of the summer, Hampton gave Veras the jersey worn by Namath during that camp. The treasured piece has since survived eight house moves and a journey of 35 years in New York and back now in Cleveland, where Veras is President/CEO of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enterprises.
Veras donated the jersey to the Hall of Fame in 2009.
More from Profootballhof.com
Joe Namath HOF Bio
Team history: New York Jets
4,000-yard passers
The Drafting of the '09 Class - Bob Hayes
This is the third of a series of articles that examines the circumstances surrounding the draft selection of the five players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2009.<p>Bob Hayes had world class speed as a gold-medal winning track star in the '64 Olympics. Yet, some football experts didn't think he could succeed in the NFL. The Dallas Cowboys thought differently.
The Drafting of the '09 Class - Rod Woodson
Rod Woodson was the first defensive back selected in the 1987 NFL Draft. This is the second of a series of articles that examines the circumstances surrounding the draft selection of the five players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2009.