John Elway, Ring of Fame Plaza, Mile High Stadium - Denver, CO
Posted by: 
Outspoken1
N 39° 44.553 W 105° 01.224
13S E 498252 N 4399183
This pillar honors John Elway, quarterback of the Denver Broncos [American] Football team, as part of a memorial plaza that honors former Bronco players/staff/owners and who have lead the team to victories.
Waymark Code: WMJ676
Location: Colorado, United States
Date Posted: 09/30/2013
Views: 3
The pillar honoring John Elway stand about 8' (2.43 m) tall and is made of sheet steel that has been allowed to rust. The 3D head is cast of bronze, as well as the players former number and plaque explaining their contributions to the Broncos and [American] Football. The pillars are illuminated at night. As I am a Denver native, I have followed the Broncos all of my life -- from the laughing stock of the league with the ugly brown and mustard yellow uniforms to the blue and orange who have won several Superbowl's (though not lately!).
"Each bronze likeness of the players was sculpted by Brian Hanlon, a classically trained master sculptor who has sculpted more than 200 public art pieces. He also explained a unique feature of the base of each pillar.
"The pillars are constructed in corten steel, which was the material your original building (Mile High Stadium) was made out of, and that's why it was so loud," Hanlon said. "So the design was amazingly creative that the architect and the designer came up with the idea that they should be this material that intimidated so many other teams."" (from (
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John Elway --
"John Albert Elway, Jr. (born June 28, 1960) is a former American football quarterback and is now the executive vice president of football operations for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Stanford and his entire professional career with the Denver Broncos. Elway recorded the most victories by a starting quarterback at the time of his retirement. He retired in 1999 and statistically was the second most prolific passer in NFL history. Elway led his teams to six AFC Championship Games and five Super Bowls, winning his last two.
Elway set several career records for passing attempts and completions while at Stanford. He also received All-American honors. Elway was drafted #1 overall in the 1983 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Colts before being traded to the Denver Broncos. In 1987, he embarked on what is considered to be one of the most clutch and iconic performances in sports and in NFL history, helping engineer the Broncos on a 98-yard, game-tying touchdown drive in the AFC Championship Game against the Cleveland Browns. The moment is known in National Football League lore as "The Drive". Following the AFC Championship Game, Elway and the Broncos lost in Super Bowl XXI to the New York Giants. It would be the first of a record five Super Bowl starts at quarterback in Elway's career, a record that he solely held until 2012 when Tom Brady earned his fifth Super Bowl start.
After two more Super Bowl losses, the Broncos entered a period of decline; however, that would end during the 1997 season, as Elway and Denver won their first Super Bowl title by defeating the Green Bay Packers 31–24 in Super Bowl XXXII. The Broncos repeated as champions the following season in Super Bowl XXXIII by defeating the Atlanta Falcons 34–19. Elway was voted MVP of that Super Bowl, which would prove to be the last game of his career.
Elway was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2004 in his first year of eligibility. {http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.aspx?PlayerId=64&tab=Speech for his acceptance speech] Since his retirement, Elway has owned several businesses, including being a co-owner of the inactive Colorado Crush, an arena football team." (from (
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Elway is now part owner of the Denver Broncos and was mainly responsible for convincing Peyton Manning to sign with the Broncos.