The Green Bay Packers have officially announced that they will be retiring #92 in honor of the late Reggie White who died prematurely in North Carolina on December 26 last year. The ceremony will take place at half-time on September 18 during the Packers first regular season home game versus the Cleveland Browns. Back in September before Reggie’s passing, Green Bay Packer president and CEO Bob Harlan informed him personally that the Packer were planning to retire his number. Unfortunately, Reggie will not be able to enjoy this ceremony. White’s surviving family members are expected to participate in the ceremony in his absence.

This will be only fifth time that a Green Bay Packer number has been retired. The current retired Packer numbers are the following: Tony Canadeo (3), wide receiver Don Hutson (14), quarterback Bart Starr (15) and linebacker Ray Nitschke (66). All these players are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. White is eligible for the Hall of Fame for next year’s 2006 class which will be announced at Super Bowl XL.

For trivia buffs, only the following players have worn the Packer uniform number 92 in Packer league play. These are defensive tackle Rich Dimler (1980); defensive ends Matt Koart (1986) and Ben Thomas (1986), tackle Steve Collier (1987) and nose tackle John Jurkovic (1991-92).

The last time #92 was worn in Lambeau Field was by White when Packers defeated the Tennessee Oilers, 30-22. After the game, Reggie circled the field thanking all the Packer fans for their support. More details on the ceremony can be found in the Packers.com article “Packers To Retire Reggie White's Number Sept. 18.”