INDIANAPOLIS – It’s always been a vote of one.
Pete Ward always came up with a short list of candidates to be considered, but in the end, Jim Irsay’s was the only voice that mattered when the discussion turned to the Indianapolis Colts’ Ring of Honor.
A voice of one.
“He got the final say,’’ Ward said.
Now, that voice has been silenced. Irsay, 65, passed away May 21.
He never talked openly about whether one day his name would be placed on the Lucas Oil Stadium façade along with his late father, Robert, Peyton Manning, Marvin Harrison, Edgerrin James, Reggie Wayne, Dwight Freeney and 13 other inductees.
But that day will come Sunday when the Colts – his Colts – honor their long-time owner/steward.
It was one of those “of course’’ decisions.
“I think it was the daughters and several of us together,’’ said Ward, Irsay’s close friend and right-hand man within the organization for 40-plus years. “It wasn’t necessarily anybody’s idea. It was just going to happen.’’
Sunday’s season opener against the Miami Dolphins at Lucas Oil Stadium will include a moment of silence and a halftime ceremony that Irsay always emceed. He was as player-friendly as his position as boss would allow and never grew tired of rekindling relationships with players instrumental in shaping the history of his franchise.
“He bleeds blue,’’ Freeney once said.
“Jim Irsay is the man,’’ James insisted.
The list of former players who will share the moment, led by Ring of Honor members, is long. That’s been the case whenever another individual is added – Dallas Clark last year, Tarik Glenn in 2022, Robert Mathis in ’21 – and Sunday’s gathering should be especially strong and emotional when the man who began the tradition Sept. 23, 1996, with the induction of his father joins the exclusive group.
No one should ever question Irsay’s commitment to the Colts.
“His greatest love beyond his family was having the blessing to be a steward for the Indianapolis Colts,’’ Carlie Irsay-Gordon said in June.
“You could look at it back in the ‘80s, when we came here. Our dad was able to be a part of bringing football to this state, and what it has done is incredible,” Kalen Jackson added. “And what a cool thing to see . . . We hope to continue that legacy, in that sense, continue to be the people that are able to grow this amazing city.’’
The depth of the sisters’ appreciation for so much of what Jim Irsay stood for is easy to see.
“We all have the same Horseshoe tattoo, which my dad had as well,’’ Casey Foyt said. “It was more than just a symbol of loyalty, hard work and compassion. What it meant to him, he ingrained that in all of us.’’
It will be on full display on Sunday.
Remembering a friend
Ward was by Irsay’s side for more than four decades.
From part-time summer intern in the Baltimore Colts’ PR department in 1981 to substitute mail clerk to administrative assistant to director of operations shortly after the relocation in ’84 to vice president of administration to senior executive vice president to chief operating officer, a title he’s held since 2010.
“In my position,’’ Ward said, “I saw everything. I saw how much he loved to do things for people and see them smile. That was constant. He listened to people. He wanted input, feedback.’’
Irsay was intent on learning everything possible about the franchise from the ground up. He was a go-fer during Baltimore Colts’ training camps in Golden, Colorado and eventually worked in various departments, including a short time in the ticket office.
“He did everything,’’ Ward said.
There was a time when a member of the PR staff would make an advance trip to the upcoming opponent to meet with the media and lay the groundwork for the visit. Irsay assumed that role for Baltimore’s October 1983 trip to Philadelphia.
“I wondered how he was going to handle that,’’ Ward said. “He got back and I asked, ‘How was it?’ He said, ‘It was easy.’ He put forth the effort to learn the family business, just like his daughters have done. That’s something he always imparted on his daughters: Learn by doing.’’
In Irsay’s case, that also meant learn by watching. He was the NFL’s youngest general manager at 24 and its youngest owner at 37.
Too often, Robert Irsay showed his son how not to be an owner.
“His dad threw him into the fire,’’ Ward said of Irsay being named GM when the Colts arrived in Indy. “Dealing with his dad was the hardest part. It was 11 years of dealing with his dad. I remember the old man would come in every Friday after a liquid lunch and I remember hearing through the closed doors his dad screaming at him and not knowing if he’s been fired or not. I didn’t see Jim’s full confidence until his dad was out of the picture. I don’t think he ever knew how his dad would react.’’
Irsay took control of the franchise after his father suffered a stroke in November 1995.
“It was like, ‘OK, I’m in charge now and this is the way I want things done,’’’ Ward said. “He couldn’t do that before. He wasn’t allowed.’’
A change in approach
Ward can pinpoint when Jim Irsay came of age as an owner.
It was September 1996, and Irsay arranged a meeting with Indy’s business and political leaders at the downtown Skyline Club. His father was incapacitated by a stroke and Irsay essentially was trying to rebrand the Colts with Indy’s powerbrokers.
“The timing was great,’’ Ward said.
The Colts had just beaten the Cowboys 25-24 in Dallas and would meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football.
“It was a full house because we were a hot team,’’ Ward said. “It introduced Jim to all of these people who had never met him and didn’t know him. His dad was such a big shadow. That was the start of mending our relationship with the community and really got the ball rolling . . . to renovating the RCA Dome, which eventually led to Lucas Oil Stadium. Jim could see the big picture and he knew he had to start small and build up.’’
The on-field transformation came in three waves:
*Bill Polian being named GM in December 1997 following a trade with the Carolina Panthers.
*Peyton Manning being selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the 1998 draft, Polian’s first with Indy.
*Tony Dungy being named head coach in January 2002.
Remember, put the right people in place and, for the most part, stand back.
That triumvirate, along with Irsay’s oversight and a slew of top-tier players, led to two Super Bowl appearances and the Colts’ first world championship in three decades. Manning, Polian, Dungy, James, Harrison and Freeney are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Wayne is knocking on the door in Canton, Ohio, as is Adam Vinatieri.
Irsay lifting the Lombardi Trophy into a steady South Florida rain after the 29-17 win over the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XLI was “a life-long dream come true,’’ Ward said. “I know that he was disappointed we couldn’t have done it again before he passed because his ultimate dream was to have multiple Lombardis. But he got that one and I know how euphoric he was with that win. It was so cathartic because of all the heartbreaking defeats that came before it.’’
The good, the bad
Irsay’s legacy is a mixed bag.
He passed away following prolonged physical ailments.
“His last three years were really tough,’’ Ward said. “Heartbreaking, really.’’
There were several surgeries, well-documented battles with painkillers and Irsay admitted to suffering multiple overdoses. His addiction issues played a part in establishing Kicking the Stigma.
“He talked about that. He was open about that,’’ Ward said of Irsay’s personal struggles. “Even with his flaws, with the platform he stood on, he helped a lot of people.’’
When Irsay slipped because of his addiction, “he put up a wall,’’ Ward said. “Those were the times you couldn’t even communicate with him. It was a really tough time for the people who cared for him.’’
But there was so much good in him.
“I wish the players we have currently with us and coaches could have known him in his prime,’’ Ward said.
Irsay’s philanthropy was wide-ranging. He connected to his fan base by hurling mini-footballs with a hundred-dollar bill attached into the stands and reached out to needy families as often as possible, almost always anonymously. He donated or helped raise millions for cancer research and put down one of his deepest footprints in 2020 when he and his daughters founded Kicking the Stigma. The family has committed more than $31 million to mental health awareness and treatment.
“The response has been so much more significant than I could ever have imagined,’’ Ward said of Kicking the Stigma. “Huge, huge. We get correspondence from all over the country.’’
Irsay assembled The Jim Irsay Collection, which features some of music’s most revered items as well as historical and cultural artifacts. He took his collection to various cities and complemented tour events with his Jim Irsay Band.
The daughters are still deciding what to do with their father’s vast and expensive collection.
So, how to best remember the latest inductee into the Colts’ Ring of Honor?
“Somebody who was unabashedly passionate about his love for the game, the team and the people who worked for him and the community, and most of all his family,’’ Ward said. “He wasn’t afraid to put it out there on social media: “Hey, we’re going to win it again.’ He lived large in every aspect of his life. That’s why Jim was so fun to work with. You knew he was going to go after it.’’
You can follow Mike Chappell on Twitter at @mchappell51.