National Program Recognizes Pro Football’s Greatest Players in their Hometown Communities

Canton, Ohio – April 24, 2012 – Pro football legend Nick Buoniconti will be recognized by the Pro Football Hall of Fame and Allstate Insurance Company in Springfield, Mass., on Tuesday, May 1, as part of “Hometown Hall of Famers™,” a national program honoring the hometown roots of the sport’s greatest players with special ceremonies and plaque dedication events in local communities.

“’Hometown Hall of Famers™’ has been warmly embraced by communities and Hall of Famers alike,” said George Veras, Pro Football Hall of Fame Enterprises president and CEO. “We are thrilled to continue our partnership with Allstate to bring the Pro Football Hall of Fame to communities across the country and congratulate Nick Buoniconti and Cathedral High School on bringing a piece of the Pro Football Hall of Fame to Springfield.”

A two-time Pro Bowl selection during his career as linebacker for the Miami Dolphins and Boston Patriots, and former high school standout at Cathedral High School in Springfield, Mass., Buoniconti will be presented with his “Hometown Hall of Famer™” plaque during a special ceremony at 1:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, May 1, at Cathedral High School in its temporary location in Wilbraham, Mass. The plaque will live permanently at Cathedral High School in its new location to serve as an inspiration for the entire community. The presentation will be made by Billy Kingston, Buoniconti’s former high school teammate and longtime friend.

“To be part of a program that brings the prestige and tradition of the Pro Football Hall of Fame to cities like Springfield is an honor for Allstate, our agents and employees,” said Lisa Cochrane, Allstate’s senior vice president of marketing.
The ceremony will be held at the temporary Cathedral High School location in Wilbraham, Mass., as the permanent CHS facility was damaged by tornadoes in June 2011. The ceremony will be attended by Buoniconti’s family members and close friends, as well as community members from Wilbraham and Springfield. Sheriff Michael Ashe, 1957 Cathedral High School graduate, will serve as the Master of Ceremonies.

The plaque will return to Springfield, Mass. when a new Cathedral High School facility is completed, along with a commemorative Nick Buoniconti “Hometown Hall of Famer™” road sign that will be on display in Springfield.

A successful student-athlete in high school, Buoniconti went on to play college football at the University of Notre Dame. Despite being seen as undersized at 5-11, 220 pounds, Buoniconti was named captain of the Fighting Irish during the 1961 season.

Buoniconti was selected in the thirteenth-round by the Boston Patriots in the 1962 AFL Draft. His 14-year career as a dominant linebacker totaled 32 interceptions, and 10 fumble recoveries for two touchdowns. During his seasons with the Miami Dolphins, Buoniconti helped lead the team to two Super Bowl titles, including an undefeated season in 1972, beating the Washington Redskins 14-7 in Super Bowl VII.

Buoniconti was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001.

“Hometown Hall of Famers™ presented by the Pro Football Hall of Fame and Allstate” is the Hall of Fame’s first nationwide plaque program and will lead into the celebration of its 50th anniversary in August 2012. For more information on the program and event videos, fans can visit www.profootballhof.com.

About the Pro Football Hall of Fame
In its day-to-day operation, the Pro Football Hall of Fame works very closely with all facets of the pro football family – the National Football League, the 32 NFL clubs, and other entities to ensure the overall success of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In turn, the Hall strives to serve as the best possible historical showplace and repository for the sport of pro football. The Hall of Fame is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit educational institution that focuses on education, promoting, preserving, and honoring the great individuals and moments that have shaped the sport’s history.

About Allstate
The Allstate Corporation (NYSE: ALL) is the nation’s largest publicly held personal lines insurer. Widely known through the “You’re In Good Hands With Allstate®” slogan, Allstate is reinventing protection and retirement to help nearly 16 million households insure what they have today and better prepare for tomorrow. Consumers access Allstate insurance products (auto, home, life and retirement) and services through Allstate agencies, independent agencies, and Allstate exclusive financial representatives in the U.S. and Canada, as well as via www.allstate.com and 1-800 Allstate®. As part of Allstate’s commitment to strengthen local communities, The Allstate Foundation, Allstate employees, agency owners and the corporation provided $28 million in 2011 to thousands of nonprofit organizations and important causes across the United States.

Dolphins traded Brandon Marshall today to the Chicago Bears for 3 draft picks. Really?! Intrigggggggguing. IMO this is a clue that Peyton Manning is coming to the Dolphins.

The coaching staff can hand pick their receiver core on the cheap and no longer have to deal with an egomaniac in Marshall.

Testing twitter > facebook connection…yehaaww it works.

Officially Jason Taylor is now with the Dolphins. How will fans react? I think we will be happy to have a top notch defensive end on our team. We needed to solidify that line anyways.

The Miami Dolphins are in desperate need for a veteran QB to come in and help mold Chad Henne into
the player he could be. Now there are the typical bigger names out there that the Dolphins probably
won’t bring in or spend the money on to make a back-up QB like Donovan McNabb or Kevin Kolb. There
are other options out there for them so let’s break them down…

Marc Bulger – Has been a starter for years and shown he can help a younger QB become comfortable in
the system. He should be one of the top guys to make a run at.

Bruce Gradkowski – Has had a very up and down career. He wins a few games, then loses a few.
Beyond the up and down record, he does bring his solid work ethic day in and day out. He would be a
valuable piece in showing how things should be done.

Jim Sorgi – Has been a career back-up, but has done it with such class and to two of probably the best
QB brothers to play in the league. Backing up two class acts in Peyton and Eli Manning has given him an
opportunity to see winning at the highest level and all the hard work and determination necessary to
win in this league.

Vince Young – A little younger than most would think for a veteran back-up, but the perk here is the
chance he could become your everyday starter as well. He should come as a cheaper option for a team
willing to give him a shot. He has shown his talents can out weigh some of the headaches he has caused
off the field.

These are just a sample of some available names. The dolphins could also chose to move forward in a
new direction and look to spend money on a bigger named QB in the free agent class or go about it via
trade. Whatever way they go, it will be done sooner than later.

It is looking more and more promising that a deal will be getting done in the near future. Rumor has it that the owners and players have agreed to the last key piece of the problem, the rookie salary system. It has taken longer than fans had hoped, but there have been no missed games as of yet, which is a good thing.

The Lockout has forced players to set up their own team workouts without coaches or trainers present. This could end up being a great team building exercise for teams. The only team that has really come out and said they weren’t meeting up as a team has been the Green Bay Packers. The Dolphins have had a number of the players get together to work on different things and hopefully that will work out to their advantage when the season starts. Timing plays such a big role in football and if they are off by a step or two it could be an interception or the offense scoring on a big play.

Now, it would appear that this is all in the hands of the lawyers to get all the papers drawn up and everyone can check to make sure the “I’s” are dotted and the “T’s” are crossed. If all goes well then there will be football after all this season, starting with the Hall of Fame Game in Ohio. Keep your fingers crossed that there is no hiccup in the process and we will be able to see that pigskin in the air
before you know it.

Randy Moss should be a dolphin. He loves going to Heat games already anyways. Deep threat with great hands. When you have a chance to acquire one of the best receivers of all time, you don’t think about it.

Yeh I know its the first game, but the Dolphins beat the Buffalo Bills rather soundly. The running game was excellent with Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams combining for 147 yards on the day.

Probably my favorite play of the game was the 20-25 yard moonball over the receiver and Fasano had to twist around to catch it, but the Henne threw the ball well. It looked like Fasano just didn’t know which side it was going to be on.

The Dolphins displayed something they haven’t had in 3 years. The ability to finish.

Dolphins bested the Buccaneers 10-7 in their first pre season game. Sup!