Kenneth Ploen

LAYN Torah reading (; ') is a Judaism, Jewish religion, religious tradition that involves the public reading of a set of passages from a Sefer Torah, Torah scroll. The term often refers to the entire ceremony of removing the scroll (or scrolls) fro ...

(born June 3, 1935) is a former star quarterback in

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

and for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL).

College football

In 1956, Ploen became the University of Iowa

Hawkeyes The Iowa Hawkeyes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have varsity teams in 22 sports, 8 for men and 14 for women; a 15th women's sport will be added in 2023. The teams partici ...

starting quarterback. That year, he led his team to its first Big Ten Conference title in 35 years and a victory in the

1957 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th y ...

Rose Bowl Game The Rose Bowl Game is an annual American college football bowl game, usually played on January 1 (New Year's Day) at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. When New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, the game is played on Monday, January 2. The Rose ...

. He was named an All-American and the Big Ten player of the year. He was voted the 1957 Rose Bowl's

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

Canadian Football League

Ploen was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the 19th round of the 1957 NFL Draft On June 10, 1957 it was announced that Ploen had signed a contract with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the Canadian Football League rather than report to the Browns. Ploen played quarterback for the Winnipeg from 1957 to 1967. He also filled in at halfback and safety. Ploen led his team to six

Grey Cup The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...

appearances (1957, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1965), including four victories:

1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third ...

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba ( Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 ...

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wors ...

and two losses:

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

. In the

49th Grey Cup The 49th Grey Cup was the Canadian Football League's championship game of the 1961 season on December 2, 1961. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 21–14 at CNE Stadium in Toronto before 32,651 fans. It is considered to b ...

game (1961), he scored one of the most memorable touchdowns in professional football history, eluding numerous defenders on an eighteen-yard run into the endzone during overtime to win it (see video below). He was voted the 1961 Grey Cup Most Valuable Player, was selected as a divisional All-Star three times. Kenny Ploen was inducted into the

Canadian Football Hall of Fame The Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates great achievements in Canadian football. It is maintained by the Canadian Football League (CFL). It includes displays about t ...

in 1975, the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in 1987, the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame in 1997, and the

Iowa Sports Hall of Fame The Iowa Sports Hall of Fame, sponsored by the ''Des Moines Register'', honors outstanding athletes and sports contributors. To be eligible, members must have either been born in Iowa or gained prominence while competing for a college or universi ...

in 2002. In 2005, Ploen was named one of the Blue Bombers 20 All-Time Greats.

After football

After Ploen retired from football, he and his wife made Winnipeg their home. He worked as a sales representative and as a

colour commentator A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and the ...

for a local radio station. In 2007, he was awarded the

Order of Manitoba The Order of Manitoba (french: Ordre du Manitoba) is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Instituted in 1999 when Lieutenant Governor Peter Liba granted Royal Assent to The Order of Manitoba Act, the order is administe ...

. In September 2009, he was recognized by fan vote and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame, as the Most Outstanding CFL Player of the 1960s. In June 2011, the CFL announced the west entry service road off Chancellor Matheson Road next to the new Winnipeg Blue Bombers stadium will be named ''Ken Ploen Way'', to honor the former Blue Bombers quarterback and Canadian Football Hall of Famer. Ploen was also honored at half-time, during the Blue Bombers’ first 2011 home preseason game, where the street sign was unveiled.Bombers announce 'Ken Ploen Way'
CFL Official Site, 23 June 2011. Retrieved 5 September 2011. In 2012 in honour of the

100th Grey Cup The 100th Grey Cup was a Canadian football game between the East Division champion Toronto Argonauts and the West Division champion Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League to decide the Grey Cup champions of the 2012 season. The ga ...

, Canada Post used his image on a series of commemorative postage stamps. The image was also used on presentation posters and other materials to promote the Grey Cup game and other celebrations associated with the centennial. Kenny Ploen is also the distant cousin to Tim Ploen, of Dexter, Iowa.

Video clips

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ploen, Ken 1935 births Living people American emigrants to Canada American football quarterbacks American players of Canadian football Canadian Football Hall of Fame inductees Canadian Football League announcers Canadian football quarterbacks Iowa Hawkeyes football players Members of the Order of Manitoba People from Lost Nation, Iowa Players of American football from Iowa Sports commentators Winnipeg Blue Bombers players