View source for Ron Kramer

{{Short description|American football player (1935–2010)}}
{{For|the business executive|Ronald Kramer (business)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name        = Ron Kramer
| image       = Ron Kramer (1955).png
| image_size  =
| alt         = Kramer advancing against Ohio State in 1955
| caption     = Kramer in 1955
| number      = 88, 83
| position    = [[End (gridiron football)|End]]
| birth_date  = {{Birth date|1935|6|24|mf=y}}
| birth_place = [[Girard, Kansas]], U.S.
| death_date  = {{Death date and age|2010|9|11|1935|6|24}}
| death_place = [[Fenton, Michigan]], U.S.
| height_ft   = 6
| height_in   = 3
| weight_lb   = 234
| high_school = [[Eastpointe High School|East Detroit]] <br> ([[Eastpointe, Michigan|East Detroit, Michigan]])
| college     = [[Michigan Wolverines football|Michigan]] (1954–1956)
| draftyear   = 1957
| draftround  = 1
| draftpick   = 4
| pastteams   =
* [[Green Bay Packers]] ({{NFL Year|1957}}, {{NFL Year|1959|1964}})
* [[Detroit Lions]] ({{NFL Year|1965|1967}})
| highlights  =
* 2× [[List of NFL champions (1920–1969)|NFL champion]] ([[1961 NFL Championship Game|1961]], [[1962 NFL Championship Game|1962]])
* First-team [[All-Pro]] ([[1962 All-Pro Team|1962]])
* Second-team All-Pro ([[1963 All-Pro Team|1963]])
* [[Pro Bowl]] ([[1963 Pro Bowl|1962]])
* [[NFL 50th Anniversary All-Time Team]]
* [[Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame]]
* [[List of unanimous All-Americans in college football|Unanimous All-American]] ([[1956 College Football All-America Team|1956]])
* Consensus [[College Football All-America Team|All-American]] ([[1955 College Football All-America Team|1955]])
* Second-team All-American ([[1954 College Football All-America Team|1954]])
* 3× First-team [[List of All-Big Ten Conference football teams|All-Big Ten]] ([[1954 All-Big Ten Conference football team|1954]]–[[1956 All-Big Ten Conference football team|1956]])
* [[National Football Foundation Distinguished American Award|NFF Distinguished American Award]] (1982)
* [[Michigan Wolverines football#Retired numbers|Michigan Wolverines No. 87]] retired
| statlabel1  = [[Reception (gridiron football)|Receptions]]
| statvalue1  = 229
| statlabel2  = Receiving yards
| statvalue2  = 3,272
| statlabel3  = Receiving [[touchdown]]s
| statvalue3  = 16
| statlabel4  = 
| statvalue4  = 
| statlabel5  = 
| statvalue5  = 
| statlabel6  = 
| statvalue6  = 
| statlabel7  = 
| statvalue7  = 
| statlabel8  = 
| statvalue8  = 
| pfr         = KramRo00
| CollegeHOF  = 1785 
}}

'''Ronald John Kramer''' (June 24, 1935 – September 11, 2010) was an American professional [[American football|football]] player who was an [[end (gridiron football)|end]] in the [[National Football League]] (NFL), primarily for the [[Green Bay Packers]].  A member of two [[NFL champion]] teams with the Packers, he was named to the [[NFL 50th Anniversary All-Time Team]] and [[Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame]].

Kramer attended the [[University of Michigan]] from 1953 to 1957, winning a total of nine [[varsity letter]]s in football, [[basketball]], and [[track and field|track]]. Playing at [[End (gridiron football)|left end]] for the [[Michigan Wolverines football]] team from 1954 to 1956, he was selected as a consensus first-team [[College Football All-America Team|All-American]] in [[1955 College Football All-America Team|1955]] and a [[unanimous All-American]] in [[1956 College Football All-America Team|1956]]. His jersey No. 87 was retired after Kramer's senior year, and he was inducted into both the [[College Football Hall of Fame]] and the [[University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor]] in 1978.

Kramer was selected by Green Bay with the fourth pick in the [[1957 NFL draft]] and played for the Packers for seven seasons (1957, 1959–1964). He was a key player on coach [[Vince Lombardi]]'s first NFL championship teams in 1961 and 1962. Kramer was selected as a first-team All-NFL player in 1962 after [[reception (gridiron football)|catching]] 37 passes for 555 yards and seven [[touchdown]]s. He also played three seasons for the [[Detroit Lions]] from 1965 to 1967.

==Early life==
Born in [[Girard, Kansas]],<ref name=PFR>{{cite web|title=Ron Kramer|publisher=Sports Reference LLC|work=Pro-Football-Reference.com|access-date=March 31, 2015|url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/K/KramRo00.htm}}</ref> Kramer  moved to [[East Detroit, Michigan]] (now [[Eastpointe, Michigan|Eastpointe]]) at age five.<ref name=LRK>{{cite web|title=U-M Legend Ron Kramer Passes Away|publisher=University of Michigan|work=MGoBlue.com|access-date=March 31, 2015|date=September 11, 2010|url=http://www.mgoblue.com/genrel/091110aaa.html}}</ref> He attended [[East Detroit High School]] where he was an all-state player in football, [[basketball]] and track in high school. He competed in the [[shot put]] and [[long jump]] in track.<ref name=Model>{{cite news|title=Packers' Ron Kramer Was a Model for a Modern Tight End|author=Bob Wolf|newspaper=The Milwaukee Journal|date=October 26, 1978|page=3-3|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19781026&id=EE4aAAAAIBAJ&sjid=nCkEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2023,3950891&hl=en}}</ref> In December 1952, Kramer was named as an end on the United Press All-Michigan football team.<ref>{{cite news|title=1952 UP All-State Football Team|newspaper=The Enquirer and News (Battle Creek, MI)|date=December 2, 1952|page=15|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/7152517/1952_up_allstate_football_team/}}</ref>

==University of Michigan==
[[File:Ron Kramer tackle.png|thumb|175px|left|Kramer tackling Ohio State's Jim Roseboro, 1956]]
Kramer enrolled at the [[University of Michigan]] in 1953.  He was a three-sport athlete (football, [[basketball]], and [[track and field|track]]) and led both the football and [[basketball]] teams in scoring for two years. Altogether, Kramer won a total of nine varsity letters in his three sports — the maximum number possible, as freshmen did not have athletic eligibility at the time.

===Football===
Kramer played [[college football]] at the [[End (gridiron football)|end]] position (both [[defensive end|defensive]] and offensive) for the [[Michigan Wolverines football|Michigan Woverines]] from [[1954 Michigan Wolverines football team|1954]] through [[1956 Michigan Wolverines football team|1956]].<ref name=Roster>{{cite web|title=All-Time Football Roster Database|publisher=University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library|access-date=March 31, 2015|url=https://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/rosters/football.php}}</ref>

As a 19-year-old sophomore, Kramer started all nine games at left end for the 1954 team that finished the season ranked #15 in the final [[AP Poll]].<ref name=t54>{{cite web|title=1954 Football Team|publisher=University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library|access-date=March 30, 2015|url=https://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/football/fbteam/1954fbt.htm}}</ref>  He was the leading receiver for the Wolverines with 23 catches for 303 yards and two touchdowns.<ref name=SY>{{cite web|title=Michigan Football Statistic Archive Query Page|publisher=University of Michigan|access-date=March 31, 2015|url=http://stats.ath.umich.edu/football/footstart.php|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130524051040/http://stats.ath.umich.edu/football/footstart.php|archive-date=May 24, 2013}}(to retrieve information for a particular season, go to "Games & Totals by Season" and select the year for which statistics are to be retrieved)</ref> At the end of the 1954 season, he was selected as a first-team All-Big Ten player.<ref name=t54/>

As a junior in [[1955 Michigan Wolverines football team|1955]], Kramer started six games at left end and Michigan finished 12th in the final [[AP Poll]].<ref name=t55>{{cite web|title=1955 Football Team|publisher=University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library|access-date=March 30, 2015|url=https://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/football/fbteam/1955fbt.htm}}</ref>  Kramer set a Michigan record with three touchdown passes in a game against Missouri in 1955.<ref name=HOF/>  For the season as a whole, he caught 12 passes for 224 yards and four touchdowns,<ref name=SY/> and he was selected as a consensus first-team end on the [[1955 College Football All-America Team]].<ref name=CAA>{{cite web|title=2014 NCAA Football Records: Consensus All-America Selections|publisher=National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)|year=2014|access-date=February 10, 2015|page=6|url=http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/2014/Awards.pdf|archive-date=October 6, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006082159/http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/2014/Awards.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Kramer had his best collegiate season as a senior, starting all nine games in 1956 and the Wolverines ended at seventh in the final [[AP Poll]].<ref name=t56>{{cite web|title=1956 Football Team|publisher=University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library|access-date=March 31, 2015|url=https://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/football/fbteam/1956fbt.htm}}</ref> Kramer caught 18 passes for 353 yards and two touchdowns in 1956.<ref name=SY/> At the end of the season, Kramer was an consensus first-team [[1956 College Football All-America Team|All-American]].<ref name=CAA/>

Following Kramer's senior year, Michigan retired his jersey number 87 – one of only five numbers in school history to be retired. In three years at Michigan, Kramer caught 53 passes for 880 yards and eight touchdowns.  He was also known as an outstanding tackler and blocker. [[Bennie Oosterbaan]], Kramer's football coach at Michigan, described his blocking and tackling ability as his most valuable asset.  Oosterbaan said this of his star player:<blockquote>"To top off his marvelous physical gifts of size and speed and strength, plus an uncanny coordination, Kramer was one of the fiercest competitors I've ever seen. Nothing was impossible for him — the impossible was only a challenge." </blockquote>

Kramer also handled kicking and punting duties for Michigan.  He handled 31 punts for a 40.6 yard average, kicked two field goals, and successfully converted 43 of 51 extra point attempts.<ref>{{cite news|title=Michigan's man of steel: Kramer, former star, forges winning career|author=Darren Jasey|newspaper=The Michigan Daily|date=April 17, 1986|page=10|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2706&dat=19860418&id=7hVKAAAAIBAJ&sjid=rx4NAAAAIBAJ&pg=1037,3755280&hl=en}}</ref>

===Basketball===
Kramer also excelled in basketball.  He played at the center position and was selected as the [[Michigan Wolverines men's basketball|basketball team]]'s most valuable player as a junior.  As basketball team [[Captain (sports)|captain]], he was third-team All-Big Ten in [[1956–57 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team|1957]] after being second-team All-Big Ten in both [[1954–55 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team|1955]] and [[1955–56 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team|1956]].<ref name=MB07-8p147>{{cite book|title=2007–08 Men's Basketball Media Guide|publisher=University of Michigan|page=147|year=2007}}</ref>  During his junior year, he averaged 20.4 points per game over a 22-game season and is a member of the career 1,000-point club.<ref name=UofMBBMG>{{cite book|title=Michigan Basketball 2007–08 (media guide)}}</ref>  He held the Michigan career [[point (basketball)|scoring]] record of 1,119 points from 1957 until it was broken by [[John Tidwell (basketball)|John Tidwell]] in 1961.<ref name=MB07-8p162>{{cite book|title=2007–08 Men's Basketball Media Guide|publisher=University of Michigan|page=162|year=2007}}</ref> He was a fifth round pick in the [[1957 NBA draft]] (34th overall), selected by the [[1957–58 Detroit Pistons season|Detroit Pistons]].

Kramer was a two-sport professional athlete. He played in the [[Midwest Professional Basketball League]] for two seasons. Kramer played for the Battle Creek Warriors in 1961–1962, alongside former Michigan teammates [[M.C. Burton]] and [[John Tidwell (basketball)|John Tidwell]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nasljerseys.com/EBA/Rosters/MBL-NABL/Warriors_EBA_Rosters.htm#1961.|title = Battle Creek Warriors Rosters}}</ref> He and Burton then played for the Toledo Tartans in 1962–1963.

==NFL career==
===Green Bay Packers===
Kramer was the fourth overall selection in the [[1957 NFL draft]], picked by the [[1957 Green Bay Packers season|Green Bay Packers]].<ref name=Model/> Kramer also received an offer in February 1957 to play with the all-star basketball team that toured with the [[Harlem Globetrotters]]; he rejected the offer to play professional basketball.<ref>{{cite news|title=Ron Kramer Refuses Pro Basketball Offer|newspaper=The Victoria Advocate (AP story)|date=February 15, 1957|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=861&dat=19570215&id=xTVQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=DlYDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2495,4636032&hl=en}}</ref>  As a rookie for the Packers in 1957, Kramer appeared in 11 games and caught 28 passes for 337 yards.<ref name=PFR/>  He missed the entire [[1958 Green Bay Packers season|1958]] season due to service in the [[United States Air Force|U.S. Air Force]],<ref name=Model/><ref>{{cite news|title='Packers Miss Ron Kramer'; Bear Scout Calls Him Ideal Slot Receiver|newspaper=The Milwaukee Journal|date=November 30, 1958|page=7|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19581130&id=ecEdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2CUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4763,4686953&hl=en|access-date=March 31, 2015|archive-date=April 29, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160429094811/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19581130&id=ecEdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2CUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4763,4686953&hl=en|url-status=dead}}</ref> and the Packers had the worst record in the league at 1–10–1.

Kramer returned to the Packers in [[1959 Green Bay Packers season|1959]], but caught no passes that year and only four passes during the [[1960 Green Bay Packers season|1960]] season. Teammate [[Paul Hornung]] later described Kramer's evolution after [[Vince Lombardi]] arrived in 1959:<blockquote>"[O]ne real special case was Ron Kramer. He came to us, Ron did, with an I-don't-give-a-damn attitude. He had great ability and great confidence in it but he just didn't use it. For a long time, he wasn't able to do the job. Vince got on (him) something terrible. He never let up and then one day, after nearly two years of that I guess, things just went click, click, click and Ron Kramer became a magnificent football player."<ref>{{cite news|title=Remembering Ron Kramer, Packers' Rock at Tight End|author=Andy Barall|newspaper=The New York Times|date=September 14, 2010|url=http://fifthdown.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/14/remembering-ron-kramer-packers-rock-at-tight-end/?_r=0|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402143222/http://fifthdown.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/14/remembering-ron-kramer-packers-rock-at-tight-end/?_r=0|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 2, 2015}}</ref></blockquote>

Kramer reached his stride after moving to the [[tight end]] position during the [[1961 Green Bay Packers season|1961]] season; that year, Kramer had 35 catches for 559 yards and four touchdowns.<ref name=PFR/> In [[1962 Green Bay Packers season|1962]], Kramer caught 37 passes for 555 yards and seven touchdowns and was selected to play in the [[1963 Pro Bowl|Pro Bowl]] and as a first-team All-Pro player.<ref name=PFR/> From 1961 to [[1964 Green Bay Packers season|1964]], Kramer had at least 500 receiving yards every season, averaging 16 yards per reception.<ref name=PFR/> He became an integral part of [[Vince Lombardi]]'s 1961 and 1962 teams that won the Packers' first NFL championships since [[1944 Green Bay Packers season|1944]].  In the [[1961 NFL Championship Game]], a 37–0 win for the Packer over the [[1961 New York Giants season|New York Giants]], Kramer was the leading receiver, catching four passes for 80 yards and two touchdowns.<ref>{{cite news|title=People in 'Titletown, U.S.A.' Still Celebrating World Championship|newspaper=Ocala Star-Banner|date=January 1, 1962|page=12|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1356&dat=19620101&id=q3ZPAAAAIBAJ&sjid=FwUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5474,112700&hl=en}}</ref> In addition to his talent as a receiver, Kramer's talent as a blocker was an integral part of the famed "[[Packers Sweep]]."<ref name=TS/>

===Detroit Lions===
Kramer played out his contract option with the Packers and, as a free agent, signed a one-year contract with the [[1965 Detroit Lions season|Detroit Lions]] in August 1965.  The Lions were required to compensate the Packers with a first-round draft choice in 1966.<ref>{{cite news|title=Lions Sign Ron Kramer|newspaper=The Milwaukee Sentinel (AP story)|date=August 4, 1965|page=2-2|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1368&dat=19650804&id=dFAaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=rxAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2247,374257&hl=en|access-date=March 31, 2015|archive-date=October 2, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151002150523/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1368&dat=19650804&id=dFAaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=rxAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2247,374257&hl=en|url-status=dead}}</ref> Kramer had asked to be traded to the Lions so he could be closer to his wife and children. Teammate [[Jerry Kramer]] recalled, "He asked Coach Lombardi to trade him because he was trying to save his marriage."<ref name=TS>{{cite news|title=Ex-Packer tight end, hero of '61 title game Kramer dies|author=Tom Silverstein |newspaper=Journal Sentinel |date=September 11, 2010|url=http://www.jsonline.com/sports/packers/102709044.html}}</ref>

Kramer played three seasons for the Lions at the [[tight end]] position from 1965 to [[1967 Detroit Lions season|1967]].  He appeared in 39 games for the Lions, 13 as a starter.<ref name=PFR/>  In his first two seasons with the Lions, Kramer caught 55 passes for 638 yards and a touchdown.  During the 1967 season, Kramer was slowed by injuries and caught only four passes for 40 yards in 11 games.<ref name=LGRKR>{{cite news|title=Lions Give Ron Kramer Release |newspaper=Schenectady Gazette (AP story) |date=July 26, 1968|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1917&dat=19680726&id=o2ktAAAAIBAJ&sjid=HIoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5157,5072772&hl=en}}</ref>

In July 1968, the Lions gave Kramer his unconditional release.<ref name=LGRKR/>  Three weeks later, Kramer announced that, despite receiving offers to play for several other teams, he was resigning from football to assume a position as vice president of Paragon Steel Corp. in Detroit.<ref>{{cite news|title=Ron Kramer Announces Retirement|newspaper=Spartanburg Herald (AP story)|date=August 13, 1968|page=7|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1876&dat=19680812&id=DXwsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=08wEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4319,1926450&hl=en}}</ref> Kramer later described his years with the Lions as "awful" and called head coach [[Harry Gilmer]] "the dumbest guy I ever met."<ref>{{cite book|title=100 Things Packers Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die|page=257|author=Rob Reischel|publisher=Triumph Books|year=2013|isbn=978-1600788703}}</ref>

===Career statistics===
In 10 NFL seasons, Kramer appeared in 128 games and totaled 229 receptions for 3,272 yards and 16 touchdowns. Out of his 16 career touchdown catches, 15 came in a three-year stretch from 1961 to 1963.<ref name=PFR/>

==Honors and later years==
[[File:Ron Kramer (basketball).png|thumb|right|100px|Kramer in basketball uniform, 1957]]
After retiring as a football player, Kramer went into the steel business. In 1969, he was hired as a vice president of Paragon Steel Corp. of Detroit.<ref>{{cite news|title=Ron Kramer Assault Victim|newspaper=The Milwaukee Journal|date=October 31, 1969|pages=2–21|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19691031&id=JwQqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=NigEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6080,5984392&hl=en|access-date=March 31, 2015|archive-date=October 18, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151018155754/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19691031&id=JwQqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=NigEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6080,5984392&hl=en|url-status=dead}}</ref>  He spent 22 years at Paragon before establishing Ron Kramer Industries in 1981, a company which is still in business today.<ref name=DN>{{cite web|title=Ronald J. Kramer Death Notice|publisher=Lynch & Sons|access-date=March 31, 2015|url=http://lynchfuneraldirectors.com/death_notice.aspx?Operation=preview&noticeid=1844&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1}}{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.manta.com/c/mm2n92p/ron-kramer-industries-inc |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180818020956/https://www.manta.com/c/mm2n92p/ron-kramer-industries-inc |archive-date=August 18, 2018 |title=Ron Kramer Industries Bloomfield Hills MI, 48301 – Manta.com}}</ref> He had two children, Kurtis Kramer and Cassandra Koehler.<ref name=DN/>

Kramer received numerous honors and awards, including the following:
* In 1971, Kramer was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame.<ref name=LRK/>
* In 1975, Kramer was inducted into the [[Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.packers.com/history/hof/ron-kramer |title=Ron Kramer|publisher=Packer Hall of Fame|access-date=August 13, 2019}}</ref>
* In 1978, Kramer was inducted into the [[College Football Hall of Fame]] .<ref name=HOF>{{College Football HoF|id=1785|name=Ron Kramer|accessdate=March 31, 2015}}</ref>
* Also in 1978, Kramer became one of the first seven individuals inducted into the [[University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/misc/hallhon.htm |title=University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor (sorted by induction year)|publisher=University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library|access-date=March 31, 2015}}</ref>
* In 1981, Kramer was named as a recipient of the [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]]'s Silver Anniversary Award in recognition of significant professional and civic contributions spanning 25 years after completion of his college eligibility.<ref name=LRK/>
* In 1999, ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' published a list of "The 50 Greatest Sports Figures From Michigan" (in all sports), and ranked Kramer seventh on the list behind such noted athletes as [[Joe Louis]], [[Magic Johnson]], [[Charlie Gehringer]] and [[Bennie Oosterbaan]].<ref>{{cite web|title=The Master List The 50 Greatest Sports Figures of the Century From Each of the 50 States|publisher=Sports Illustrated|access-date=March 31, 2015|url=https://www.si.com/vault/1999/12/27/271866/the-master-list-the-50-greatest-sports-figures-of-the-century-from-each-of-the-50-states}}</ref>

Kramer died in September 2010 at age 75.<ref>{{cite news|author=Mark Snyder|title=U-M great Ron Kramer dead at 75|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|date=September 11, 2010|url=http://www.freep.com/article/20100911/SPORTS06/100911023/1318/U-M-great-Ron-Kramer-dead-at-75|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100914150004/http://www.freep.com/article/20100911/SPORTS06/100911023/1318/U-M-great-Ron-Kramer-dead-at-75|archive-date=September 14, 2010}}</ref>

On September 15, 2012, Kramer was recognized as a [[Michigan Wolverines football#Michigan Football Legends|Michigan Football Legend]] and his jersey (#87) was unretired and given to Brandon Moore. Each player honored with the No. 87 jersey will wear a patch over the left upper chest honoring Kramer, and dress at a locker labeled with a plaque bearing his name and time of tenure at Michigan.<ref>{{cite web|title=Kramer Recognized as Michigan Football Legend, Moore to Wear No. 87|publisher=University of Michigan|work=MGoBlue.com|date=September 15, 2012|access-date=March 31, 2012|url=http://www.mgoblue.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/091512aaa.html}}</ref>

In 2019, despite not being in the [[Pro Football Hall of Fame]], he was chosen as a finalist for the [[National Football League 100th Anniversary All-Time Team|NFL's 100th Anniversary Team]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20191210012030/http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000001086301/article/tight-end-finalists-announced-for-nfl-alltime-team Tight end finalists announced for NFL All-Time Team]</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of Michigan Wolverines football All-Americans]]
* [[University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
* [https://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/football/fballam/aakramer.htm Bentley Library biography and photograph of Kramer]

{{Navboxes
| title = Ron Kramer—championships, awards, and honors
| list1 =
{{1961 Green Bay Packers}}
{{1962 Green Bay Packers}}
{{1955 College Football Consensus All-Americans}}
{{1956 College Football Consensus All-Americans}}
{{1957 NFL Draft}}
{{Green Bay Packers first-round draft picks}}
{{Green Bay Packers 1957 NFL draft picks}}
{{Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame}}
{{National Football Foundation Distinguished American Award}}
{{National Football Foundation Gold Medal Winners}}
}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kramer, Ron}}
[[Category:1935 births]]
[[Category:2010 deaths]]
[[Category:American men's basketball players]]
[[Category:American football ends]]
[[Category:American football tight ends]]
[[Category:Detroit Pistons draft picks]]
[[Category:Detroit Lions players]]
[[Category:Green Bay Packers players]]
[[Category:Michigan Wolverines football players]]
[[Category:Michigan Wolverines men's basketball players]]
[[Category:Michigan Wolverines men's track and field athletes]]
[[Category:All-American college football players]]
[[Category:All-American college men's basketball players]]
[[Category:College Football Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Western Conference Pro Bowl players]]
[[Category:People from Girard, Kansas]]
[[Category:People from Eastpointe, Michigan]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Macomb County, Michigan]]
[[Category:Basketball players from Michigan]]
[[Category:Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]