Kurt Warner Was Back In Iowa With Another Hall Of Fame Quarterback
NFL Hall of Famers and Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks rarely visit Iowa. There aren't any professional sports teams and not a lot to do. The ones that do visit Iowa either played here or lived here. Kurt Warner, who was born and raised in Iowa, returned back to his home state but this time, he was with another Hall of Famer and Super Bowl-winning quarterback. His name: Peyton Manning.
Iowa native, NFL Hall of Famer, Super Bowl-winning quarterback, Super Bowl MVP, NFL MVP, and former UNI quarterback, Kurt Warner, returned to his old college stomping grounds of Cedar Falls, IA. Kurt wasn't alone though. With him was NFL Hall of Famer, two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback, and five-time NFL MVP, Peyton Manning.
The two were spotted at the Hy-Vee on University Avenue in Cedar Falls, where Warner use to work.
Videos and photos show a camera crew following the Hall of Famers while wearing Hy-Vee aprons and uniforms. You can see in the video above of Manning throwing rolls of paper towels to Warner.
Some of those who were at Hy-Vee say that Manning and Warner were filming segments for Peyton's show, Peyton's Place, on ESPN+.
While it's super cool to see two NFL Hall of Fame quarterbacks in Iowa, another Super Bowl champion and former Iowa Hawkeye, Dallas Clark, was spotted with Manning at a restaurant in downtown Cedar Falls.
Clark played tight end for the Hawkeyes and went on to get drafted by the Indianapolis Colts, the same team that Peyton Manning was the quarterback for at the time, in the 2003 NFL Draft in the first round. Clark and Manning would go on to become Super Bowl champions defeating the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XLI (41), 29-17.
Clark and Manning were spotted dining at Montage in downtown Cedar Falls.
We aren't sure if Peyton is still in Iowa, but we do know that Kurt Warner stuck around the Cedar Valley area for lunch at a popular pizza place, The Other Place on University Avenue.
As an alumnus of UNI and former employee of The Other Place on University Avenue, it warms my heart to see Kurt back in Cedar Falls. It also makes me a little jealous, but happy to see a lot of friends on social media meeting one of the best NFL quarterbacks to play, and some of the nicest people ever.
I can tell you that Kurt is a great person. I met him at The Other Place on College Street (now closed) back in April of 2018.
I met him and his wife Brenda and they couldn't have been nicer to myself, my wife, and our friends when they popped in for some pizza.
We are looking forward to seeing the episode of Peyton's Place with Kurt Warner at Hy-Vee!
Kurt Warner was born in Burlington, IA, and went to high school in Cedar Rapids. He played college football at my alma mater, the University of Northern Iowa (go Panthers!). After sitting on the bench for 4 years and not getting a lot of playing time, Kurt became the starting quarterback for the Panthers his senior year.
Warner's story "is regarded as one of the greatest stories in NFL history". He went undrafted in the 1994 draft. He then tried out for the Green Bay Packers at their training camp and was cut before the season started. He played for the Iowa Barnstormers where he shined in the AFL (Arena Football League). Warner played for the Amsterdam Admirals in 1998 while under a futures contract with the St. Louis Rams.
In 1999, Warner was an unprotected player for the Rams in the NFL expansion draft. He remained with the team and eventually became the second-string quarterback behind Trent Green. Green tore his ACL which made Kurt the starting quarterback for the Rams.
That season, Kurt Warner would go on to lead the St. Louis Rams to Super Bowl XXXIV (34) where they would defeat the Tennessee Titans, 23-16.
In December of 2021, American Underdog was released telling the story of Kurt's life.