Ben Coates gives a speech after being inducted into The Hall at Patriot Place presented by Raytheon.
Foxborough, Mass. - Thousands of Patriots fans gathered on Patriot Place Plaza on Saturday to witness the re-induction of 12 members of the Patriots Hall of Fame and the induction of the Hall of Fame's 13th member, tight end Ben Coates, who was elected by Patriots fans in 2008.
Patriots Hall of Famers Nick Buoniconti, Gino Cappelletti, Coates, Steve Grogan, John Hannah, Mike Haynes, Stanley Morgan, Steve Nelson, Babe Parilli and Andre Tippett were on hand for the re-induction ceremony as part of the Inaugural Induction Weekend at The Hall at Patriot Place presented by Raytheon.
Following a video tribute to their career, each Hall of Famer was called to the stage and presented a red Patriots Hall of Fame blazer by Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft before taking questions from emcees Gil Santos and John Rooke. Following the ceremony, the Hall of Famers entered The Hall, where they are immortalized on 30-foot high, six-foot wide video pylons that are visible from both inside and outside the state-of-the-art the building.
"One of the greatest things about sports is the bond players and fans share. You feel like you've lived through the same experiences and share the same memories," said Kraft. "That was one of our motivations in building The Hall. We wanted to create a place where our fans and alumni could visit and relive those moments together. We wanted to preserve the legacy of this franchise and give our greatest players the most prominent display of any hall of fame in the world."
"Ever since the Kraft family took over this organization, they've made me feel welcome," said 2008 Hall of Fame inductee Ben Coates. "It's great to come back and see this magnificent place that they've built now. This is just great."
The re-induction ceremony was the signature event of the Inaugural Induction Weekend at The Hall at Patriot Place presented by Raytheon. On Sunday, the Patriots Hall of Famers will be recognized at halftime of the Patriots-Dolphins game. On Monday, Sept. 22, The Hall will open to the public for the first time.
Hall at Patriot Place presented by Raytheon
On Thursday, the Patriots unveiled the new permanent home of the Patriots Hall of Fame, The Hall at Patriot Place presented by Raytheon. The Hall is the crown jewel of Patriot Place and the only sports and education experience of its kind in the world.
Through a dazzling array of interactive and immersive multimedia exhibits and artifacts never before viewable by the public, The Hall. In partnership with Raytheon, The Hall showcases the history of the New England Patriots and promotes math and science education through football for the thousands of schoolchildren expected to visit each year.
The experience begins as visitors enter an elevator on the ground floor and hear a voice from Patriots history welcoming them to The Hall. The journey continues throughout 36,000 square feet and two stories until visitors reach one of The Hall's signature exhibits and its premier photo opportunity: the Patriots' three Lombardi trophies.
The Hall features interactive exhibits designed to educate and entertain. Visitors can receive instruction from Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick on how plays in the Patriots playbook are designed. They can also step inside a game-used replay booth and make the call on an instant replay review with instruction from NFL Vice President of Officiating Mike Pereira. Fans of all ages can test their vertical leap with help from Patriots running back Laurence Maroney, test their reaction time with instruction from Patriots center Dan Koppen, or compare their weight to NFL players with the help of 325-pound Patriots nose tackle Vince Wilfork.
In partnership with Raytheon Company, The Hall at Patriot Place presents an integrated math and science education program with lesson plans designed to combine elements of The Hall's exhibits in an engaging educational platform for visiting school groups. Additionally, all visitors can experience the "In the Numbers" exhibit, presented by Raytheon, which uses football to teach math and science in a fun and interactive way.
Throughout The Hall are 19 high-definition touch screen kiosks, allowing visitors to interact with the exhibits in unique ways. Four and a half hours of exclusive video content is displayed on 11 60-inch high-definition TV monitors, seven projection screens and the 48-foot-wide panoramic movie screen in the Raytheon Theater, where a 15-minute signature film showcasing the history of the Patriots and their fans plays every 20 minutes. Exclusive audio experiences take Patriots fans into Gillette Stadium's tunnel as the team prepares to take the field, into the huddle as a play is called, and onto the sideline during a game.
Each of the 13 members of the Patriots Hall of Fame is immortalized on 30-foot high, six-foot wide video pylons utilizing the first Magink digital ink display in the United States. Fans can choose which Hall of Famer to highlight on one of four touch screen kiosks, causing the pylons to come alive with video and images of each player while additional information is displayed on the screen below.
To complement the audiovisual experience, there are thousands of football artifacts on display at The Hall, ranging from the priceless (a football from the 1876 Harvard-Yale game) to the quirky (the infamous snow plow that cleared the way for a Patriots win over the Dolphins in 1982) to the sublime (Doug Flutie's 1984 Heisman Trophy).
Tickets are $10 for adults, $7 for seniors and military and $5 for children 5-12. Children 4 and under are admitted for free. The hours or operation are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday. The Hall is not open during Patriots home games.
