Hand 'Em the Hardware Trivia Quiz

Answer: 1970

After legendary Green Bay Packers/Washington Redskins coach Vince Lombardi died of cancer in the summer of 1970, The National Football League named the Super Bowl trophy in his honor. On January 17, 1971, the Baltimore Colts defeated the Dallas Cowboys 16-13 in Super Bowl V, the first Super Bowl played for the newly named trophy.

Answer: It was Brazil's third victory.

From 1930 until 1970, the Jules Rimet Trophy was awarded to the winner of the FIFA World Cup. The trophy was named after the FIFA president who initiated the tournament following a vote in 1929. It was stipulated by Rimet himself that should any nation win the trophy three times, that nation would be allowed to keep the trophy permanently, rather than have it passed along to the next winner.

After bulldozing Italy 4-1 in the 1970 final, Brazil won it's third World Cup, allowing them to retain permanent possession of Rimet's trophy.

Answer: The Boston Celtics

Prior to 1977, the winner of the NBA Finals was presented with the original Walter A. Brown Trophy, a cup which loosely resembled the NHL's Stanley Cup. Brown's trophy was passed from winner to winner each year, until the league commissioned a new design for the 1977 Finals bewtween the Portland Trailblazers and the Philadelphia 76ers.

Although it had a new design (the now familiar ball and basket), the trophy retained Brown's name until 1984, when it was renamed the Larry O'Brien Trophy. That year, the Boston Celtics defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in seven games, becoming the first team to win O'Brien's Trophy.

Answer: Jack Nicklaus

To commemorate Jack Nicklaus's retirement from the British Open Championship in 2005, the Royal Bank of Scotland issued a five pound note featuring the Golden Bear holding the Claret Jug. This rare banknote was the first piece of Scottish currency to feature a photo of a living person outside the Royal Family.

Answer: Marguerite Norris

In 1952, Marguerite Norris became the first female chief executive in NHL history after becoming President of the Detroit Red Wings. She inherited the position from her father James Norris Sr., who died in December of that year. In 1954, the Red Wings defeated the Montreal Canadiens in seven games to win their sixth Stanley Cup, allowing Marguerite to become the first woman to have her name engraved on the Cup.

Answer: Ed Smith

After being asked to sculpt the award for college football's most outstanding player, artist Frank Eliscu sought out his high school teammate Ed Smith to pose for the award. Smith, a New York City football legend now starring for NYU, agreed to help out his friend, and his now iconic stiff-arm pose soon made history. Smith wasn't exactly curious about what he was posing for, however.

He didn't learn until 1982, after being tracked down by a filmmaker, that he was the man on the Heisman Trophy.

Answer: The Jules Rimet Trophy

On March 20th, 1966, the Jules Rimet Trophy (awarded to the winner of the FIFA World Cup) was stolen during a stamp exhibit at Westminster Central Hall in Westminster, England. The World Cup was scheduled to be played in four months, and a panic ensued.

The trophy was soon found when a mongrel dog named Pickles, during a walk with his owner, discovered it wrapped in newspaper in a garden hedge. Host nation England won the Cup that year, and the now famous pooch was invited to celebrate with the team at their victory banquet.

The person who stole the trophy was never caught.

Answer: Ric Flair

In 1985, Jim Crockett Promotions ordered a new design for the NWA World Championship belt, held at the time by 'Nature Boy' Ric Flair. The belt's bombastic design earned it the nickname the Big Gold Belt, and is easily one of the most recognizable designs in pro wrestling history.

It later became the championship of Ted Turner's World Championship Wrestling. While the belt's look has been tweaked over the years, the basic design has achieved an astounding level of longevity by wrestling standards.

After World Wrestling Entertainment bought out WCW, the belt became the top prize on WWE's Smackdown TV show.

Answer: The Venus Rosewater Dish.

Originally awarded in 1886, The Venus Rosewater Dish was modeled after a pewter salver from the 1500's now displayed at the Louvre in Paris. The trophy's likeness is dominated in the center by an image of the Greek Goddess Sophrosyne, the embodiement of happiness.

Answer: The 1981 New York Islanders

Because the Stanley Cup is engraved solely by hand, several spelling errors have occured, many of which were never corrected. After defeating the Minnesota North Stars 4 games to 1 to win their second consecutive Cup, the 1981 New York Islanders fell victim to the dreaded typo, appearing on the Cup as the New York 'Ilanders'.

The Islanders were not the first, however. The 1963 Toronto Maple 'Leaes' were the first team to have their name butchered on Lord Stanley's trophy, followed nine years later by the 1972 'Bqstqn' Bruins.

Answer: 1949

Outlandish clothing has always been a staple of golf, and in 1949 Augusta National co-founder Clifford Roberts decided he'd seen enough. Roberts wanted to disassociate Augusta from what he considered to be an unredeeming trend, and quickly established a dress code for his beloved club.

The Green Jacket was born, becoming the mandatory apparrel for all of Augusta's members. That year, Sam Snead won his first Masters, becoming the first winner to receive the jacket. Because all members of Augusta were now required to wear one, green jackets were retroactively awarded to every previous Masters champion.

Answer: The Canadian Rugby Union

In 1909, Canadian Governor General Earl Grey donated a cup to be awarded to the nation's best amateur rugby football team. The competing clubs operated under the umbrella of the Canadian Rugby Union. On December 4th, 1909, The University of Toronto defeated the Toronto Parkdale Canoe Club by a score of 26-6 to become the first Grey Cup winner. Following a path similar to that of the more famous Stanley Cup, the Gey Cup soon fell under the thumb of professional sports, as the Canadian Football League eventually gained possession of the trophy.

Answer: The British Open (Golf)

Title belts have long been synonymous with individual combat sports, i.e. boxing, wrestling, MMA, etc. However, the first sport known to crown its champion with a belt was golf. In 1860, a field of eight professional golfers competed at the inaugural Open Championship at the Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland.

After winning the tournament by two strokes, Willie Park Snr. was awarded the Champion's Belt, a red leather strap featuring a silver buckle. The Champion's Belt was awarded each year until 1870, when legendary pro Tom Morris JR. was given outright ownership of the belt after winning the Open three straight years.

The belt was soon replaced by the now famous Claret Jug, first awarded in 1873 to winner Tom Kidd.

Answer: Super Bowl XXV

Named after the legendary former NFL commisionner, the Pete Rozelle Trophy was first awarded to NY Giants running back Ottis Anderson, following his team's victory over the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXV. Prior to Anderson, the Super Bowl MVP was awarded the SPORT Magazine Award, the same award once given to the MVP of the World Series.

Answer: The Jeweled Shillelagh

Many American college football rivalries feature a trophy which is passed along to each year's winner. One of the sport's more glamorous rivalries is the annual grudge match between Notre Dame University and the University of Southern California. The winner of the game receives the Jeweled Shillelagh, a trophy featuring a foot-long Irish war club. Each year, a medallion is added to the club in respect to that year's winner.

The trophy was first awarded in 1952, with medallions added retroactively to represent all previous winners dating back to the teams' first match in 1926.