Alum Mike Spofford embraces 'Insider' role with Packers

As he scans the memories of more than 18 years as one of the signature voices at packers.com, the Green Bay Packers' official website, Mike Spofford '94 stops on a moment during Super Bowl XLV in February 2011. He's seated next to then-general manager Ted Thompson in the press box in Cowboys Stadium-now AT&T Stadium-as the Packers' Nick Collins returns a first-half interception for a touchdown.

"When in the press box, everyone is charged with staying professional," Spofford said. "You don't cheer, you keep your emotions in check. I'll never forget that interception. Ted is containing himself, but he stands up and he's watching Nick Collins weave through the Steelers and get the ball across the goal line for the touchdown. You could tell how excited he was. He sat down real quietly, looked around, and he put out his fist and we fist-bumped right there in the press box."

The interception is a moment that brings chills to Packers' fans everywhere. And it is a Super Bowl moment the Lawrence University alumnus puts at the top of a lengthy list of golden moments as one of the featured storytellers for one of professional sports' most successful and tradition-rich franchises. The Packers would win that game, their fourth Super Bowl championship, and Spofford, along with other full-time employees of the Packers' organization, would receive a Super Bowl ring.

Mike Spofford '94 shows the Super Bowl ring he received after the Packers won their fourth Super Bowl in February 2011. (Photo by Danny Damiani)

An English and Spanish double major when he graduated from Lawrence 30 years ago, Spofford is beginning his 19th season with the Packers as the NFL kicks off its 2024 campaign. He now serves as editor of packers.com, joining senior writer Wes Hodkiewicz as the "Insiders" for Packers fans around the world. From daily fan interaction columns, to podcasts, to live-blogging, to video insights, to locker room coverage, to social media, Spofford and his expansive multimedia team provide a year-round avalanche of coverage from their offices at Lambeau Field, located 30 miles north of the Lawrence campus.

The evolution of the job into an interactive, multimedia experience-particularly over the past decade-reflects what media consumers now demand. Look for even heightened interest as the Jordan Love-led Packers show signs of being a Super Bowl contender once again and Green Bay prepares to host the NFL Draft in April 2025, bringing upwards of 250,000 football fans to northeast Wisconsin.

If you want to connect with someone in the know, Spofford is your guy. The interactive "Insider" columns can draw 30,000 views on a given day during the season. His gameday live blog reaches 5,000 or more fans, and the "5 Takeaways" recap he posts shortly after games routinely surpasses 50,000 views.

"They want to talk with somebody who is on the inside," Spofford said of the insatiable interest in all things Packers. "They want to talk to somebody who is knowledgeable and can analyze the details. They want to have that extra connection to the team."

From the start of training camp to the close of the season, the hours are unrelenting. Fun, yes. Easy, no.

When Spofford started in 2006, the Packers were just dipping their toes into what their internet presence might look like.

After earning his Bachelor of Arts degree at Lawrence and a master's in journalism from Northwestern University, Spofford spent eight years in newspapers, including five years covering mostly high school and college sports at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. He joined packers.com as the website's first full-time writer.

As reflected everywhere in media, the digital demands and creative possibilities have since exploded. And it is there, Spofford said, in the navigating of an ever-changing landscape, that he reflects on lessons learned as an undergraduate at Lawrence.

"First it was the writing," he said. "As an English major, it was about learning how to write; learning how to think critically and get those thoughts on paper and communicate them effectively. There was a transition from taking those very hard-core academic writing skills I learned as an English major and transferring those into the journalism world-how to communicate with news stories and feature stories. It's a different kind of writing, but sound writing principles apply universally. I felt like I became a good writer at Lawrence and then refined those skills in the journalism world as I went along."

The evolution of digital media-and the expectations of those who consume it-brought new challenges. The world of professional sports has been at the forefront of much of that change. Again, Spofford leaned into his Lawrence experiences as he soaked up knowledge from mentors and embraced the frequent change.

"I feel the Lawrence influence in that I am always aware of different perspectives," he said. "I don't want to write the same stories that everybody else is writing. I want to try to find a different angle. And I don't want our daily interaction with our fans on the website to sound like a sports talk radio show. I want to provide different perspectives, different angles to give people-whether they are reading the mailbag column or listening to the podcast-different things to think about. I think that's what a liberal arts education like Lawrence has helped me with; I apply that every day in what I do."

Both of Spofford's parents are Lawrence alumni-William Spofford '66 and Sandra McDonald Spofford '66.

Lawrence, he said, felt right when he made his college visit. A native of Platteville, he played baseball and golf and studied abroad in Spain during his Lawrence years. He worked at The Lawrentian for four years, the final two as the sports editor.

"Sports has always been my thing," Spofford said. "I always had an eye toward sports journalism."

His experiences at Lawrence and then Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism set him up to tell stories as a respected "Insider" at the highest levels of professional sports. And, he hopes, to get a second Super Bowl ring. The fans he connects with each day are along for the ride.

"Once you open those doors and you establish that interaction with the fans and that relationship with the fans, there is no going back; you give them something new to come to every single day," Spofford said. "It grows exponentially from there."