Bart Starr is never mentioned among the greatest quarterbacks in NFL History.

Names like Johnny Unitas, Joe Montana, Peyton Manning, Dan Marino and Tom Brady are usually mentioned in conversation as being the greatest signal-caller ever.

Starr, who died Sunday at the age of 85, will always have an important place in the NFL history books in my opinion. Starr won five NFL Championships and was MVP of the first two Super Bowls with the Green Bay Packers. Starr also scored the game-winning touchdown in one of the NFL’s most famous contests, the Ice Bowl.

I met Starr, a Montgomery native, 25 years ago when I was working at The Sun Herald in 1994. I was working on a story about the current Packers quarterback, Brett Favre, who just became a household name. I wanted to know what Starr thought of Favre.

Starr told me he admired Favre’s abilities and wished him well. The two eventually became close friends over the years.

We all know what happened: Favre led the Packers to a Super Bowl title in 1997, became the NFL’s career passing leader and eventually got inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

One of the coolest sporting moments I ever saw on TV came during Thanksgiving Day, 2015 when an ailing Starr attended Favre’s retirement ceremony. The capacity crowd at Lambeau Field exploded when the two icons embraced.

Starr was a highly-regarded recruit at Sidney Lanier High School in 1953. He chose Alabama over Kentucky, who was then coached by Paul Bryant.

Starr was poised to become Alabama’s star quarterback after helping the Crimson Tide to an Orange Bowl win over Syracuse in 1952.

Fortunes changed for Starr when J.B. “Ears” Whitworth replaced Thomas Drew as the Crimson Tide coach. For some strange reason, Whitworth kept Starr on the bench. Whitworth was so terrible that Alabama went out and hired Bryant in 1957. Bryant led the Crimson Tide to four six national championships.

Starr also became the first of three Alabama quarterbacks inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame: Joe Namath and Ken Stabler. The trio won a combined four Super Bowl titles.

Starr always kept his Alabama ties and was in the car dealership in Birmingham for many years. Thank you for the memories, Bart Starr. You will never be forgotten.