Film crew focuses on Wilson footballs, from 'factory to field'

ADA — The mystery is about to be solved. Sort of. Ada Mayor Dave Retterer said a documentary film crew came to town in December in search of people to talk to about the Hardin County village and the Wilson Sporting Goods Co. which makes all of the NFL — and Super Bowl — footballs at its factory on Liberty Street. Retterer said he met the documentary team at Tavern 101 on Main Street, but has not yet seen the finished product. "Most of them were athletes who had become movie producers," he said. "When he came over to talk to them, the guy said he was looking for people to interview, and this buddy of mine said, 'Well, that's the mayor sitting right there.'" Retterer, who is in his 19th year as mayor, said the conversation centered around what Wilson has done for the town. "I talked about, we help them out some and they help us out a good bit. And then they talked about the university (Ohio Northern University) and its relationship with Wilson and the fact that Wilson gives the university their footballs," he said. The factory also attracts people to Ada for tours, and gets a lot of press during the Super Bowl especially, he noted. Retterer even took the team over to see the 10-foot-long football that was made for the first "Made in Ada Wilson Football Festival" in 2017. The mayor had for some time dreamed of a giant football dropping down upon Ada on New Year's Eve. While this never materialized, the football drop was instead incorporated into the annual festival. "The interview was very informal and it was very pleasant. They hung out there for a couple of hours. It was a great experience," Retterer said, adding that one of the men thought maybe the film would be shown during the Super Bowl. At the Wilson factory, quality manager Mike Springer said he wasn't sure what the crew's visit was all about, either. But he checked the company's Facebook page which included teasers about a documentary focusing on The Duke, the official football of the NFL, and chronicling the ball's journey from "Factory to Field." The two-part film was created by Wilson advisory staff members Spencer Paysinger and Dane Morck. Paysinger, a former NFL player and Super Bowl champion with the New York Giants, and Morck, a former collegiate football player, set out to capture not just "The Duke," but the tradition, legacy and influence the ball has left on the game and its players. "Ever since our relationship with Wilson began, we realized just how much history there is with this brand, and how much storytelling there is to be mined," the men wrote in blog post on the website. "We wanted to tell a story that not only reflects our own sport and life experiences (playing with the Duke) but also captures some of the unsung heroes behind the ball and the Super Bowl." So the two headed to Ada. "Seeing that process up close and personal was beyond cool," Morck wrote in the blog. "I've held this football my entire life and I never knew where it came from." The film is set to premiere today in Los Angeles, according to the blog post. Retterer said one of the men also hoped to be able to bring the film to Ada sometime in the future. Wolf: 419-427-8419