Okla-homey
8/20/2009, 06:27 AM
August 20, 1920: Professional football is born
http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/7953/nflshrunkuc1.gif
89 years ago on this day in 1920, seven men, including legendary all-around athlete and football star, Oklahoman Jim Thorpe, meet to organize a professional football league at the Jordan and Hupmobile Auto Showroom in Canton, Ohio. The meeting led to the creation of the American Professional Football Conference (APFC), the forerunner to the hugely successful National Football League.
http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/5752/thorpegw3.jpg
Jim Thorpe in Canton Bulldogs uniform
Professional football became possible because of developments in the 1890s in western Pennsylvania, as local athletic clubs engaged in increasingly intense competition.
Former Yale football star William "Pudge" Heffelfinger became the first-ever professional football player when he was hired by the Allegheny Athletic Association to play in a game against their rival the Pittsburgh Athletic Club in November 1892.
http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/3126/explorepahistorya0k7b7aqf3.jpg
Even if William "Pudge" Walter Heffelfinger had not become football’s first professional player, his reputation would have endured. The Minnesotan was a three-time All-American at Yale, where he was considered the finest player of his day, virtually creating the position of pulling guard. After college, he coached at the University of California, Lehigh, and the University of Minnesota through most of the 1890s before entering the insurance business.
By 1896, the Allegheny Athletic Association was made up entirely of paid players, making it the sport’s first-ever professional team. As football became more and more popular, local semi-pro and pro teams were organized across the country.
Professional football first proved itself a viable spectator sport in the 1910s with the establishment of The Ohio League. Canton, the premiere team in the league, featured legendary decathlete and football star Jim Thorpe. From his play with the Carlisle Indian School to his gold medal in the decathlon in Stockholm in 1912 and his time in the outfield with John McGraw’s New York Giants, Thorpe was an international star who brought legitimacy to professional football.
The crowds that Thorpe and the Canton team drew created a market for professional football in Ohio and beyond. Still, the league was struggling due to escalating player salaries, a reliance on college players who then had to forfeit their college eligibility and a general lack of organization.
On this day in 1920, the owners of four Ohio League teams--the Akron Pros, Canton Bulldogs, Cleveland Indians and Dayton Triangles--met to form a new professional league. Jim Thorpe was nominated as president of the new league, as it was hoped Thorpe’s fame would help the league to be taken seriously. On September 17, the league met again, changing its short-lived name to the American Professional Football Association (APFA) and officially electing Jim Thorpe as the league’s first president.
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Akron Pros meeting minutes
The APFA began play on September 26, with the Rock Island Independents of Illinois defeating a team from outside the league, the St. Paul Ideals, 48-0. A week later, Dayton beat Columbus 14-0 in the first game between two teams from the APFA, the forerunner of the modern NFL.
However, the scheduling was left up to each team. There were wide variations, both in the overall number of games played and in the number played against other Association members. Thus, no APFA standings carried over into the NFL which was established in 1922.
The Akron Pros ended up being the only undefeated team in the Association. Thus, at the league meetings in Akron on April 30, 1921, the team was awarded the championship of the 1920 season.
Final 1920 APFA Standings
Team W L T PCT
Akron Pros 8 0 3 1.000
Decatur Staleys 0 1 2 .909
Buffalo All-Americans 9 1 1 .900
Chicago Cardinals 6 2 2 .750
Rock Island Independents 6 2 2 .750
Dayton Triangles 5 2 2 .714
Rochester Jeffersons 6 3 2 .667
Canton Bulldogs 7 4 2 .636
Detroit Heralds 2 3 3 .400
Cleveland Tigers 2 4 2 .333
Chicago Tigers 2 5 1 .286
Hammond Pros 2 5 0 .286
Columbus Panhandles 2 6 2 .250
Muncie Flyers 0 1 0 .000
http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/2615/trianglesprogram1925hp7.gif
The Canton, OH is home to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, hearkening back to that city as the cradle of the professional football.
http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/1678/1271bl4.jpg
http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/7953/nflshrunkuc1.gif
89 years ago on this day in 1920, seven men, including legendary all-around athlete and football star, Oklahoman Jim Thorpe, meet to organize a professional football league at the Jordan and Hupmobile Auto Showroom in Canton, Ohio. The meeting led to the creation of the American Professional Football Conference (APFC), the forerunner to the hugely successful National Football League.
http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/5752/thorpegw3.jpg
Jim Thorpe in Canton Bulldogs uniform
Professional football became possible because of developments in the 1890s in western Pennsylvania, as local athletic clubs engaged in increasingly intense competition.
Former Yale football star William "Pudge" Heffelfinger became the first-ever professional football player when he was hired by the Allegheny Athletic Association to play in a game against their rival the Pittsburgh Athletic Club in November 1892.
http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/3126/explorepahistorya0k7b7aqf3.jpg
Even if William "Pudge" Walter Heffelfinger had not become football’s first professional player, his reputation would have endured. The Minnesotan was a three-time All-American at Yale, where he was considered the finest player of his day, virtually creating the position of pulling guard. After college, he coached at the University of California, Lehigh, and the University of Minnesota through most of the 1890s before entering the insurance business.
By 1896, the Allegheny Athletic Association was made up entirely of paid players, making it the sport’s first-ever professional team. As football became more and more popular, local semi-pro and pro teams were organized across the country.
Professional football first proved itself a viable spectator sport in the 1910s with the establishment of The Ohio League. Canton, the premiere team in the league, featured legendary decathlete and football star Jim Thorpe. From his play with the Carlisle Indian School to his gold medal in the decathlon in Stockholm in 1912 and his time in the outfield with John McGraw’s New York Giants, Thorpe was an international star who brought legitimacy to professional football.
The crowds that Thorpe and the Canton team drew created a market for professional football in Ohio and beyond. Still, the league was struggling due to escalating player salaries, a reliance on college players who then had to forfeit their college eligibility and a general lack of organization.
On this day in 1920, the owners of four Ohio League teams--the Akron Pros, Canton Bulldogs, Cleveland Indians and Dayton Triangles--met to form a new professional league. Jim Thorpe was nominated as president of the new league, as it was hoped Thorpe’s fame would help the league to be taken seriously. On September 17, the league met again, changing its short-lived name to the American Professional Football Association (APFA) and officially electing Jim Thorpe as the league’s first president.
http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/7214/meetingminutesenlargedrt9.gif
Akron Pros meeting minutes
The APFA began play on September 26, with the Rock Island Independents of Illinois defeating a team from outside the league, the St. Paul Ideals, 48-0. A week later, Dayton beat Columbus 14-0 in the first game between two teams from the APFA, the forerunner of the modern NFL.
However, the scheduling was left up to each team. There were wide variations, both in the overall number of games played and in the number played against other Association members. Thus, no APFA standings carried over into the NFL which was established in 1922.
The Akron Pros ended up being the only undefeated team in the Association. Thus, at the league meetings in Akron on April 30, 1921, the team was awarded the championship of the 1920 season.
Final 1920 APFA Standings
Team W L T PCT
Akron Pros 8 0 3 1.000
Decatur Staleys 0 1 2 .909
Buffalo All-Americans 9 1 1 .900
Chicago Cardinals 6 2 2 .750
Rock Island Independents 6 2 2 .750
Dayton Triangles 5 2 2 .714
Rochester Jeffersons 6 3 2 .667
Canton Bulldogs 7 4 2 .636
Detroit Heralds 2 3 3 .400
Cleveland Tigers 2 4 2 .333
Chicago Tigers 2 5 1 .286
Hammond Pros 2 5 0 .286
Columbus Panhandles 2 6 2 .250
Muncie Flyers 0 1 0 .000
http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/2615/trianglesprogram1925hp7.gif
The Canton, OH is home to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, hearkening back to that city as the cradle of the professional football.
http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/1678/1271bl4.jpg