The 83-year-old Halas, who was one of the founding owners of the NFL in 1920, flipped a coin. I'm still wondering what coin. Real? Ceremonial? Silver dollar? 20 dollar double eagle gold?
Halas was driven onto the field in a 1920 Hubmobile to commemorate the 1920 founding of the NFL, and how and where it was founded (see end of this article).
The Chicago Bears 1,000-game history started in Decatur, Ill. in 1920 when the Staley Starch Company decided to sponsor a football team. Then on September 17, 1920, the Staleys, with George Halas as their representative, joined the American Professional Football Association, which was renamed the National Football League in 1922.
Chicago Bears owner and former head coach George Halas shakes hands with Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Jack Lambert before the coin toss of Super Bowl XIII. Also in the photo are Steelers players Joe Greene (#75) and Sam Davis (#57).
Skip to 4:20 for the car to drive onto the field
Both teams entered the game with the best defenses in the league (the Cowboys only allowed 107.6 rushing yards per game while the Steelers only allowed 107.8)
this was the final Super Bowl telecast, and his last major event for NBC, before moving to CBS later in 1979.
The matchup of quarterbacks Terry Bradshaw and Roger Staubach is still the only one in Super Bowl history to feature two quarterbacks with two Super Bowl victories. This was the first Super Bowl that featured a rematch of a previous one (the Steelers had previously beaten the Cowboys, 21–17, in Super Bowl X), and both teams were attempting to be the first club to win a third Super Bowl.
Due to its thrilling nature and the performances by both teams leading to a close game, it is considered one of the greatest Super Bowls.
The game featured a combined 26 Hall of Famers (15 from the Steelers and 11 from the Cowboys).
This was the first Super Bowl played on grass to match two teams which played their home games on artificial turf.
this was the final Super Bowl telecast, and his last major event for NBC, before moving to CBS later in 1979.
The matchup of quarterbacks Terry Bradshaw and Roger Staubach is still the only one in Super Bowl history to feature two quarterbacks with two Super Bowl victories. This was the first Super Bowl that featured a rematch of a previous one (the Steelers had previously beaten the Cowboys, 21–17, in Super Bowl X), and both teams were attempting to be the first club to win a third Super Bowl.
Due to its thrilling nature and the performances by both teams leading to a close game, it is considered one of the greatest Super Bowls.
The game featured a combined 26 Hall of Famers (15 from the Steelers and 11 from the Cowboys).
This was the first Super Bowl played on grass to match two teams which played their home games on artificial turf.
Ralph Hay, an Ohio car dealer with a Hupmobile showroom at the corner of Second and Cleveland streets in Canton, became the owner of the highly successful Canton Bulldogs in 1918. Over the next few years, he and other pro football team owners began to realize that an organization to oversee many teams on a national level that could also standardize the rules was the next logical step for the sport.
The result of an August 20, 1920, meeting at the Ralph E. Hay Motor Company in Canton, Ohio, which was attended by representatives from the Akron Pros, the Canton Bulldogs, the Cleveland Indians, and the Dayton Triangles resulted in the formation of the American Professional Football Conference.
Less than a month later, a second meeting was held at the same location and drew reps from teams beyond Ohio's borders - the Hammond Pros and Muncie Flyers from Indiana and the Rock Island Independents, Decatur Staleys (the team George Halas served as a player-coach for prior to being renamed the Chicago Staleys after he became its player-coach-owner and then became the Chicago Bears), and Racine Cardinals from Illinois were among them.
The result of an August 20, 1920, meeting at the Ralph E. Hay Motor Company in Canton, Ohio, which was attended by representatives from the Akron Pros, the Canton Bulldogs, the Cleveland Indians, and the Dayton Triangles resulted in the formation of the American Professional Football Conference.
Less than a month later, a second meeting was held at the same location and drew reps from teams beyond Ohio's borders - the Hammond Pros and Muncie Flyers from Indiana and the Rock Island Independents, Decatur Staleys (the team George Halas served as a player-coach for prior to being renamed the Chicago Staleys after he became its player-coach-owner and then became the Chicago Bears), and Racine Cardinals from Illinois were among them.
By the end of the meeting, the American Professional Football Conference became the American Professional Football Association, and 1912 Olympic Gold medal winner and star player for the Bulldogs, Jim Thorpe, became its president.
Also in attendance at that historic meeting was a 1920 Hupmobile, just like the one pictured here. Dubbed "Pro Football's Most Significant Automobile," according to the placard next to the car, George Halas recalled that there weren't enough chairs for all who attended the meeting, so some of the representatives of the teams sat on the running boards of the Hupmobile while making pro football history that night in Canton.
Two years later, the American Professional Football Association was renamed the National Football League.
https://www.hemmings.com/stories/2014/05/30/what-a-1920-hupmobile-has-to-do-with-the-founding-of-the-national-football-league
https://www.si.com/nfl/2014/05/27/nfl-history-in-95-objects-hupmobile
https://www.vanderbiltcupraces.com/blog/article/mystery_friday_foto_31_the_only_vintage_automobile_located_in_this_museum
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2020/sep/17/league-its-own-nfl-was-formed-car-dealership-100-y/
https://pigskindispatch.com/home/Football-Fun-Facts/Hupmobile-Showroom-Meeting
The story is told that in the early days of the Decatur Staleys when Papa Bear was both coach and player, he would have a plant with a small dog seated in the grandstand. If the team was out of time-outs toward the end of a game and desperately need one, the plant would throw the dog onto the field and the officials would have to call an official time out.
ReplyDeleteA number of observers have offered that Halas and Vince Lombardi had a deep respect for each other, which was the basis for an enduring friendship. Two remarkable guys, for sure.
Great piece of Americana and great information from "rik." Thanks to both of you.
ReplyDelete