Past Venue: Hagemeister Park

Green Bay, WI



Year opened: pre-1920
Capacity: 200

Names:
Hagemeister Park

Pro football tenants:
Acme/Green Bay Packers (APFA/NFL), 1919-23

Postseason games hosted:
None

Other tenants of note:
None

Notes: The site was a vacant lot owned by Hagemeister Brewery and adjacent to Green Bay’s East High School. Initially, it was completely open and spectators stood behind ropes along the sidelines and followed the action up and down the field. A small bleacher section of stands was constructed in 1920 and in ’21 a fence built around the exterior, thus allowing for admission to be charged. There were no locker rooms for the players, and at halftime the teams would adjourn to opposite end zones to discuss strategy – sometimes aided by spectators who wandered over from the sidelines.

Fate: Torn down in 1923 as part of construction of a new Green Bay East High School building, which still occupies the location.

1984: Bulls Lose Heartbreaker to Generals Before 73,227 in Jacksonville

One of six new United States Football League teams for 1984, the Jacksonville Bulls started their season off in a big way with a 53-14 opening win over the Washington Federals before a home crowd of 49,392. Head Coach Lindy Infante, former offensive coordinator of the NFL’s Bengals, put together a team that drew heavily on players who had played collegiately with schools in Florida and Georgia, and QB Matt Robinson, a product of the Univ. of Georgia who played for the NFL Jets and Broncos, performed well in the opener. For their second game, on March 4, a USFL-record 73,227 fans packed the Gator Bowl to see the new club take on the New Jersey Generals.

The Generals had been a disappointment in the USFL’s first season, finishing at 6-12, but were revamped during the offseason, starting with a new owner, real estate magnate Donald Trump. Walt Michaels, late of the Jets, was the new head coach and several veteran players had been signed away from the NFL – most notably ex-Cleveland Browns QB Brian Sipe to bolster the offense and linebackers Willie Harper and Bobby Leopold, DE Marshall Harris, CB Kerry Justin, and FS Gary Barbaro to improve a defense that had ranked last in the league in ‘83. They won their opening game at Birmingham. However, Sipe had to sit out the game in Jacksonville with a knee injury – backup Gene Bradley started for the Generals.

The Bulls scored first on a one-yard run by FB Michael Whiting just over four minutes into the first quarter. New Jersey responded with a drive that appeared to have stalled and come up empty when Roger Ruzek missed a 30-yard field goal attempt. However, the Bulls were penalized for roughing the kicker, and taking advantage of the break, the Generals tied the score early in the second quarter on a one-yard touchdown carry by star RB Herschel Walker.

Jacksonville came back in the second quarter to retake the lead as Robinson connected on a nine-yard touchdown pass to TE Paul Bergmann, but the extra point was missed, making the score 13-7. Late in the period, Generals LB Bobby Leopold (pictured above) intercepted a Robinson pass and returned it 16 yards for a New Jersey TD. With the successful extra point, New Jersey took a 14-13 advantage into halftime.

The Generals extended their lead when Walker capped a 76-yard drive on New Jersey’s first possession of the second half with a one-yard touchdown run, making it 21-13. The Bulls chipped away, as Danny Miller kicked two field goals before the period was over to make it a two-point game.

In the fourth quarter, another interception by the Generals led to a score. LB Jim LeClair picked off Robinson at the Jacksonville 22, setting up a five-yard scoring run by Bradley four plays later. New Jersey now had a 28-19 lead with 3:26 left in the fourth quarter.

Following Bradley’s TD, the Bulls responded with an eight-play drive that resulted in a seven-yard scoring pass from Robinson to WR Gary Clark to make it once again a two-point contest with 1:45 still on the clock.

It appeared the Bulls might pull off a win for the big home crowd when they successfully recovered the ensuing onside kick at midfield and drove into field goal range. However, Miller’s attempt from 41 yards was unsuccessful as it curved over the right upright, and New Jersey escaped with a 28-26 win.

Of the missed field goal attempt, Miller said it “really looked like it might have been over the upright…The wind was swirling in there. Ordinarily the ball floats for me, and it went a little bit to the right.”


Jacksonville outgained the Generals (383 yards to 307) and had more first downs (22 to 13). However, they turned the ball over five times, to two suffered by the Generals. While Matt Robinson completed 28 of 51 passes for 329 yards and two TDs, he also threw three interceptions, in particular the two costly ones deep in his own territory that led to scores.

RB Larry Mason paced the Bulls with 69 yards on 14 carries. Paul Bergmann caught 6 passes for 86 yards and a TD, and Gary Clark also had 6 receptions, for 57 yards and a score. For Clark, the rookie out of James Madison, the touchdown was his first as a pro and, while he would end up scoring three in the USFL, he compiled 65 over the course of 11 years in the NFL, as well as catching 699 passes for 10,856 yards.

For New Jersey, Herschel Walker gained a relatively low 72 yards on 21 carries that included the two short touchdown runs. FB Maurice Carthon was right behind with 67 yards on 18 attempts. Phil Bradley completed 8 of 17 passes for 140 yards with an interception. WR Clarence Collins caught three passes for 34 yards and TE Sam Bowers gained 57 yards on two receptions. Bobby Leopold had a notable game on defense, not only scoring on the interception return, but forcing Mason to fumble the ball away near the New Jersey goal line to prevent a score.

Jacksonville maintained good fan support throughout the year (attendance averaged 46,736 per home game), but went a disappointing 6-12 to finish at the bottom of the Southern Division. The defense was weak, the running game poor, and there were many injuries. The veteran Robinson ended up splitting the quarterback job with second-year pro Robbie Mahfouz. However, Gary Clark had a good rookie season, catching 56 passes for 760 yards and two TDs.

New Jersey went on to a 14-4 record to finish second in the Atlantic Division and qualify for the postseason as a wild card. They lost in the first round to the division-rival Philadelphia Stars.

1985: Invaders and Stars Play to Only USFL Tie

Just as it has been the case in the NFL since 1974, the use of limited overtime during the regular season made ties unlikely in the United States Football League. However, one game did end in a tie during its three-year existence - on March 3, 1985 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, the Oakland Invaders and Baltimore Stars played to a deadlock.

The visiting Stars, under Head Coach Jim Mora, were the defending league champions. With the projected move to a fall schedule for 1986, the franchise moved from Philadelphia to Baltimore in order to not have to face direct competition with a NFL club. Relocating was causing difficulties for the team, which was upset by Jacksonville in the season-opening game the week before. The Stars still practiced in Philadelphia and were forced to play home games at the University of Maryland’s Byrd Stadium due to the unavailability of Memorial Stadium in Baltimore.

While the Invaders, like the Stars, were in the league for the third year, they had undergone a transformation during the preceding offseason. With the USFL consolidating some franchises, the Oakland team had been combined with the Michigan Panthers, thus creating a far stronger club. The Invaders had put together two mediocre seasons in a weak division, but Michigan had been in the playoffs both years and won the championship in 1983. As a result, key additions to the Oakland offense were QB Bobby Hebert, WR Anthony Carter (pictured above), and running backs Albert Bentley and John Williams, all stalwart performers for the Panthers. They had won their opening game against Denver after starting slowly and rallying in the fourth quarter.

There were 20,495 fans in attendance as the Stars dominated in the first half. Four minutes into the contest, Baltimore QB Chuck Fusina threw to WR Victor Harrison for a 61-yard touchdown and early 7-0 lead.

Fusina, who was nursing a thumb injury suffered during the season-opening loss, threw for an 11-yard TD to WR Herbert Harris in the second quarter. Meanwhile, the Stars were keeping Oakland’s offense in check.

It seemed as though the Stars had the game wrapped up when they extended their lead to 17-0 in the third quarter, following a 27-yard David Trout field goal. The solid defense had held the Invaders to just 101 yards and five first downs up to that point.

But on the last play of the third quarter, Hebert passed to WR Gordon Banks for a 42-yard touchdown to make it 17-7. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Harris fumbled on the kickoff return and Oakland recovered, setting up a 40-yard field goal by Novo Bojovic to make it a seven-point game.

Now it was Baltimore having trouble moving the football, and with time running out in regulation, the Invaders drove 59 yards in 31 seconds to tie the score. Hebert threw to Carter for an 18-yard touchdown with one second left on the clock and, with the successful extra point, the contest was forced into overtime.

Both teams had opportunities to win during the extra period. With 4:25 left to play, Trout missed a 49-yard field goal attempt for the Stars. Michigan’s Bojovic tried for a 48-yard field goal with 1:47 remaining, but Baltimore LB George Cooper blocked the kick. As a result, the final score was 17-17.

The Stars outgained the Invaders (374 yards to 330) and had more first downs (22 to 16). However, they also turned the ball over four times (one interception, three fumbles) to three by Oakland, and the Invaders sacked Fusina seven times, while Baltimore’s defense got to Hebert on four occasions.

Chuck Fusina completed 20 of 30 passes for 272 yards with two touchdowns and the one interception. The Stars gained 148 yards on the ground, led (as usual) by star RB Kelvin Bryant, who gained 74 yards on 18 carries. RB Allen Harvin caught 5 passes for 41 yards, while Victor Harrison had 77 yards on his two catches, including the one TD.


For Oakland, Bobby Hebert (pictured at left) went to the air 46 times and had 19 completions for 302 yards with two touchdowns and two picked off. Anthony Carter caught 6 passes for 152 yards, including the game-tying TD. The Invaders were able to rush for only 55 yards on 26 attempts, and John Williams accounted for 35 of those yards on 13 carries.

“We came back, and we should have won,” said Bobby Hebert afterward. “Our defense played great. Why we don't play well the first three quarters is something I can't answer. It s just something that's happening.”

The Invaders lost badly to Houston the following week, but rebounded with three straight wins, on the way to placing first in the Western Conference at 13-4-1.

Baltimore continued to struggle, losing at Memphis before finally beating the New Jersey Generals convincingly. They were 5-6-1 two-thirds of the way through the season, and looked unlikely to repeat as champions, but then finished strong with five wins in their last six games to end up at 10-7-1. That placed them fourth in the Eastern Conference, but also got them into the playoffs where they won twice on the road to return to the USFL Championship game – a rematch with the Invaders that they won.

1931: Portsmouth Spartans Announce Hiring of Potsy Clark as Head Coach

On March 2, 1931, owner Harry N. Snyder of the NFL’s Portsmouth Spartans returned to that Ohio city from Indianapolis and announced the hiring of George “Potsy” Clark to be the team’s head coach. He indicated that he had been in negotiations with Clark at the Severn Hotel for six hours before reaching an agreement.

“There was a difference in the salary Clark asked for and what we are able to pay and it was some time before we finally came to terms,” said Snyder. The contract was said to be in the neighborhood of $5000. Clark was also being sought by Indiana University to be an assistant, but preferred the opportunity to be a head coach.

Clark succeeded H.W. “Tubby” Griffen, who had resigned two months previously. During the 1930 season, the team’s first in the NFL, the Spartans were 5-6-3 to place eighth in the 11-team league (there were no divisions at that point). With good talent to work with, Griffen was accused of being too lax. The Spartans promised Clark complete control over personnel.

Clark, who picked up his nickname as a child in Carthage, Illinois, played college football first at William & Vashti College and then at the University of Illinois under Head Coach Bob Zuppke. Following graduation, he accepted his first coaching job, at the University of Kansas, which was followed by service in the Army during World War I (in addition to seeing combat in Europe, he also coached service football teams).

He returned from the military to his first head coaching job, at Michigan Agricultural College (now Michigan State University), which went 4-6 in 1920 and featured a wide-open offense. From there it was back to Kansas, where he was head coach for five years and the team tied for a Missouri Valley championship with Nebraska in 1923. After a year as an assistant at Minnesota, Clark became Athletic Director and head coach at Butler University. He did well in three years, but a shakeup of the athletic program forced his resignation. He sat out the 1930 football season, instead running an insurance business, but was eager to return to coaching.

Clark brought a new intensity to coaching the Spartans, and it paid off. The team went a surprising 11-3 in ’31, for a second place finish that was just a game behind the champion Green Bay Packers. In addition to Clark’s coaching, an influx of talented rookies that included tailbacks Dutch Clark and Glenn Presnell, tackle George Christensen, and guard Ox Emerson fueled the team’s rise in the standings.

The Spartans came even closer to a championship in 1932. Another impact rookie, FB Ace Gutowsky, joined the team and Portsmouth went 6-1-4 and, since ties didn’t count in determining winning percentage at that time, finished even with the 6-1-6 Chicago Bears at the top of the standings. A game was arranged between the two teams to determine the champion (while it is sometimes treated as the first NFL Championship game, it was not technically a postseason game since the result counted in the regular season standings). The contest was so hastily scheduled that the team’s best all-around player, Dutch Clark, had already left for his off-season job as basketball coach at Colorado College and couldn’t make it back in time to play against the Bears. Due to bad weather conditions, the contest was held indoors at Chicago Stadium on an 80-yard field and the Bears won, 9-0.

Dutch Clark was gone altogether in 1933, retiring for a year to coach, and while Presnell played well in his absence, the team lost two key games to the Bears. With the NFL now reorganized into divisions, the Spartans finished second in the Western Division at 6-5. It was, however, the end of the line for the franchise in Portsmouth. The team had barely made ends meet throughout its existence, and the Great Depression was adding to the burden of trying to field a pro team in a small city. It was a testament to Coach Clark’s leadership that the team remained competitive when gate receipts were low and meeting the payroll was an uncertainty (late in the ’33 season, both coaches and players were paid in stock instead of cash).

Following the 1933 season, the franchise was sold to George Richards, a radio executive who moved the club to Detroit and renamed it the Lions. Dutch Clark came out of retirement and the team started off with ten straight wins in ’34, including a record streak of seven consecutive shutouts. Two late, close losses to the Bears kept the Lions from winning the Western Division, but they firmly established themselves in their new city and were a solid 10-3.

The Lions won the NFL title in 1935, going 7-3-2 and beating the Giants in the Championship game. The team ran the ball with great effectiveness and was still formidable defensively. They dropped to third in ’36, but with an 8-4 record in the highly-competitive division. Nevertheless, in a stunning move, owner Richards fired Clark as head coach and replaced him with Dutch Clark, who acted as player-coach.

Potsy Clark didn’t stay unemployed for long, as he was quickly hired as head coach by the Brooklyn Dodgers. Brooklyn did not have the same level of talent as Clark had been used to in Portsmouth and Detroit, and had posted losing records in 1935 and ’36. They went 3-7-1 under Clark, but the addition of star tailback Ace Parker during the season had an effect as the Dodgers closed out with a convincing win over Pittsburgh and a tie against the Giants.

Following a .500 finish in 1938, the Dodgers sank back down to 4-6-1 in ’39 and Clark was gone. An ownership change in Detroit led to him being rehired by the Lions for 1940. While star tailback Byron “Whizzer” White, last with Pittsburgh in 1938, joined the team after completing a year as a Rhodes scholar at Oxford, the club no longer had the overall talent that Clark had enjoyed previously and finished at 5-5-1.

Potsy Clark left pro coaching for good after the 1940 season. His combined record of 64-42-12 produced an outstanding .603 winning percentage and included a league title. At the time, only George Halas of the Bears, Curly Lambeau of the Packers, and Steve Owen of the Giants had accumulated more wins as NFL head coaches.

Clark returned to college coaching, as well as military service during World War II, putting in stints at the University of Grand Rapids and Nebraska. His last season as a head coach was in 1948 with the Cornhuskers, and his overall record at the college level was 46-47-7. He served as athletic director at Nebraska until 1954 and at California Western until ’56, when he retired from sports altogether.

Potsy Clark was a good administrator and strong disciplinarian as a coach. He was also affable and a great storyteller, making him a much-requested after-dinner speaker at sports banquets. As a NFL head coach, he was one of the most successful of his era and made the small-city Spartans a contender, as well as winning a championship with the big-city Lions.

MVP Profile: Frankie Albert, 1948

Quarterback, San Francisco 49ers



Age: 28
4rd season in pro football, 3rd in AAFC & with 49ers
College: Stanford
Height: 5’10” Weight: 166

Prelude:
After excelling as a T-formation quarterback at Stanford under Head Coach Clark Shaughnessy, Albert served four years in the Navy during World War II and saw action with the Los Angeles Bulldogs of the Pacific Coast Football League in 1945. He then joined the 49ers of the new All-America Football Conference (he had also been drafted by the NFL Chicago Bears). What he lacked in height and arm strength, he made up for in ball-handling skill and passing accuracy, particularly on roll-outs. The 49ers went 17-9-2 in their first two seasons, and Albert established himself as one of the AAFC’s best quarterbacks.

1948 Season Summary
Appeared in all 14 games
[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]

Passing
Attempts – 264 [5]
Completions – 154 [5]
Yards – 1990 [5]
Completion percentage – 58.3 [1]
Yards per attempt – 7.5 [5]
TD passes – 29 [1]
Most TD passes, game – 4 at Brooklyn 11/21
Interceptions – 10 [9]
Passer rating – 102.9 [1]

Rushing
Attempts – 69
Yards – 349 [18]
Yards per attempt – 5.1
TDs – 8 [4]

Pass Receiving
Receptions – 1
Yards – 1
Average gain – 1.0
TDs - 0

Punting
Punts – 35 [8]
Yards – 1568 [8]
Average – 44.8 [2]
Punts blocked – 0

Scoring
TDs – 8 [10, tied with Al Baldwin & Lou Tomasetti]
PATs - 1
Points - 49 [13]

Awards & Honors:
AAFC MVP: League (co-winner)
1st team All-NFL/AAFC: Sporting News
1st team All-AAFC: NY Daily News
2nd team All-AAFC: League, UPI

The 49ers went 12-2 to finish second in the AAFC Western Division, and were the league’s highest-scoring team (495 points).

Aftermath:
Albert again led the AAFC in TD passes in the league’s last season (1949) and was selected to the first Pro Bowl when the club moved over to the NFL in 1950. However, he also had his lowest-rated pro passing season in ’50 and his production dropped off in his last two years in San Francisco (1951 and ‘52). He played one year with Calgary of the CFL before retiring, returning to the 49ers as head coach from 1956 to '58.

--

MVP Profiles feature players who were named MVP or Player of the Year in the NFL, AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press, Pro Football Writers Association, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, Maxwell Club – Bert Bell Award, or the league itself).

[Updated 2/15/14]
[Updated 1/5/15]

Past Venue: Titan Stadium

Detroit, MI
aka University of Detroit Stadium



Year opened: 1922
Capacity: 25,000

Names:
Known as Titan Stadium, University of Detroit Stadium, and Dinan Field throughout its existence.

Pro football tenants:
Detroit Wolverines (NFL), 1928
Detroit Lions (NFL), 1934-37, 39
Michigan Arrows (ContFL), 1968

Postseason games hosted:
NFL Championship, Lions 26 Giants 7, Dec. 15, 1935

Other tenants of note:
University of Detroit, 1922-64

Notes: The Lions played their first two home games of the 1939 season at the stadium but returned to Briggs Stadium for the remainder of the year. Owned by and used for University of Detroit football until the school dropped the sport following the 1964 season. The stadium was used for club football from 1967-71. Also used for track & field. An oddity was that the stadium’s light towers stood between the stands and the field.

Fate: Demolished in 1971, the site is now used as a parking lot. The light towers remained standing for several years afterward to illuminate the lot.

[Updated 2/3/14]

1984: Outlaws Defeat Maulers in USFL Debut Game for Each

The United States Football League added six new franchises for its second season, and two of those teams were matched up on February 26, 1984 at Tulsa’s Skelly Stadium to open their regular season.

The host Oklahoma Outlaws, coached by the former defensive coordinator of the NFL Steelers, Woody Widenhofer, featured a veteran quarterback in Doug Williams (pictured above). Williams, dissatisfied with his contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was lured to the Outlaws and provided instant credibility at the key position on offense.

The visiting Pittsburgh Maulers, under Head Coach Joe Pendry, also had a marquee name on the roster, although it was a rookie rather than veteran player. RB Mike Rozier won the 1983 Heisman Trophy at Nebraska and would be starting his first pro game. The team’s quarterback was Glenn Carano, a veteran backup with the Cowboys.

The weather conditions were far from ideal, as the contest was played in a steady downpour with gusty winds and a wind chill that dipped into the 20s. It certainly dampened the turnout, as 11,638 attended the game; there were 4300 reported no-shows.

The bad weather induced sloppy play. Three first half drives by the Outlaws ended in fumbles, but the Maulers were unable to capitalize on the turnovers despite making it inside the Oklahoma 30 on two occasions. The first ended with Mickey Barilla missing a 40-yard field goal attempt, and the second came up empty when Rozier was thrown for a two-yard loss in a fourth-and-one situation at the Oklahoma 29.

Pittsburgh finally scored on a Barilla field goal from 32 yards out with eight seconds left in the half, finishing a drive that was highlighted by a 20-yard Carano scramble to the Outlaws’ 28 yard line. Meanwhile, Oklahoma’s offense was unable to advance at all into Pittsburgh territory during the first half, and the Maulers held a 3-0 lead at the intermission.

Oklahoma finally put together a scoring drive in the second half, going 80 yards for the only touchdown of the game. In a key play, former Steelers RB Sidney Thornton ran 34 yards on a trap to the Pittsburgh 8. At just over a minute into the fourth quarter, Williams threw a swing pass to FB Derek Hughes that covered 12 yards for the TD.

Pittsburgh responded by driving to the Oklahoma 19 yard line as Carano completed a 13-yard pass to WR Greg Anderson on a fourth-and-six play along the way, but the Maulers were stopped when Carano threw incomplete on a fourth-and-12 pass intended for WR Reggie Butts.

With 2:56 remaining, Pittsburgh’s last shot came up short when Carano was intercepted by LB Terry Beeson at the Oklahoma 37. The Outlaws came away the winners of the sloppy contest by a final score of 7-3.

Neither team mounted much offense, with the Maulers outgaining Oklahoma (219 yards to 172) and accumulating the most first downs (11 to 9). The Outlaws also turned the ball over four times, to three by Pittsburgh.

Doug Williams completed just 9 of 22 passes for 62 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Sidney Thornton paced the running game for the Outlaws with 66 yards on 12 carries. WR Lonnie Turner led the team with a mere 17 yards on two catches.

For the Maulers, Glenn Carano was successful on 10 of 21 passes for 101 yards, and was picked off twice. Greg Anderson led all receivers with three catches for 45 yards. Carano also was the team’s leading rusher with 29 yards on 10 carries. Mike Rozier (pictured below) had a rough debut, running for only 27 yards on 16 attempts - he had just two carries for four yards in the second half. Having joined the team late, his lack of familiarity with the offense’s plays proved a hindrance.


“This is the first time we've won and if feels great,” Woody Widenhofer said. “We needed to win the first game to get the feeling of what it's like.”

Widenhofer stated further, “They are an excellent football team defensively, but our offense broke open their defense in the second half. We made adjustments after halftime. We ran the ball very well in the second half against their five defensive backs.”

“I sure can't complain about how it turned out,” summed up Doug Williams. “I can't complain at all. I wanted to win this game as bad as I've ever wanted to win a game.”

“I thought our defense did extremely well,” said Coach Pendry of the Maulers. “With a good passing game like Oklahoma has with Doug Williams, sometimes you're .going to break a draw or a trap and that's exactly what happened.”

However, Pendry wasn't happy with the offense. “We have to go back to Pittsburgh and look at the films and see what happened,” he said. “We made lots of first-game mistakes out there.”

Pendry failed to last the entire season as the Maulers compiled a 3-15 record, tying the Washington Federals not only at the bottom of the Atlantic Division, but for the USFL's worst record. Mike Rozier ultimately rushed for 792 yards on 223 carries (3.6 avg.).

Oklahoma got off to a promising 6-2 start, but lost the remaining 10 games to end up at 6-12 and in fourth place in the Central Divison. The lack of an effective running attack, combined with the collapse of the defense and late-season loss of Doug Williams to a knee injury, ultimately did the Outlaws in.