SPORTS TEAMS CHICAGO 1930 PRO
SPORTS TEAMS CHICAGO 1930 PROFESSIONAL

It had just about everything, including a trick play Giants’ quarterback Harry Newman and center Mel Hein concocted just for the occasion. Facing a new powerful New York Giants team that featured Hall of Famers such as Mel Hein, Ray Flaherty, and Ken Strong, the 1933 title game became an instant classic. Behind future Hall of Famers George Musso, Bill Hewitt, Link Lyman, Grange, and Nagurski, Chicago cruised to the Western division title and their second straight world championship game. In 1933, the NFL split into the Eastern and Western divisions. Behind this behemoth of the gridiron, the Bears shut out the Packers to finish the 1932 regular season, beating the Portsmouth Spartans for the league’s best record. Once again, the Bear became the class and envy of the league. Nagurski was as iconic as Grange had been five years earlier. Their roster was a who’s who of the NFL, including a bruising fullback aptly named Bronco Nagurski. The 1930sīy the early 1930s, the Bears were firmly established as the NFL’s glamor franchise. It was national news, an audacious and unprecedented move. Not only did Halas become the first owner to sign a college player, but he also managed to sign the greatest collegiate ever.

Back then, the name ‘Red Grange’ became synonymous with football in the same way the name ‘Babe Ruth’ was synonymous with baseball. In the fall of 1924, the public’s interest in football was awakened by the sensational breakaway running of a university of Illinois halfback named Red Grange. And while the NFL didn’t have a legend of its own, Halas knew exactly where to find it. Giants like Bobby Jones, Jack Dempsey, and Babe Ruth were icons. The mid-20s were the golden age of American sport. But George Halls wasn’t content with mere survival. And the Bears did survive, finishing near the top of the league in both 19. With little or no protective gear, injuries were common, and a gladiator mentality became part of the game’s ethos, which was all about surviving. The old-timers were really tough, none more so than Ed Healey, who became the first player ever sold from one team to another, when Halas purchased him from the Rock Island Independence for 100 dollars. And only a year later, the coach decided to change the team name to the ‘Bears.’ And in their first year in Chicago, the Staleys remained just unbeatable, going 9:1:1, while claiming their first league title. Young Halas seemed to have a knack for this football business. But as the crowds grew, it was clear that the team was outgrowing Decatur. In 1921, the freshly formed team called the Decatur Staleys won 10 games, tied two more, and lost only one in the inaugural NFL season. Staley, who owned corn products firm in Decatur, Illinois, came up with a hundred bucks and commissioned Halas to organize and coach his team.

SPORTS TEAMS CHICAGO 1930 PRO

(His face and the athletic figure could still serve as a perfect centerpiece for any pro football event social media design !) He managed to set an NFL record that would stand for more than half a century when he outraced the legendary Jim Thorpe and returned a fumble of 98 yards for a touchdown. And a scrappy young defensive end named George Halas attended.

SPORTS TEAMS CHICAGO 1930 PROFESSIONAL

And in September of 1920, Ralph Hayes, owner of the Canton Bulldogs, assembled a group of visionaries to discuss the possibility of forming a professional league.

But a few men saw more than regional blood feuds in the game’s future.

In 1920, professional football was little more than a collection of ragtag teams eking out a hardscrabble existence.

Sports teams chicago 1930