Naval Midshipman Roger Staubach Snares The Coveted Heisman As A Junior In 1963

During the 1963 collegiate season, Navy dusts off its past and again ascends as a major eastern football power behind the speedy legs and accurate arm of junior Roger Staubach, an athletic (6’2 190) yet otherwise unassuming quarterback from Cincinnati. Staubach leads the resurgent Middies to an 8-1 season behind impressive victories over Michigan, Pitt, and Notre Dame, leads the nation in passing accuracy (67.3%), and stands tall in NYC after the Downtown Athletic Club awards the future naval ensign the Heisman Trophy for his efforts. Staubach becomes only the fourth junior in Heisman history to snare the coveted honor.

Staubach again rates among the top passers across the nation during his senior season, yet misses out on the Heisman to John Huarte of Notre Dame. During the postseason North South All-Star Game, Staubach impresses all with his deep passing to unheralded yet speedy wide out Bob Hayes of Florida A&M, and the pair form a fast and lifelong friendship that pays dividends to both men in their future years. Annapolis deems Staubach as one its all time football greats and retires his number 12 field jersey after the 1964 season.

Despite a naval commission commitment that expires in 1969, the Dallas Cowboys sagely wait one season before drafting the serving midshipman in the tenth round during the December 1965 NFL Player Draft. Staubach, playing both the coy and sincere sides of the coin, signs a contract with the Star only upon the condition that he holds the final call on whether to step between the lines after serving out his commitment.

As Cal-Berkeley star QB L. Craig Morton steps in to replace the hobbled and outgoing Don Meredith as quarterback, Dallas quietly awaits the arrival of greatness, and Staubach eventually pays off on the Cowboys’ clever wager with enormous dividends.

Colts' Kicker Jim O'Brien Becomes Immortal After His Game Winning Split Against Dallas In Super Bowl V

The perennial bridesmaid Dallas Cowboys meet the Baltimore Colts before 80,000 at the Orange Bowl for Super Bowl V in January 1971. The Colts and franchise owner Carroll Rosenbloom still smart from their humiliation by Joe Namath in ever memorable Super Bowl III, yet enjoy the fat transfer payment received from the AFL in order to relocate into the post merger AFC. Baltimore rolls through its new conference at 11-2-1 and stuns Oakland in the title game. The Cowboys, noted for their ‘Doomsday Defense’, desperately seek redemption for head coach Tom Landry after a series of postseason thumpings at the hands of Cleveland and the Mighty Packers.

With the contest knotted at 13-13 and only a minute remaining in the most tightly waged Super Bowl to date, Baltimore catches a break when linebacker Mike Curtis snares a pass carom off Dallas running back Dan Reeves and returns the same back to the Cowboys’ 28 yard line. The Colts run three plays into the line before rookie kicker Jim O’Brien, already shaky after suffering a blocked PAT earlier in the game, nervously steps in and drills a deciding 32 yard split for both victory and eternity with only five seconds left to play.

The Cowboys fall victim to the football fates all afternoon, first on a 75 yard Unitas-Hinton-Mackey scoring play by carom that officials rule included a dubious intervening tip by Dallas defender Melvin Renfro. The Star also catches the dirty end of the stick by way of a devastating red zone close-call ‘fumble’ by running back Duane Thomas at the Baltimore 2 early in the third period (many observers still view the play as dead before the tackled Thomas releases the ball).

As the City of Baltimore celebrates its fourth NFL championship and gleefully scrubs away the terrible stain of Super Bowl III, the NFL Old Guard stands smug in the satisfaction that two of its own clubs represented both combatants in the 1970 league final.

1933 NFL mythical MVP honors deservedly go to New York Giants rookie quarterback Harry Newman, who establishes new league single season standards with 973 passing yards and 11 touchdown passes (Newman also accounts for 17 interceptions on the season).

NY Giants Rookie QB Harry Newman (Far Right) Passes His Way Through Brooklyn In December 1933

A young prospect out of Detroit, Newman elects to attend the University of Michigan and earns the quarterback position as a sophomore in 1930. An elusive runner and arguably the most effective passer in college football, the young quarterback leads the Wolverines to Big Ten conference titles in that same season and again as a senior in 1932. The NFL, already shifting around its own game to accommodate the growing popularity of the forward pass among fans, eagerly pursues Newman and the New York Giants win the bidding war for his services.

The Giants, with rookie Newman and newly acquired Stapleton star Ken Strong, swiftly ascend from mediocrity in 1933 and move atop the East Division tables with an 11-3 record, including victories in their final seven regular season games. Newman plays sensational football for a first year man, his effective passing leaves observers agog across the league, and the Giants barely miss out on championship glory when the Bears win the 1933 title by 23-21 in the final period on the now fabled Bill Hewitt-Billy Karr downfield lateral play.

Newman continues with his brilliant play before suffering two broken vertebrae in a November 1934 clash against the Bears. The quarterback retires after the Giants win the 1934 NFL championship, yet swift mending brings him back to the club for the 1935 campaign. Newman and Strong defect from the Giants in 1936 to join the newly devised American Football League (not the 1960s version) and serve as the loop’s primary stars before the experiment flames out in 1937.

Every pro football enthusiast knows of the infamous 1964 bonehead by Minnesota Vikings’ Jim Marshall, a classic on field blunder that earns the two-time Pro Bowl defensive end the indelible handle of ‘Wrong Way’ for the remainder of his career.

Wrong Way Marshall Earns His Handle In An October 1964 Contest Against San Francisco

An impact defensive lineman at Ohio State, Marshall gains national notoriety in November 1958 after his blocked punt AND interception returns for crosses in the final period rally the Buckeyes from a 14-0 deficit to knot a desperate contest against Big Ten rival Purdue. Cleveland drafts Marshall in the fourth round of the 1961 NFL Player Draft, yet season injuries leave him vulnerable to release and newly minted Minnesota signs the D-End for the 1962 season. Marshall thus stands as the first member of Minnesota’s still yet to ascend Purple Gang (Marshall, Larson, Eller, Page).

Fast forward to the 1964 season and a fated Week 7 contest against San Francisco at Kezar Stadium in late October.

With Minnesota leading 27-17 in the final period, the Vikings’ defensive wall swarms San Francisco quarterback John Brodie on a play deep in his own territory, forcing Brodie to desperately fire a quick flare pass to running back Billy Kilmer. Kilmer fumbles the ball after the catch at the 49ers’ 30 yard line and infamy strikes at that precise moment as D-End Marshall scoops up the loose obloid. On a stunning play that still boggles the minds of football enthusiasts the world over, Marshall next inexplicably sprints upfield in the same direction of the San Francisco offensive play and towards his own goal line. Marshall dashes away despite urgent screeching from his teammates, tosses away the football beyond the rear end zone boundary in celebration for his cross, and then grasps his helmet with both hands in utter disbelief when officials rule his wayward romp as a safety for San Francisco.

Despite his earnest explanations throughout the remainder of his career, Marshall never lives down the colossal blunder.

Both 1970 NFL conference title games (played on January 3, 1971), the first such meetings in the post merger era, serve as proper prologue for a fabulous decade of professional football, a compelling stretch of active play that many enthusiasts still characterize as the league’s ‘golden age’.

Duane Thomas' Third Period Plunge Puts Dallas On Top For Good Over San Francisco

On the NFC side, the perennial bridesmaid Dallas Cowboys break open the contest at 17-3 lead over San Francisco in the third period after defender Mel Renfro snares a pick off 49ers’ quarterback John Brodie at the Dallas 18 yard line and returns the same to his own 37. Dallas advances 29 yards across midfield behind quarterback Craig Morton, benefits from a huge 29 yard PI flag upon 49ers’ safety Mel Phillips in deep coverage against Bullet Bob Hayes, and pushes over on a five yard scoring pitch from Morton to running back Walt Garrison. The ascendant Cowboys finally break through and advance to the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history after four frustrating seasons as rookie running back Duane Thomas, still misunderstood by many current day football enthusiasts, carries all the mail with his 143 rushing yards on the afternoon. Disappointed San Francisco and Brodie glumly blame themselves for missed opportunities in the club’s first appearance in a title game since the 1949 AAFC season.

Over in the AFC, the Baltimore Colts reach the conference title game in their first season of transfer and seal the contest at 27-17 over Oakland in the final period on a 68 yard scoring stunner from veteran quarterback John Unitas to receiver Ray Perkins. The desperate Raiders, ineffective after the intermission, again call upon league uber hero George Blanda to yank them from the soup after losing starter Daryle Lamonica to a vicious sack by Baltimore lineman Bubba Smith. Star kissed Oakland finally runs out of miracles as Blanda stumbles in deep stretch and the woebegone Raiders, again on the outside looking in after two consecutive AFL title game defeats, grudgingly pin on the ‘just miss’ label dutifully dispersed by the football press.

Braves' Rookie Cliff Battles (center) Surges For Yardage Against Brooklyn In December 1932

Despite the seminal passing season executed by Green Bay quarterback Arnie Herber (636 passing yards, 9 pass TDs), we instead slant our mythical 1932 league MVP honors towards Boston Braves’ rookie running back Cliff Battles.

An elusive and relentless running back bred in the Midwest, Battles attends West Virginia Wesleyan, emerges as a prominent star, and turns heads in November 1931 with his seven touchdown scoring performance as WVW waxes Salem College by a margin of 51-6.

The Boston Braves enter NFL play in 1932 and franchise owner George P. Marshall, seeking to fill Braves Field, promptly signs the young WVW back. Battles impresses football observers during his rookie season after averaging 72 yards a game, well above his peers, and racking up 576 rushing yards (636 all purpose), both new single season standards. Battles also accounts for seven crosses during 1932, yet the Hub fan base simply yawns over his outstanding efforts and Marshall immediately begins considering relocating his fledgling club to more amenable surroundings.

Battles earns NFL First Team All Pro honors in 1933, 1934, and 1936, and the writers appropriately elect him to the PFHOF in 1968.

Chicago Bears franchise owner George Halas, closely observing the evolution of the running back during the late 1950s, drafts Willie Galimore out of Florida A&M in the 1956 Player Draft and the 6-1, 187 pound speedster immediately generates dividends for Papa Bear. Galimore only rushes for 538 yards during his rookie season, yet virtually all of his yards come on thrilling breakway and cutback plays that go for significant distance. Galimore provides a spark for the Bears’ slumbering offense and the young player morphs into a Second City sensation after his four rushing TD performance against the Rams in October. Regarded as the fastest player in the NFL, Halas utilizes Galimore on kick returns and opponents suffer fits trying to contain the youngster’s raw speed.

Bears Tailback Willie Galimore Serves As The Inspiration For George Halas' Selection Of Gale Sayers In 1964

Galimore enjoys a Pro Bowl caliber season in 1958, earns notoriety for his four TD performance in the exhibition Armed Forces Game in early September, and crosses 11 times during the campaign. After middling seasons in 1959-60, Galimore rushes for a career best 707 yards in 1961. Injuries slow the flashy back in 1962-63, yet he still manages to break off a set of exciting long distance rushes and score five crosses during the Bears’ championship run in 1963.

During training camp at St. Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, Indiana in July 1964, Galimore and teammate-receiver John Farrington take time out one afternoon after practice to drive out in Galimore’s VW for a round of golf at a nearby course. On a late evening return back to camp (1030 PM), Galimore inexplicably botches an easy curve on a Jasper County rural road and veers off an embankment. The violent return to earth throws the riders clear of the vehicle, and both players expire at the scene from severe trauma. Galimore’s career line halts at 2985 rushing yards (second in club history to Rick Casares), 1100 kick return yards, and 37 touchdowns.

Galimore’s sudden demise marks an eerie string of NFL mishaps over the prior year that include the unexpected deaths of Terry Dillon (drowns after a bridge collapses beneath him), Don Fleming (electrocution), and Tom Bloom (auto crash). The Chicago Bears earnestly mourn their fallen teammate, and football enthusiasts gain more insight into George Halas’ appreciation for Galimore’s talents after the owner drafts Kansas rushing sensation Gale Sayers for his club on the following season.

The San Francisco Forty Niners, considered by many football enthusiasts a sentimental relic from the erstwhile AAFC despite never reaching the NFL postseason during the fifties and sixties, finally break through in 1970 after a humbling 4-8-2 record in 1969. Led by quarterback John Brodie, the club’s offensive foundation since 1957, the 49ers rally from two consecutive losses in late November to win their final three regular season games, including a thorough 38-7 thumping of embarrassed host Oakland in Week 14. San Francisco at 10-3-1 holds off the rival Los Angeles Rams by just one game to win the NFC West Division title, the first in club history, as the rarely healthy Brodie (2,941 passing yards and 24 TD passes) earns league MVP honors.

San Francisco Quarterback John Brodie Proves His Star Power After Surviving The 1970 Season Without Injury

The giddy grins in North Beach go straight immediately after 49ers’ fans realize that their first NFL Divisional will take place in frigid Bloomington, Minnesota against the 12-2 Vikings on December 27. The football press incessantly babbles upon the built-in weather advantage enjoyed by Minnesota up in the ‘Icebox’ and repeatedly references the long standing Mark Twain quip about the writer’s coldest winter ever in summer San Francisco. Chimes in one AP reporter, “Twain clearly never set his gifted arse upon a metal bleacher seat at the Met in late December”. With barely a flicker, San Francisco head coach Dick Nolan and QB Brodie shrug off weather considerations. “They (the Vikings) can lose a toe to frostbite just as easily as we can”, retorts a 49ers’ lineman.

True to form, a Canadian cold front presents bone chilling conditions (9 degrees) on game day and the Vikings beat their war drums after safety Paul Krause scoops up a Ken Willard fumble for a 22 yard return and cross for an early 7-0 lead. Surprising all, San Francisco strikes right back with a 24 yard scoring pass from Brodie to receiver Dick Witcher and football enthusiasts lean towards their screens with sudden interest. A warning light blinks on all across American Lapland after a Bruce Gossett split lifts the 49ers to a 10-7 lead before the intermission.

Minnesota, once awaiting the eventual freeze up of San Francisco’s radiator, senses its own rising panic during the second half as the 49ers’ defense, anchored by Charlie Krueger, Cedric Hardman, and Tommy Hart, find sudden immunity to the cold and mercilessly harass Vikings QB Gary Cuozzo. Minnesota on its part forces two more San Francisco fumbles and effectively shuts down Brodie’s passing game. Both offenses slow to a crawl during the final period as the temperature approaches zero, yet the 49ers defense comes up big in the closing minutes after pinning back the Vikings deep in their own territory. Minnesota punter Tom McNeill only can boot a rock hard football 37 yards downfield from his own end zone and San Francisco makes its own break when rookie cornerback Bruce Taylor returns the same 23 yards back to the Vikings 14. The 49ers plow forward on a series of dives and Brodie heroically breaks open the contest at 17-7 on a one yard scoring plunge with only 80 ticks remaining. Minnesota scores a consolation touchdown on the game’s final play.

The Vikings scratch their heads at their upset loss in favorable winter conditions, yet San Francisco advances to the conference title game against Dallas for three simple reasons; a resolute defense that stops Minnesota cold on fifteen consecutive drives, two missed field goal attempts by steady Vikings’ kicker Fred Cox, and Brodie winning the efficiency matchup over opposite Cuozzo. The lanterns burn until dawn in foggy North Beach as the 49ers jet home to meet the Cowboys.

Packers Tailback John McNally Notches A League Record 14 Crosses Over The 1931 Season

The Green Bay Packers ascend as the NFL’s second dynastic franchise in 1931 with the capture of its third consecutive league championship. Verne’s Lewellen’s phantom touchdown against the Brooklyn Dodgers for a 7-0 victory on November 29 wins the Packers the title, yet the club reaches the position largely on the performance of mythical 1931 league MVP John ‘Blood’ McNally.

The studious McNally enters college at St. Johns in Minnesota yet does not even attempt football until his senior year after he joins a friend to play semipro football under the alias of ‘Johnny Blood’. McNally so impresses observers upon the gridiron with his elusive style that the running back, switching back to his real name, steals a final year of collegiate eligibility with Notre Dame. After middling seasons with Milwaukee, Duluth, and Portsmouth, the Packers sign the tailback to the cause in 1929.

McNally energizes head coach Curly Lambeau’s new strategy of utilizing the pass in 1931 by snaring an unprecedented 11 touchdown receptions as a tailback. His 14 total crosses over the campaign establishes a new NFL single season record formerly held by Tex Hamer.

Despite never receiving All-Pro status from the writers throughout his NFL career, McNally nonetheless earns charter enshrinement within the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963.

The NFL, along with the rest of society, maintains a tragic relationship between its players, taverns, and blue steel.

An Inexplicable Exchange In A Washroom Leads To The Tragic Death Of Tony Parrilli

University of Illinois offensive lineman Tony Parrilli receives acclaim as an all Big Ten selection and team MVP after the 1961 collegiate season, distinctions that earn him an eleventh round selection by San Francisco in the NFL Player Draft. Unfortunately, Parrilli fails to impress the Forty Niners and the Chicago Bears pick him off the waiver wire. After never playing a down for the Bears during 1962, NFL Washington signs the young lineman. Parrilli again disappoints during training camp and the Redskins release the former Illini in early September 1963.

The 23 year old Parrilli returns to the Chicago area and finds himself in Willowbrook, Illinois on New Year’s Eve 1963 celebrating with a group of Chicago Bears’ players at a festive party hosted at a bowling alley in part owned by Bears tight end Mike Ditka. The Bears gleefully celebrate their dramatic NFL title game victory over the New York Giants just days before (14-10, December 29), yet high cheer swiftly transforms into tragedy as the calendar changes over.

According to compiled news sources, salesman Ray Messmaker and wife attend the $25 party with friends and late in the evening, Messmaker makes a trip to the wash room after feeling sick to his stomach. While in the lave, Messmaker encounters an irritable Parrilli, who in turn makes a rude comment about Messmaker’s ignoble regurgitation moment. Messmaker (no pun intended) next exchanges words with Parrilli (Messmaker says he apologized for his upset, others suggest than an argument took place). According to news accounts, Bears’ fullback Joe Marconi enters the wash room and finds the two men in a fierce entanglement. Messmaker already suffers two black eyes from the close quarters battle.

News accounts next suggest that part time Willowbrook police chief Robert Winthers, also attending the party, and another officer rush into the wash room upon hearing the fracas. Winthers testifies that he encountered two football players involved in a fierce struggle with Messmaker. When the two officers fail at pulling off Parrilli and Marconi from Messmaker, Winthers retrieves his revolver and uses the butt end to hit and subdue Marconi on the forehead. The butt end strike somehow discharges Winthers’ weapon and a bullet enters Parrilli’s skull just above his left eye. Parrilli immediately expires from the wound.

A distraught Winthers attempts to explain the scenario to authorities, yet the latter fail to put the story pieces together until Messmaker hobbles into the police station on his own accord in order to relate the night’s events. Prosecutors believe Messmaker’s account and charge Winthers with involuntary manslaughter in late January 1964. After a drawn out trial that inescapably places blame for the tragedy upon Winthers’ risk laden action, the broken police chief pleads guilty to reckless conduct in September 1964. News reports never speak to the true reasons behind the inexplicable wash room exchange between Parrilli and Messmaker.