| Where
you can meet PFRA Members: |
|
Thursday, September 23rd, 7:00PM. Orland Park Public Library, 14921
Ravinia Avenue, Orland Park, IL. Joe Ziemba will present a special program
commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Chicago Cardinals departing the
City of Chicago.
Saturday, October 9th, 1:00PM. Mokena Public Library, 11327 W. 195th
Street, Mokena, Illinois 60448. Joe Ziemba will present a program based on
his book
When Football Was Football: The Chicago Cardinals and the Birth of the NFL.
June/July, 2012. PFRA Bi-Annual Meeting. NFL Films, Mount Laurel, NJ.
Details to be announced soon. |
New PFRA Mailing Address:
Professional Football Researchers Association
740 Deerfield Road
Warminster, PA
18974
Updated Information:
Members Only
- Updated August 28, 2010 (Updated
Game Officials, Updated All-Pros 1955-59)
All-America Football
Conference Committee
- Updated August 21, 2010 (Added Bob
Kennedy Death Information)
Committees
- Updated July 24, 2010 (Added
World Football League Committee)
Oral History
Committee
- Updated June 27, 2010 (Added Bill
Parcells and Gil Brandt)
Hall of Very Good
Committee
- Updated November 14, 2009 (Added
Class of 2009)
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WHAT'S IN THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE COFFIN CORNER (Volume
32, Number 4):
(Due to the membership by August 14, 2010)
Clark Shaughnessy and the 1949 Los Angeles Rams by TJ Troup. A recap of
the 1949 season for the Los Angeles Rams.
Podolak's Playoff Picasso by Joe Zagorski. A story about Kansas City
Chiefs' running back Ed Podolak and the 1971 Divisional Playoff Game against the
Miami Dolphins.
1983 Olympics in Green Bay by Andrew Prein. a detailing of the October
17, 1983 game between the Green Bay Packers and the Washington Redskins in which
both teams combined to score 95 points.
History in the Present: Success Then Can Mean Success Now by Dave
Bonchi. Coach Dave Bonchi goes into detail on the Wildcat formation.
PFRA Website Update by Ken Crippen. The executive director updates the
membership on new additions to the PFRA website, including linescores, gamebooks,
historical player draft, uniforms of past teams and player deaths.
Opportunity Seized: Muzzy Field and the Lost Game of the 1943 Green Bay
Packers by Douglas S. Malan.
A look at how the New London Diesels were able to schedule a game against the
Green Bay Packers on November 28, 1943.
The Greatest Quarterback Draft Class - 1971 by Doug Bigelow. The
author makes a case for the 1971 quarterback draft class being the greatest of
all-time, over the Class of 1983.
The Merchants of Minerva by John Seaburn. A brief history of the
Minerva Merchants, a semi-pro team from Ohio.
Research Notes by Joe Meeks. The author analyzes the 1933 rushing
statistics, as well as the 1925 schedule of the New York Giants.
NEW FOOTBALL BOOKS BY PFRA MEMBERS:
From Baltimore to Broadway: Joe, the Jets, and the Super Bowl III Guarantee - by
Ed Gruver. From Baltimore to Broadway is the first book that tells the complete
story of Super Bowl III, from recollections of the Colts as well as the jets.
The outcome of this seeming mismatch would impact far more than just the Jets
and the Colts. The AFL had seen its previous two champions, Kansas City and
Oakland, humbled by the Green Bay Packers in the first two Super Bowls. Had the
Jets been beaten badly by Baltimore, as experts predicted, the worth of the
coming merger between the warring leagues would have been damaged and the
legitimacy of the Super Bowl as a true championship contest called further into
question. Super Bowl III was a moment in time when the sport's past, present and
future met in historical intersection. To the men who made it happen, who played
a role in its final outcome, Super Bowl III is more than just a game that
changed pro football. It's an event that changed their lives and continues to
impact them to this day.
Game Changers: 50 Greatest Plays in Buffalo Bills Football History (50 Greatest
Plays in Football History) - by Marv Levy and Jeff Miller.
Jeffrey Miller has teamed up
with Buffalo Bills Hall of Fame coach Marv Levy for his latest book, “Game
Changers: The Greatest Plays in Buffalo Bills Football History” (Triumph). From
“The Hit Heard ‘round the World” and “Big Ben” through “Wide Right” and “The
Music City Miracle,” Miller and Levy relive the most unforgettable on-the-field
moments in Bills history. The authors provide fascinating context for each of
the plays, the back story, all the relevant circumstances, and the thoughts of
many of those directly involved. Lushly illustrated with color and b&w photos
that help you follow the play as it unfolds, “Game Changers” reanimates many of
the most thrilling and heart-stopping moments in football.
Gridiron Gauntlet: The Story of the Men Who Integrated Pro Football, in Their
Own Words - by Andy Piascik. One year before Jackie Robinson broke the
color line in major league baseball, four black players joined the Cleveland
Browns and Los Angeles Rams to become the first African-American pro football
players in the modern era. Players who began their careers from 1946 to 1955
reminisce about the violence they faced on and off the field, the world of
segregation and the violence it brought, but also of white players and coaches
who assisted and supported their careers.
Nothing Comes Easy: My Life in Football - by Y.A. Tittle and Kristine
Setting Clark. Tittle's autobiography covers his life beginning with his
Marshall, Texas, schoolboy heroics, continues through his time at Louisiana
State University, and includes his many years in the professional ranks. His
football story culminates with the Giants climactic playoff loss to the Chicago
Bears in 1963. This loss, Tittle's last chance at a championship, is captured in
the Sports Illustrated Photo of the Century, showing Tittle kneeling on the
field, bleeding from the head. As he describes the glorious and not so glorious
games, players, life on the road, and his path after football, Tittle delivers
the kind of awe-inspiring story that can only come from the man who has lived
this incredible life. With a foreword written by his good friend and former
teammate, Frank Gifford, Y.A.'s lively account of his life and Hall of Fame
career will appeal to fans of all ages.
On Any Given Sunday: A Life of Bert Bell - by Bob Lyons. Bert Bell, a
native of Philadelphia, has been called the most powerful executive figure in
the history of professional football. He was responsible for helping to
transform the game from a circus sideshow into what has become the most popular
spectator sport in America. In On Any Given Sunday, the first biography of this
important sports figure, historian Robert Lyons recounts the remarkable story of
how de Benneville “Bert” Bell rejected the gentility of a high society lifestyle
in favor of the tougher gridiron, and rose to become the founder of the
Philadelphia Eagles and Commissioner of the National Football League.
The Original Buffalo Bills: A History of the All-America Football Conference
Team - by Kenneth R. Crippen. The Buffalo Bills of the National Football
League are known for having a fervent fan base, but the city's love affair with
their football team dates back more than half a century. As members of the
fledgling All-America Football Conference, the Buffalo Bills were one of the
strongest teams in the league in 1948 and 1949, their final years of play. The
team had such an impact on the city and on professional football that current
franchise owner Ralph Wilson, when searching for a home for his American
Football League team, settled in Buffalo and named the team in honor of the
original Bills.
Quarterback Abstract - by John Maxymuk. Each quarterback's statistical
information is presented here, from his scoring totals to his draft status and
personal information. Author John Maxymuk has devised a sophisticated rating
system that compares the quarterbacks across the decades. Who were they? What
were their playing styles? How good were they? A full spectrum of numerical data
is presented, from passing and rushing data to fourth-quarter game-winning-drive
totals and won-lost records. Maxymuk also provides incisive analysis and
interesting anecdotes, fleshing out each field general's personality.
This Day in Football: A Day-by-Day Record of the Events that Shaped the Game - by
T.J. Troup. A full football season of facts, history, and nostalgia, this book
will tell you the date the record for passes attempted was broken (94 on
11/1/53) as well as the game in which a defensive tackle lined up as a tight end
to make the only touchdown reception of his career (William Perry, Chicago
Bears, 11/3/85), and much, much more.
WHAT'S BEING DONE BY PFRA COMMITTEES:
All-America Football
Conference Committee
Central and Northern New
York Committee
Hall of Very
Good Committee
Linescore
Committee
Pre-NFL Pro Football Committee
Western New York Committee
Rochester
Jeffersons Subcommittee
Oral History
Committee
Television Commentators Committee
Uniforms
of Past Teams Committee
USFL
Committee
OTHER NOTABLE WORK BY PFRA MEMBERS:
20YardLine.com
Buffalo All-Americans/Bisons Historical Society
Football Project
Ghosts of the Gridiron
Gridiron Greats Magazine
Hickock Sports
Official Site of the Dayton Triangles
Philly Sports
Stories
Pro Football Archives
Rock Island Independents
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