TOp 5 pre-HOF (1963 it opened) players not in HOF

[Brian wolf]

I hope your idea discussed on Talkoffame network can get more traction with HOF voters and committees, John ... The Board of Owners, er Directors, might have to approve the two seniors per year first and I am sure they are not going to be happy with the coaches-contributor categories or a combined category rotating every other year, especially when they still want more owners getting elected. We will see but like you said, these four super seniors get a lot of attention that deserve the recognition.

[JohnTurney]

My conclusion is that IF, and it is a big "if" thee could be some sort
of pre-1963 class then the four leading voter getters here
would satisfy everyone.

If there were, say, 6-8 the final 2-4 would be all debatable...
and no one would be totally satisfied with any of the
2 or 4 if they didn't included someone they supported.

I have no idea what to do with Al Nesser and those guys. ..
I don't know enough on their impact on the game

the pre-NFL greats....


Ad for the 1920-62 guys. . . the Super Senior Four (SS4)
seem to be the top guys all around.

Not sure there could even be a consensus for the 2-4.. but
could be wrong Barwegan and some others got multiple votes

[TanksAndSpartans]

Not sure there could even be a consensus for the 2-4..

I think there's consensus around Lavvie Dilweg. He was an End prior to the time that position was measured by receiving. A top player on both sides of the ball who possibly got missed either because, like I said, he was essentially a lineman and we know lineman don't generate the same HOF interest as backs do, or maybe because other Packers got early HOF recognition and there could have been a feeling enough with all these Packers, who knows. I always thought it was interesting, that while I rank the HOF 1920's All-Decade Team as probably the worst one I've seen, it actually got Dilweg right.

Hoping @GameBeforetheMoney chimes in, but I think Wistert himself feels there was a reason why he wasn't voted in at the time, but he seems to be the second of a possible "Super 2" in our group.

Personally, after the HOF Centennial Class, I've lost interest in what the HOF does. They chose a group of 10 out of 20 candidates that seemed random enough to make the whole thing look like a popularity contest. I'd rather discuss the HOVG at this point. My concern would be if they are forced to put more Super Seniors in, what's to stop them from going with Hunk Anderson and Hugh Blacklock? I guess I'd prefer to see them stop rather than keep adding less deserving players because they played for someone's favorite team.

[GameBeforeTheMoney]

Yes, when I spoke with Al, he often wondered aloud if he wasn't put in because he didn't serve in the military during WW2.

And if you look at a lot of the guys who were inducted in the 60s and early 70s, when Al probably had his best chance, the players I can think of off the top of my head, they did serve in some capacity. I want to make clear that those players belong in the Hall of Fame, but it was (and still is) unclear how Al was overlooked. The military service part might have been the only answer he had for it.

I haven't looked into if all Hall of Famers who played during the WW2 era left for military service, but yes, a good number of them left either their pro or college careers for the military during WW2. And again, I'm not saying that there isn't anybody in there from that era that doesn't belong and I don't ever remember Al saying anything close to that either. He, like many of us, simply had difficulty understanding why he wasn't in. Thankfully, the Eagles retired his number and so did Michigan.

[TanksAndSpartans]

Thanks Michael. I was pretty sure it was your book where I read that. I hope the voters didn't hold that against him (a quick google search mentioned a wrist issue re: WWII). I felt bad when I read he felt that way - for me playing on the line, retiring in '51, a good number of years before the HOF opened, seem like likely explanations too.

[Brian wolf]

Great revisioned All Decade team for the 20s, on the Talkoffamenetwork Ken ... Very concise and well put together. Hopefully HOF voters will notice some of the guys that had cases for the Hall.

[Andy Piascik]

It's unfortunate that in his Talk of Fame Network interview, John presented this as a "PFRA poll" or "PFRA vote" given that many of the people who post here, including regulars, don't belong to the PFRA. In addition, the PFRA has about 500 members. To me, it's beyond silly to present the votes of about ten people some of whom, as mentioned, aren't even members, as a "PFRA vote" or "PFRA poll."

Last, John was wrong about the four Super Seniors that the PFRA advocated for the Hall of Fame some years ago. Those four were Dilweg, Slater, Speedie and Wistert. It did NOT include Lewellen or Emerson, who the PFRA has never endorsed for the HOF.

[Ken Crippen]

Great revisioned All Decade team for the 20s, on the Talkoffamenetwork Ken ... Very concise and well put together. Hopefully HOF voters will notice some of the guys that had cases for the Hall.

Thank you!!

[rewing84]

your team is top notch ken

[Ken Crippen]

your team is top notch ken

Thank you!!