August 12

Have you ever wondered what gridiron events occurred on August 12? In this episode, we discuss the days when the Eagles, Browns, and Colts each faced the College All-Stars, troubles in the PAC-10, and when the Giants invaded Ottawa. We will provide you with a little bit of football nostalgia. This daily football history segment features the significant events, franchise formation anniversaries, and birthdays of notable Hall of Fame players, coaches, or anyone else in our great game, as well as many more legendary stories of the Gridiron.

• August 12, 1949  - The 16th annual NFL Chicago College All-Star Game was played at Soldier Field as the Champion Philadelphia Eagles blanked the All-Stars 38-0  in front of 93,780 paying fans. The MVP award, always given to the college player team, happened to be Bill Fischer. the offensive lineman from Notre Dame.
• August 12, 1950 - The very first time that an NFL team played outside of the United States as the New York  Football Giants defeat the CFL's Ottawa Roughriders, 20-6 at Ottawa's Lansdowne Stadium.
• August 12, 1955  - The 24th annual NFL Chicago College All-Star Game was played at Soldier Field as the Champion Cleveland Browns fall to the All-Stars 27-30 with 75,000 in paid attendance. The MVP award, always given to the college player team, happened to be Ralph Guglielmi, the quarterback from Notre Dame.
• August 12, 1960  - The 27th NFL Chicago College All-Star Game was played at Soldier Field as the Champion Baltimore Colts flatten the All-Stars 32-7 with 70,000 in paid attendance. The MVP award, always given to the college player team, happened to be Jim Leo, an end from the University of Cincinnati.
• August 12, 1967 - The New Orleans Saint earn their first franchise win in the preseason game against the St. Louis Cardinals 23-14.
• August 12, 1978 - We were all reminded about the dangers of playing football as New England Patriots wide receiver Darryl Stingley collided with Oakland Raiders defensive back Jack Tatum during a preseason game at Oakland Coliseum per Yahoo.com. Stingley’s helmet collided with Tatum’s shoulder, and the impact compressed Darryl's spinal cord and breaking his fourth and fifth cervical vertebrae. Although Stingley regained some movement in his right arm, he spent the rest of his life as a quadriplegic. 

USC and UCLA Barred from '81 Rose Bowl: Five Pac-10 Schools Cited for Violations of Academic Rules

This is our Newspapers.com Football History Headline of the Day for August 12, 1980 as written in the Los Angeles Times. Five PAC-10 schools were ruled to be ineligible to particpate in post season play or for conference titles as punishment for transcript and school curriculum abuses. According to the article in addition to USC and UCLA, Oregon, Oregon State and Arizona State each were also called out by the Presidents and Chancellors of the Pac-10 Conference and all would be ineligible for post season and any bowl games connected to the 1980 season in football. Falsified transcripts and unwarranted intrusions of athletic department interests were violated as found in the rulings by the Conference for the punishments handed down.

• August 12, 1994 - The first NFL game to appear on the FOX Network is a preseason tilt between the 49ers and the Broncos.

• August 12, 1915 - Alex Wojciechowicz was a two way player (center & linebacker) from Fordham University. He is celebrated both in the College Football Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Mr. Wojciechowicz is the founder and the first president of the NFL Alumni Association. He was only the third playerin history to receive the Order of the Leather Helmet, which is a prestigious salute for individuals that have made signiificant contributions to the game of professional football. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in 1938 and played there until 1946 when the Lions sold his rights to the Philadelphia Eagles. Wojciechowicz went on to earn two NFL Championships with his Eagle teammates in 1948 & 1949.
• August 12, 1930 - Jack Scarbath was a quarterback from the University of Maryland. Mr. Scarbath finished second in the 1952 Heisman Trophy voting. His accomplishments under center earned him a place in the College Football Hall of Fame in the induction ceremonies of 1983. He was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the 1953 draft and played two seasons there. He went north of the border in the 1955 season playing for the Ottawa Rough Riders before returning to the NFL in 1956 to play for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Not Yet in the Hall of Fame birthdays include:

• August 12, 1977 - Norfolk, Virginia - Former Michigan State University wide out Plaxico Burress was born. The 6'-5" tall 232 speedster, Burress was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2000 NFL Draft. Plaxico played five seasons in the Steel City before moving on to the Big Apple to play with the New York Giants and helped them to win a Super Bowl Title inhis four seasons there. He later moved across town to play with the Jets and had a return trip with the Steelers before retiring after the 2012 season. For his pro career Burress had 553 receptions for 8499 yards and 64 touchdowns.

The picture in the banner above is from the Miami News from August 13, 1949 via Newspapers.com and is titled " All-Star Back Downed ." Jack Mitchell (center) of the University of Oklahoma was brought down by the Philadelphia Eagles as Philly's Number 40 Frank Reagan awaits to clean up, and All-Star Barney Poole from Mississippi is to the right.