December 8

In this edition of the Football History Headlines we discuss the SEC initial organization and 8 Heismans are handed out as well as many more Football Hall of Fame Legendary stories.

Gridiron fans, gear up for another exciting day of football history! Dive into the archives and relive the moments that shaped the game we love. Today's headlines take us back in time, exploring everything from legendary quarterback duels that captivated a nation to groundbreaking rule changes that redefined the sport. So, whether you're a die-hard traditionalist or a stats guru, we have something for everyone. Let's lace up our virtual cleats and take a trip down memory lane!

Early formation of the SEC

December 8, 1932 - Knoxville, Tennessee - 13 members of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association and Southern Conference located west and south of the Appalachian Mountains formerly reorganized into the South Eastern Conference. According to the post on secsports.com the member schools at that time were Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia Tech, LSU, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Sewanee, Tulane and Vanderbilt. Want more about the SEC? We have more on the conference's history in this February Post on the SEC.

Most Lopsided NFL Game

December 8, 1940 - Griffith Stadium, Washington, D.C. - The most lopsided NFL Title game ever. The National Football League Championship game played in 1940 is long remembered, but not because it was a great battle but because of the dominance of the Chicago Bears that day and History.com’s article brings all the details.  The Chicago Bears embarrassed the Washington Redskins, 73-0 in the game. It was the most lopsided victory in NFL history and it happened to be the NFL’s showcase game to determine their season’s champion. There was no doubt who the top team in the 1940 NFL was after this one. The game was also the first NFL Championship game broadcast on national radio.

Heisman Awards

December 8, 1942 - The 8th Heisman Trophy Award was given to Frank Sinkwich, Georgia’s outstanding halfback. Heisman.com tells us not only was Sinkwich the Bulldogs first ever Heisman winner but also that he was the first Trophy holder to be born outside of the United States. Hailing from Zagreb, Croatia his family immigrated to the U.S. early in Frank’s life.The 1942 season was special for Sinkwich as he set the SEC’s passing record when he tossed for 1392 yards. Frank also ran for an additional 795 yards on the ground and helped the Bulldogs hit a record mark of 4725 yards of total offense! He of course was voted in as an All-America choice and even added to his legend by scoring the only TD in that season’s Rose Bowl on two sprained ankles in a 9-0 blanking of UCLA.

December 8, 1948 - Southern Methodist University’s Halfback Doak Walker took home the 14th Heisman Trophy Award. Doak was only the second Junior player to win the coveted Trophy associated with being the best player in the nation. Heisman.com fills us in on the details of his great season with the Mustangs. Doak had 542 yards rushing and 8 TD’s in the season of 1948 and he caught 15 balls for another 278 yards and an additional 2 scores. WHen you pad those totals with yardage accumulated from him passing for 5 touchdowns and 304 more yards you see what a weapon he was for the powerful SMU offense! Walker was the third overall pick of the 1950 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions and he played there for 6 seasons even holding the NFL rushing title in one year.iframesrc="https://www.youtube.com/embed/W1eAPUm2eok"

December 8, 1953 - The 19th Heisman Trophy was placed into the hands of Johnny Lattner of Notre Dame by the Downtown Athletic Club according to the Awards website. The senior halfback had an outstanding season for the Irish as he led the team to a 9-0-1 record while accumulating 651 yards rushing on 134 attempts and caught 14 balls for another 204 yards gained. His special teams play was outstanding as well as he averaged nearly 40 yards per kick return in the 8 times he fielded the ball and he picked off 4 passes while playing defense! Johnny’s all purpose yards school record stood for 25 years at Notre Dame. Lattner played with the Pittsburgh Steelers for a season before entering the U.S. Air Force, but before he could return to the NFL he suffered a career ending knee injury in a military game.

December 8, 1955 - The 21st Heisman Trophy Award was handed to Howard Cassady the halfback from Ohio State University. “Hopalong” as he was called ran for 958 yards and 15 scores in his senior season to take home the nation’s top collegiate hardware and it also earned him the Associated Press Athlete of the Year Award. Cassady was a first round draft pick of the NFL’s Detroit Lions where he played defensive back and also spent some time with the Eagles in Philadelphia before retiring.

December 8, 1973 - The Movie Something for Joey captured the heart of a nation as it told the tale of Penn State running back John Cappelletti playing his butt off for his ill younger brother Joe. The performance on the gridiron earned Cappelletti the 39th Heisman Trophy Award as he rushed for 1522 yards and 17 touchdowns to become the first Nittany Lion to win the Trophy. His quest included 3 straight late season 200 yard plus games according to Heisman.com. Other accolades received by John were the Maxwell Trophy and was selected as Player-of-the-Year by ABC-TV, United Press International, the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association, the Walter Camp Foundation and the Washington Touchdown Club. The LA Rams used the 11th overall pick in the 1974 NFL Draft to select Cappelletti and his NFL career lasted 10 seasons with both the Rams and the Chargers.

December 8, 1977  - The “Tyler Rose” Earl Campbell of the University of Texas won the 43rd Heisman Trophy Award. The running back who was known for his powerful lower body and exceptional balance rushed for 1744 yards and 19 touchdowns as he led the Longhorns to an undefeated season as he became the school’s Heisman winner per the Trophy's official website. Earl was drafted by the Houston Oilers in the 1978 NFL Draft with the top pick. He took the League by storm as he dominated the rushing statistics for his first few seasons as a pro player.

December 8, 2001 - The SEC Championship Game of 2001 had #21 LSU Tigers upending the second ranked Volunteers of Tennessee by the score of 31-20.

December 8, 2007 - Florida Gator quarterback, Tim Tebow claimed the prize of the 73rd Heisman Trophy Award. Heisman.com informs us that Tim was the first sophomore to ever take home the prestigious Trophy. Tebow accounted for 51 touchdowns for the Gators that season gained by a combination of his arm and his legs. He passed for 3132 yards and 29 scores with 6 interceptions while rushing for 828 yards and 22 TDs. Tebow was drafted in the first round by the Denver Broncos and then bounced around the League playing for the Jets, Patriots and Eagles as well.

December 8, 2013 - Denver Broncos kicker, Matt Prader's 64 yarder went through the uprights at the end of the first half of the Denver vs Tennessee Titans game to beat out the previous NFL record of 63 yards first set by New Orleans Saints kicker Tom Dempsey in 1970. Others had tied the 63 yarder but Prader broke the barrier on the distance during a game to be celebrated as the longest field goal ever in League history.

December 8, 2018 - The 84th Heisman Trophy Award belonged to Kyler Murray the nifty quarterback of the Oklahoma Sooners. It was the second consecutive Heisman Award given to Sooner QBs as the previous years' Trophy went to Baker Mayfield according to Heisman.com. Murray’s 4946 yards of total offense and 51 TDs were big numbers that attracted the votes in his direction for collegiate football’s most prestigious individual award. Oklahoma now has seven Heisman winners which ties them with both Ohio State and Notre Dame for the most winners from one school. Murray initially was part of Texas A&M’s program but after his freshman season he transferred to the Sooners.  The second place in the Heisman voting was Tua Tagovailoa of Alabama and in third was Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins. Kyler Murray was the first overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft when the Arizona Cardinals selected him to be the face of their franchise.

December 8, 1914 - Portland, Oregon - Bobby Grayson the fullback from Stanford was born. According to footballfoundation.org, Bobby was another member of the ‘Vow Boys' ' who were a group of Cardinal players who vowed not to lose to USC again in their careers after being shut out by the Trojans 13-0 in the 1932 freshman contest. Grayson helped fulfill the vow he made by scoring the first touchdown in his varsity game against Southern Cal in the Cardinal 13-7 victory. Grayson was a two-time consensus All-America player and in the 1934 Rose Bowl set a 25 year standing record when he rushed for 152 yards in the game. The National Football Foundation selected Bobby Grayson to enter into their College Football Hall of Fame in 1955.

December 8, 1941 - Cleveland, Ohio - A birthday is celebrated on this day by Nebraska’s top-flight guard Bob Brown.   The NFF points out that Bob “Boomer” Brown had a pretty large stature for a player in his era as he loomed over opponents with his 6’-4” frame that weighed 260 pounds. Nebraska went 10-1 in his final college season and Boomer earned the honor of being a unanimous All-America in 1963 at guard. The NFF voters placed Bob Brown  into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1993. Bob was selected by both the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles and the AFL’s Denver Broncos as a Tackle in the 1964 respective Drafts. He chose to play for the Eagles as they picked him second overall and he had a brilliant 10 NFL career with the Eagles, Raiders and Rams. Boomer Brown was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2004’s class.

December 8, 1942 - The Bronx, New York - Bill Polian the NFL frontman that turned the fortunes of three different franchises into winners was born. Polian led the Buffalo Bills front office in the late 1980’s and helped the team play in four consecutive Super Bowls. The Pro Football Hall of Fame’s website then describes how he left Buffalo and then changed the fortunes of the second year Carolina Panthers to the NFC Championship game only to follow that up with building the Indianapolis Colts powerhouse teams of the early 2000’s that found good fortunes by winning eight division titles and two Super Bowl appearances. In 2015 the Pro Football Hall of Fame
 placed Bill Polian as a contributor in their Gold Jacket Club to remember him for his NFL accomplishments.

December 8, 1958 - Duluth, Georgia - The University of South Carolina’s legendary runner George Rogers celebrates his birthday. When you are blessed with being agile, well balanced, can run a 40 yard dash in 4.5 and weigh in at 220 pounds you should be bound for gridiron greatness.  That is exactly what the NFF states that George Rogers was in college. In both 1979 and again in 1980 he was an All-America player and even won the Heisman Trophy for the 1980 season for being the nation’s top player. George averaged about 6 yards per carry in his fourth year with the Gamecocks putting up 1781 rushing yards and set a school career record with his 4958 yards on the ground in his 4 seasons. The National Football Foundation selected George Rogers to enter into their College Football Hall of Fame in 1997. George played in the NFL for the Saints and the Redskins and won the Rookie of the Year honors in 1981 and in 1986 led the League with his 18 touchdowns scored.