July 8

In this episode we discuss the establishment of a couple of NFL franchises of the Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates/Steelers, former players involved on both ends of some serious crimes, a man that went from the gridiron to the White House and we remember and honor some great Hall of Fame players on their birthday!  We will provide you with a little bit of football nostalgia. This daily football history segment features the Great events, Franchise formation anniversaries as well as the birthdays of notable Hall of Fame players, coaches or anyone else in our great game and many more  Legendary stories of the Gridiron.

The picture in the banner above is from the US Library of Congress' collection and was contributed by the George Kleine Collection but was taken by Thomas A. Edison Inc. on November 12, 1904 and is titled " 1904 Chicago versus Michigan game ."

• July 8, 1933 - The National Football League for the first time divided the League into two different divisions with the the plan to have the winner of each division play for the NFL Title per the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Prior to this the League crowned the team with the best record as Champions. This practice turned into controversy in many instances.
• July 8, 1933 - Cincinnati Reds franchise was established and played during the 1933 and 1934 seasons before it folded. According to the Ohio History Central website the Reds gridders finished fourth in the Western Division, with a record of three wins, six losses, and one tie in 1933. The next season, the Reds finished sixth in the Western Division, with zero wins, eight losses, and zero ties. During the middle of the season, the National Football League suspended the Reds for failing to pay league dues. The St. Louis Gunners, an independent team in St. Louis, Missouri, played the Reds’ final three games of the set schedule.
• July 8, 1933 - Pittsburgh Pirates/Steelers franchise forms as Art Rooney pays $2500 to the League as an entry fee. In 1940 Mr. Rooney changed the name of his team to the Steelers in honor of the hard working Steel workers around Pittsburgh that supported his team. 
• July 8, 1975 - Gerald Ford announces that he will seek the Republican presidential nomination. Ford played football for the University of Michigan Wolverines where in the 1932 and 1933 seasons he helped his team go undefeated and win the National Championship both years. Ford was a two way player on the team manning the positions of Center and Linebacker.

The Newspapers.com Football History Headline of the Day comes for the July 8, 1991 edition of the Baltimore Sun with their headline of:

Umpire shot trying to halt robbers

The story tells the tale of how former NFL Linebacker Terence Mann along with MLB Umpire Steve Palermo were both shot when they attempted to break up a robbery of a waitresses at Campisi's Egyptian Restaurant near Dallas, Texas. The two assisted the restaurant owner as they all came to the aid of a waitress who was being robbed of her tips around 1:30AM.

• July 8, 1994 - A preliminary trial finds that there is enough evidence to put former NFL player O.J. Simpson on trial for the murder.
• July 8, 1995 - The first Canadian Football League game between two U.S. teams takes place as the Las Vegas Posse plays against the Sacremento Gold.

• July 8, 1890 - Turkey City, Pennsylvania - Pete Mauthe the Penn State fullback of the era of 1909 to 1912 arrived into the world. He was a four season letterman on the gridiron for the Nittany Lions according to the FootballFoundation.org website. During the time when Pete graced the sidelines of Penn State the team had a spectacular record of 26-2-4. In 1911, the Nittany Lions went 8-0-1. Mauthe was the team's punter and placekicker, and he beat Pittsburgh 3-0 with a 35-yard field goal. The following season of 1912 Mauthe was the team captain and his Penn State squad won all eight of its contests. Mauthe scored 119 of the team's 285 points and even connected on a 51-yard field goal against Pittsburgh. Pete Mauthe was honored with induction into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1957 after the National Football Foundation tabulated their votes. After college In 1913 he was head coach at Gettysburg College with a 3-6-1 record.
• July 8, 1935 - Marion, Louisiana - Texas A&M famed halfback from 1955 to 1957, John David Crow was born. Per the National Football Foundation’s bio on John David, had a very auspicious start in college football. When the Aggies played Southern Methodist in 1955, an A&M sophomore took a punt at his own 40 and promptly lost 30 yards attempting to skirt the perimeter of the SMU defense, that was Crow. A few plays later, Crow lost another five yards on a sweep. The youngster headed to the sideline, fully expecting to feel the wrath of head coach Paul “Bear” Bryant but instead the future Hall of Fame sideline boss merely informed him, "John, our goal is that-away."  The young player responded to his coaches instruction as he averaged 4.9 yards a carry in his three years at Texas A&M. The Aggies had a 24-5-2 record for his career. In 1957, Crow was unanimous All-America halfback, won the Heisman, was named Player of the Year by the Walter Camp Foundation and Washington Touchdown Club, and Back of the Year by United Press. John David Crow collegiate football records are celebrated in the College Football Hall of Fame after his induction in 1976. Crow stayed the course of the gridiron long after his collegiate playing days. He played in the NFL with both the Cardinals and 49ers serving as captain on both teams. He was an assistant coach under Bryant at Alabama, and with Cleveland and San Diego in the National Football League. He was the head coach at Northeast Louisiana from 1976 through the 1980 season. Later Crow served as Texas A & M as Associate Athletic Director from 1985 to 1988 and Director of Athletics from 1988 to 1993.  
• July 8, 1952 - Mantua, Ohio - Jack Lambert Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrined LB that played for the Pittsburgh Steelers was born.