June 22

Here is what happened in football on June 22: The Professional Football Researches Association forms; The Berlin Thunder strikes for another title; and some Hall members like Bailey, Hudson, Warner and O'Brien are remembered 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.

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• June 22, 1979 - Pro Football Researchers Association forms in Canton, Ohio.  This exclusive non-profit group as touted by their website includes many of football's foremost  writers and historians.
• June 22, 2002 - The Berlin Thunder become the first team to win back to back NFL Europe World Bowls as the defeated the Rhein Thunder in the Thunder's home stadium

If you want to be able to be able to read through some old articles like The Chicago Tribune, you need to check out Newspapers.com. At Newspapers.com, you can get access to over 640 million pages’ worth of news from the US, Canada, England, Scotland, Ireland and more dating back from 1798 to yesterday.  Get a free one week subscription to Newspapers.com by visiting SportsHistoryNetwork.com/newspapers. And with a paid subscription, you’ll also be helping to support the production of this and other Sports History Network shows. 

• June 22, 1917 - Dallas, Texas - TCU’s legendary quarterback from 1936 to 1938, Davey O'Brien arrived into the world. Texas Christian was blessed that O’Brien got to watch the great Sammy Baugh for a season or two as the starter before he took the reins himself and the Horned Frog signal caller. Learn as an understudy he did too! The National Football Foundation tells us that like Baugh, O'Brien was destined to drive enemy defenses daffy with his incredible passing feats. Dutch Meyer, who coached both quarterbacks at TCU, compared his prized pupils, saying: "Baugh was a better all-around player than O'Brien, and a better passer, but as a field general Davey has never been equaled. He was the finest play selector I've ever seen." In 1938, O'Brien led TCU to an undefeated season and a national championship. He won the Heisman and Maxwell Awards and threw 19 touchdown passes. Davey O’Brien’s collegiate football records are celebrated in the College Football Hall of Fame after his induction in 1955. After graduation O'Brien played two years with the Philadelphia Eagles, 1939-40, and was All-Pro and Rookie of the Year, 1939. He then surprisingly quit football and spent 10 years as a special agent for the FBI before going into the business world.
• June 22, 1962 - Everett, Washington - Gordon Hudson the Brigham Young University tight end from 1980 to 1983 was born. The FootballFoundation.org let’s us in on that the two-time unanimous All-American player holds the NCAA records for most passes caught per game by a tight end with 5.4, most career yards per game by a tight end with a whopping 75.3 and the most yards in a game by a tight end with a staggering 259 yards against Utah. As a senior, he teamed with Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young to haul in an NCAA record 44 catches and six touchdowns in an injury-shortened season. When he completed his college career he held the NCAA record for the most receiving yards by a tight end with 2484 yards. The National Football Foundation selected Gordon Hudson for entrance into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2009. After school was completed Gordon played two seasons in the USFL with the Los Angeles Express franchise and one season in the NFL for the Seattle Seahawks. 
• June 22, 1971 - Kurt Warner Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrined QB that played for the Rams, Giants and Cardinals. For more on Kurt please see our Inspiration Sensation article by clicking Kurt Warner Inspiration.
• June 22, 1978 - Champ Bailey Pro Football Hall of Fame Cornerback that played for the Washington Redskins and the Denver Broncos during his 15 year career in the NFL. Champ was selected to a whopping 12 Pro Bowls (the most of any defensive back in NFL history), and was 1st Team All-Pro 3 times. Bailey prepared for the NFL by playing for the Georgia Bulldogs in college. As a pro he registered 52 interceptions in 215 games played, truly a shut down, ball hawking corner.