March 10

In this episode of the Football History Headlines, we discuss stories of HOF legends that are celebrating gridiron birthdays.

March 10, 1919 - Plains, Texas -  The stud center from Hardin-Simmons University in the late 1930's, Clyde Bulldog Turner arrived into this life. The Pro Football Hall of Fame declares a big statement that Bulldog is one of the top five centers to have ever played college football! We have plenty more on this legend of the gridiron, simply click his name to be taken to our collection of posts gathered from around the web.

March 10, 1927 - Chicago, Illinois - The great two way guard and tackle of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish from 1945 to 1948, Bill Moose Fischer was born.  Fischer was relegated to kick off coverage duties as a Freshman at Notre Dame under Coach Frank Leahy but he started every year thereafter at guard on the Irish offense. Fischer  helped lead Notre Dame to back-to-back national championships in 1946 and 1947 per the NFF.  His fantastic play was rewarded when he received All-America honors in 1947 and 1948 and was just the third-ever recipient of the Outland Trophy in 1948 as the nation's best interior lineman. Bill Fischer was honored with his very deserving place in the College Football Hall of Fame when he was inducted in 1983. Moose was a two way starting player for the Chicago Cardinals for five seasons after the Redbirds took him with the tenth overall pick in the 1949 NFL Draft.

March 10, 1938 - Los Angeles., California - The 6’-4” 250 pound tackle from Southern Cal Ron Mix began his life story.  Ron was the number one pick in both the 1950 NFL and AFL Drafts. The NFL’s Baltimore Colts and the San Diego Chargers of the AFL got in a bidding war of sorts and Mix wisely took the better off and that kept him in Southern California where he spent all of his life. The Pro Football HOF website says, that his line coach with the Chargers gave him the nickname of “The Intellectual Assassin” because of his aggressive play and because he attended law school at night while as a player. Mix had only two confirmed holding calls called upon him in his entire 11 seasons played with the Chargers and the Raiders and he claims he only gave up five sacks in that same time span. The Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrined Ron Mix in 1979.  

March 10, 1946 - Yuma, Arizona - The fierce Defensive Tackle from Arizona State University Curley Culp was born. Curley was the 31st overall player selected in the NFL Draft of 1968 by the Denver Broncos but got traded during training camp to the KC Chiefs after a failed experiment to convert him to an offensive line position failed. In just his second NFL season he was part of a dominant Kansas City D-line that helped the Chiefs win Super Bowl IV. Culp was traded in 1974 to the Houston Oilers as part of a blockbuster deal. He really thrived with the Oilers and became a prominent defender in the League there. According to the ProFootballHOF.com Culp in 1975 registered 11.5 sacks and was named the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year by the Newspaper Enterprise Association. Curley Culp was welcomed into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at the 2013 enshrinement ceremonies.

March 10, 1949 - Atlanta, Georgia - Chip Kell the University of Tennessee great offensive lineman from 1968 to 1970 entered into life on earth. Kell was a powerhouse blocker as he played both center and guard for the Tennessee Volunteers. The NFF alludes to that Chip’s first game may have been the first ever game played outdoors on artificial turf. After his Sophomore season Kell was moved from tackle to guard and he thrived at the switch  as he then won two consecutive Jacobs Memorial Awards as the top blocker in the Southeast Conference and the distinction of being called All-America. In Chip’s senior campaign he was a finalist for the Lombardi Award and garnered his second recognition of All-America status as this time it was of unanimous category. Chip Kell was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006. After school Chip played two years for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football league before beginning a long career in coaching.

March 10, 1960 - Towson, Maryland - Marked the birth of the fantastic wide receiver from Johns Hopkins University, Bill Stromberg. Stromberg set six national and 13 school records to become one of the most decorated wide receivers in Division III history per the NFF.  Bill led the nation in receiving and was a first team All-America for the 1980 season. Stromberg’s national records were multiple as he had 39 touchdown catches for an NCAA record and his numbers for catches and yards per game were written down in the book too. He established other marks such as his total of 258 career receptions was an NCAA record until 1993, and his 3,776 career reception yards was a record until 1989. Bill Stromberg was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2004.

The picture in the banner above is from the US Library of Congress' collection and was contributed by photographer John Vachon circa 1940 and is titled " Football Players in Minot, North Dakota."