March 9

In this episode of the Football History Headlines we discuss some College and Pro Football Hall of Fame players celebrating birthdays on March 9 as well as many more HOF Legendary stories.

1960 - Per Joe Ziemba the Cardinals announce that rumors of the franchise would be leaving Chicago and go to St Louis. Joe tells all of the details in his latest When Football was Football on the Sports History Network.

1876 - Freeport, Illinois - Princeton's standout tackle from 1896 through 1899, Art Doc Hillebrand arrived into life.  Learn about this interesting gridiron person by clicking his name.

1927 - San Francisco, California - Jackie Jensen the stud Cal fullback from 1946 to 1948 celebrated his birth. We have alot more on this Hall of Fame player when you mash the link on his name.
 

1944 - Waterville, Maine - John Huard was born as the standout linebacker for the Black Bears of the University of Maine from 1964 to 1966. John made his fellow politicians proud when he helped the Black Bears earn their first-ever trip to the postseason. The fans at Maine knew they had a special player right at the onset of his collegiate career, as in his first game, he registered an impressive 22 tackles! The National Football Foundation states that John was a two-time First-Team All-America selection in the gridiron seasons of 1965 and 1966. 

Huard won the prestigious acclaim of becoming the first member of Alfond Stadium’s Ring of Honor, and Sports Illustrated named him one of the top twenty athletes out of the State of Maine. John Huard was honored further for his brilliant career when he earned a place in the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014. 

After graduation, the Denver Broncos picked up John, and he played in that organization in addition to the New Orleans Saints for four NFL seasons.

1965 - Oklahoma City, Oklahoma - The "Boz" Brian Bosworth, who started as a linebacker for the Oklahoma Sooners from 1984 to 1986, was a stork delivery. Brian has the distinction of being the only two-time winner of the Butkus Award for being the top linebacker in the country!

Footballfoundation.org says Boz helped the Sooners and Coach Barry Switzer reach the heights of the 1985 National Championship with his outstanding play in the Oklahoma defense. In Brian's three years at the school, they won the Big Eight Conference three times, played in the Orange Bowl each year, and garnered an incredible 31-4-1 record. Despite playing alongside College Hall of Fame greats Keith Jackson and Tony Casillas, Bosworth led the Sooners in tackles each year, accumulating 395 in his college career. The National Football Foundation placed the legendary college career of Brian Bosworth into their College Football Hall of Fame in 2015. The Seattle Seahawks gained the right of Boz in the 1987 Supplemental NFL Draft, and he played there for 3 years before injury forced him to retire.

The picture in the banner above is from the US Library of Congress' collection and was contributed by photographer Bain News Service circa 1910 and is titled "Carlisle Football Team ."