November 16

On this episode of the Football History Headlines, we discuss Charlie Brown the comic strip character and a few firsts in football as well as many more Football Hallof Fame Legendary stories.

Gridiron ghosts are stirring! Today's date is etched in the annals of NFL history. From legendary comebacks to record-breaking performances, monumental trades to heart-wrenching defeats, the pigskin has witnessed its share of drama on this very day.  Let's take a trip down memory lane and revisit the iconic moments, game-changing plays, and unforgettable figures that forever marked their place in the grand narrative of professional football. So, gear up, football fans, as we delve into the captivating stories that unfolded on this historic day in the NFL!

How 'Bama became the Crimson Tide? - Iron Bowl 12

November 16, 1907 - Birmingham, Alabama - The 12th Iron Bowl is played as Auburn and Alabama finish in a stalemate of a 6-6 tie. According to rolltide.com, the name "Crimson Tide" is allegedly to have first been used by the Birmingham Age-Herald sports editor Hugh Roberts in describing this very game. The game allegedly was played on a sloppy muddy quagmire of a field and Auburn was the big favorite in the game. But, evidently, the "Thin Red Line" , As Alabama often referred to in that day, played a great game in the reddish colored mud and held Auburn to a 6-6 tie, thus gaining the name "Crimson Tide." Zipp Newman, former sports editor of the Birmingham News, probably popularized the name more than any other writer. This was the last football contest between the two schools until 1948 when the series was resumed once again.

Bulldogs Have Their Record NFL Winning Streak End

A photo of a Canton Bulldogs jersey on display at the Pro Football Hall of Fame

November 16, 1924 - Dunn Field, Cleveland, Ohio - Cleveland/Canton Bulldogs winning streak ends. The Canton Bulldogs were a dynasty in the early NFL. According to the americanfootballdatabase.fandom.com the Bulldogs were unbeaten in 25 games from 1921 through 1923 suffering only being tied three times in that span. In fact they were the Champions of the newly named National Football League in 1922 and top “dogs” in the League in 1923. The news-herald.com has a story that fills in some of the story on the team’s transition in 1924 to become the Cleveland Bulldogs. Apparently the owner of the rival Cleveland Indians pro football team, a Cleveland area jeweler named Sam Deutsch, entered into an agreement on August 4, 1924 to buy the Canton Bulldogs franchise, players, equipment... yes the whole kit and kaboodle. The sale was a win for both teams as Canton’s owners had great teams with good attendance at the games but were struggling to turn a profit. while Cleveland had cash flow but lacked the fire power to put fannies in the stands. So before the 1924 season started, Deutsch named his coach as Guy Chamberlin, the player-coach and stud player from the University of Nebraska who through his strategy and coaching led the Bulldogs to their 1922 and 1923 NFL championships in Canton. Deutsch demanded that some of the core players of his former Indians team still be in the lineup, especially quarterback Hoge Workman, an All-American from nearby Ohio State. The Cleveland Bulldogs were a powerhouse as the combined rosters of the Indians and the Bulldogs were what in essence was an All-star team of the two clubs. He promoted them as the Cleveland Bulldogs and the team continued the Canton Bulldogs unbeaten streak by dispatching the Chicago Bears in their opener 16-14, tying Frankford’s Yellow Jackets the next week, then rattling off a string of victories over the likes of the Akron Pros twice, Rochester Jeffersons and the Dayton Triangles.  Read in more detail here. It was on November 16 though, riding a 31 game unbeaten streak dating back to Canton that the Bulldogs were finally defeated on the gridiron. It was the second meeting with Frankford Yellow Jackets that ended the streak as the Jackets knocked off the Dogs 12-7 in Cleveland.  

Don't Try to Kick It Charlie Brown!!

November 16, 1952 -  According to the onthisday.com website it was the first time in the Peanuts Comic strip that Lucy held a football for Charlie Brown. However the Schultzmuseum.org website claims that the first time Charles Schulz used the football idea in his comic strip was in 1951, although Violet is the one holding the football for Charlie Brown in that instance and she pulls it away more out of fear rather than for just being mean, like Lucy did. The theme was then shown nearly every autumn through the run of the comic strip. There are 37 strips where Lucy herself actually pulled the ball from Charlie Brown, 11 animated specials, and 4 Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show episodes. There was  one time that she didn’t pull away the ball, and Chuck in some unintentional way got his revenge as he kicked her finger.  

Jim Brown -outstanding Rookie Running Back

November 16, 1957 - Cleveland Browns  Rookie running back Jim Brown was something special even in his initial season in the League. Incredibly Brown set an NFL season rushing record of 1163 yards after only eight games one year removed from college! Per the website sports.ha.com All in all in his nine seasons in the NFL he led all rushers for 8 of them.  

Sooners Have their Win Steak End

November 16, 1957 - Norman, Oklahoma - Oklahoma Football's NCAA win streak ends at 47 after losing to Notre Dame, 7-0. The Oklahoma Sooners were the defending college football champions. Oklahoma had a 47-game win streak going into a home game against Notre Dame the last to defeat them. What occurred was a defensive slug fest with the game coming down to a late 4th Quarter Drive by the Irish. The bleacherreport.com’s David Funk explains the sequence of events in his 2008 article. The Golden Domers had a series of successful plays that put them at the Sooners 8-yard line as the clock was approaching five minutes to play in the game. The Irish ran the ball on three consecutive plays to advance the ball to the Sooners 3-yard line.Because of a poor kicking angle, Notre Dame decided not to attempt a field goal. The Sooners sat back expecting a run up the middle on the 4th down play as they put eight men in the box to stop it. Irish Quarterback Bob Williams then faked a handoff up the middle to running back Nick Pietrosante, and pitched it to Dick Lynch around the right end and he ran it across the goalline stripe untouched to give the Irish the lead. Notre Dame's extra point was good as they had a 7-0 lead with 3:50 left to play. A couple of series later with less than two minutes on the clock, Oklahoma moved the ball to the Irish 24-yard line as they were looking to tie the score. But on the next play, Bob Williams, who doubled as a defensive back for the Irish, picked off a pass by Dale Sherrod to seal the win, and end the Sooners 47-game win streak.

85th CFL Grey Cup

November 16, 1997 - Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada -   The 85th edition of the Grey Cup took place as the Toronto Argonauts were pitted against the Saskatchewan Roughriders. The Boatmen were the better team that day as they won the coveted Grey Cup by the score of 47-23. The americanfootballdatabase.fandom.com internet site has a great piece on the details. Argos Quarterback Doug Flutie captured the MVP honors after throwing for 350 yards, while still on live TV, after being named Grey Cup MVP, Flutie handed the keys to the Dodge Dakota pickup truck over to Paul Masotti who was named as the games Most Valuable Canadian. When his generosity was acknowledged by the announcer, Flutie remarked "I have one from last year." Yes Doug Flutie was the MVP of the 1996 84th Grey Cup Game as well!

91st CFL Grey Cup

November 16, 2003 - Taylor Field, Regina, Saskatchewan - the 91st edition of the CLF’s Grey Cup was played as the Edmonton Eskimos were pitted against the Montreal Alouettes. Both teams sported identical 13-5 records coming into the CFL championship game and it made for a tremendous build up for the game.  Oursportscentral.com lays out the game’s highlights. Led by the passing of quarterback Ricky Ray  who had 22 completions on 32 attempts for 301 yds and 2 TDs and the receiving prowess of Jason Tucker who grabbed 7 of those passes for 132 yards and 2 scores. These efforts aided the Green and Gold to capture their 12th Grey Cup in franchise history with a final score of 34-22 over Montreal. Edmonton’s Jason Tucker was the game's MVP and the Most Valuable Canadian was Alouette Wide Receiver Ben Cahoon who sported 2 touchdown receptions of his own on 6 catches for 148 yards.

Gordie Lockbaum

November 16, 1965 - Medina, Pennsylvania - Gordie Lockbaum a two-way Running back and defensive back from Holy Cross is born. Lockbaum seldom left the field during his college career as footballfoundation.org explains he played halfback and wide receiver on offense, cornerback on defense and excelled as a kick returner on special teams. Gordie was pretty darn special on both sides of the ball, heck one week during the 1987 season he was both the team’s Defensive and Offensive Player of the Week! His offensive prowess was highlighted by the time he scored six touchdowns against Dartmouth in 1986 as well as the 1987 Villanova game where he caught 15 passes for 196 yard!. Lockbaum was second in the 1987 Maxwell Award voting, finished fifth in the Heisman voting in 1986 and third in 1987 and won a variety of lesser known collegiate gridiron awards. The National Football Foundation voted Gordie Lockbaum into their College Football Hall of Fame in 2001.