Football History on 7th of May

Born May 7, 1933, In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was Quarterback Johnny Unitas. Johnny did not get many offers to attend college and his single mother could not afford to send the younger to school, since his father dies when he was young. Unitas went to a football tryout at Louisville and soon became the starting QB there. He was drafted in the 9th round of the NFL draft in 1955 by the Pittsburgh Steelers, who soon cut him as the 4th string QB. After a year of playing sandlot football after working all day the Baltimore Colts signed Unitas to a contract. Unitas went on to set multiple NFL records and was named Most Valuable Player three times in 1959, 1964, and 1967, in addition to receiving 10 Pro Bowl and five first-team All-Pro honors. He helped lead the Colts to four championship titles; three pre-merger era in 1958, 1959, 1968, and one Super Bowl era in Super Bowl V. His first championship victory is regarded as one of the league's greatest games and credited with helping popularize the NFL. Between 1956 and 1960, he set the record for most consecutive games with a touchdown pass at 47, which held for 52 years. Johnny Unitas was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979. NFL Jersey 19

Born May 7, 1896, in Hamilton, New York, was Belford West the great Colgate University tackle of 1914 to 1916 & 1919. The National Football Foundation lists that Belford led a dominant defence which elevated Colgate as one of the most feared teams of his era. In the 30 games West played for Colgate, 19 were shutout victories. He missed only one play in three varsity seasons at Colgate. West was known as a model tackle in build and execution, blessed with quickness of foot and a devastating charge. An instinctive player, Belford had exceptional range for his size and was said to pride himself in being at the right place at the right time. He was also a fine kicker and set a record with a 52-yard field goal against arch rival Syracuse in a 1919 game. He frequently elected to pass from his punt formation and, it is noted, he rarely threw incomplete. He could pass the ball 70 yards in the air. The College Football Hall of Fame proudly placed a display in honor of Belford West into their legendary museum in 1954.

In this episode of the Football History Headlines, we discuss a Raiders move as well as many more HOF Legendary stories.

Born May 7, 1953, in Villa Park, California, was Harvard University’s talented wide receiver from 1972 through the 1974 season, Pat McInally. This player not only was a standout on the field but also in the classroom as well, earning the prestigious NFF National Scholar Athlete award and becoming a First Team All-American in 1974. The NFF states that Pat finished his career as the Crimson’s single-game, single-season and career record-holder for touchdowns and receptions and as the school’s leader in career receiving yards. McInally ranked second in the nation in receptions in 1973 and fourth in 1974 while also serving as Harvard’s punter. The National Football Foundation selected Pat McInally for entrance into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2016. He was the only player to ever to have a perfect score on the Wonderlick Test and became the first starting Harvard Grad to play in the Super Bowl, after he became the Cincinnati Bengals.

Born May 7, 1930, in Rochester, Pennsylvania, was Babe Parilli the legendary University of Kentucky quarterback. Parilli quarterbacked the Wildcats for Hall of Fame coach Bear Bryant from 1949-51 according to his bio on the footballfoundation.org website. Babe introduced Bear Bryant's "T" Formation that baffled opponents and spectators alike, magically taking Kentucky into the national spotlight. On the field or in the stands, you simply lost sight of the football once Parilli had it in his magical Houdini hands. Defenders tackled backs not carrying the ball as Parilli miraculously seemed to repossess it and toss it into hands that suddenly appeared from obscurity. In 1949 and 1950, Parilli directed teams that ran up 684 points against 115 opposition points. The Wildcats held 10 of 22 opponents scoreless, and all but three to 7 points or less. In 1949, Parilli led Kentucky to a 9-3 record, including wins over LSU, Ole Miss, Georgia and Florida. In 1950 during Parilli’s junior year, the Wildcats produced the greatest season in school history, including an 11-1 campaign and Southeastern Conference Championship. Parilli’s senior season resulted in an 8-4 record, culminating his illustrious career with NCAA records at time for career passing touchdowns (50), completions (331) and passing yards (4,351). Babe Parilli was honored with induction into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1982 after the National Football Foundation tabulated up their votes. Parilli was selected in the first round as the number 4.overall pick of the 1952 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers, and he played professional football for 18 seasons, including four with the Packers , three with the Ottawa Rough Riders of the Canadian Football League , one with the Cleveland Browns, one with the Oakland Raiders , seven with the Boston Patriots and two with the New York Jets.

Born May 7, 1881, in Alpena, Michigan, was the big tackle from the Army teams of 1899 to 1902, Paul Bunker. The National Football Foundation lends the thought that when you are receiving high praise from an opponent you know you truly have a great player. Navy's star back of the 1900 era, Ralph Strassburger, who also played defense. Approached Bunker several years after when the two met up on the gridiron, this time it was in the Philippines. "Bunker," Strassburger said, "I hate you. Let's have a drink." As you can see back in 1902 Bunker had ended his playing career with that season's Army-Navy game, running wild against the Middies and leading the Cadets to a 22-8 victory. He had scored two touchdowns on offense and had spent much of the afternoon punishing Navy's star back which was Strassburger. Walter Camp described Bunker as a battering ram who outclassed all other backs and was a first class defensive tackle. Bunker is one of just a handful of athletes to win All-America mention at two different positions. He won All-America honors as a tackle in 1901 and in 1902 at both halfback and tackle. The College Football Hall of Fame proudly placed a display in honor of Paul Bunker into their legendary museum in 1969.   Bunker continued to be a hero off the field as he died for his country in 1943 as a Prisoner of War.