Football History

Born August 9, 1931, in Detroit Michigan, was legendary NFL defensive Tackle Gene Big Daddy Lipscomb. Big Daddy famously terrorized quarterbacks in the National Football League for ten seasons and also participated as a professional wrestler in the off season. His NFL career saw him on the rosters of the Los Angeles Rams, Baltimore Colts, and the Pittsburgh Steelers but his career was tragically shortened by his untimely passing at the age of 31 years old. Lipscomb's final NFL game was after the 1962 season at the Pro Bowl in January 1963, in which he was voted lineman of the game. Gene was a two-time NFL champion with the Colts in 1958 and 1959, a two-time first team All-Pro, and made it to three Pro Bowls. The Professional Football Researchers Association named Lipscomb to the PFRA Hall of Very Good Class of 2006.

In 2019, despite currently not being in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he was chosen as a finalist for the NFL's 100th Anniversary Team.

Born September 20, 1935, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was the fullback that hailed from LSU during the late 1950’s, Jim Taylor. Jim was selected as an All-American after the 1957 season for the Tigers. He was a big back for the era at 6 foot tall and weighing in at 214 pounds and the Packers picked him as the 15th overall pick in the 1958 NFL Draft.  Taylor did not disappoint as he played 10 seasons for the Pack and had a streak of  5 straight seasons of rushing for over 1000 yards! For his career he rushed for a total of 8597 yards and caught an amazing 225 passes for a combined total yardage of over 10,500 yards. The 1962 NFL Title game may be his watershed moment though in the League.  Taylor had 31 carries for 85 yards and a 7 yard touchdown run in the Championship game. Though he did fumble twice in the contest the legendary fullback added 3 receptions for 20 yards. The Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrined Jim Taylor in 1976.

Born August 12, 1915 in South River, New Jersey, was two-way Pro Football Hall of Fame Center and Linebacker, Alex Wojciechowicz. Wojciechowicz played college football for the Fordham Rams from 1935 to 1937 and was a member of the line that became known as the Seven Blocks of Granite.

He was selected by the Detroit Lions in the first round of the 1938 NFL Draft and played for the Lions from 1938 to 1946. He was selected as a first-team All-NFL player in 1939 and 1944. In 1946, he was released by the Lions and then sold to the Philadelphia Eagles, for whom he played from 1946 to 1950. He won two NFL championships with the Eagles in 1948 and 1949.

They don't make them much better than this football player!

Born August 25, 1972 - Marvin Harrison was a wide receiver that came out of Syracuse University. The Indianapolis Colts drafted the speedster with the 19th pick in the 1996 NFL draft after dealing QB Jeff George to the Atlanta Falcons for it. Harrison soon became Colt's QB Peyton Manning's favorite target as he played for 13 seasons. The eight time Pro Bowler was voted on to the 2000's All Decade team and when he hung up his cleats after the 2008 season he finished second in career receptions for the great Jerry Rice. Harrison was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016. Marvin held the record for most receptions in a single season (143) until it was broken in 2019 by Michael Thomas with 149 catches.

Born December 5, 1947 - Santa Clara, California - The former quarterback of the Stanford Cardinal, Jim Plunkett was born.  The NFF states that Jim Plunkett set a record in the PAC-8 Conference in passing in his sophomore season of 1968 only to reset it two more times in his junior and senior seasons. In the  1970 season, Jim won 28 awards, including the Heisman Trophy and Maxwell Award and consensus All-America honors.  The National Football Foundation voted Jim Plunkett into their College Football Hall of Fame in 1990.

Charlie Berry was a great athlete. He played MLB baseball as a catcher and umpire in Major League Baseball and as an end and official in the National Football League. He also played on the famous Pottsville Maroons NFL teams of 1925 and 1926. He was the Captain of the Lafayette football team and eventually was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Berry is the only man to have officiated the World Series, the NFL Championship and the College All-Star game during the same year!

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Learn when the University of Buffalo Bulls Program started

July 28, 1923 - St. Louis All-Stars franchise is recognized by the NFL and plays just in the 1923 season in the League. The idea of the team came from their starting guard Ollie Kraehe, who also owned, managed and operated the club. Ollie had played for the Rock Island Independents a year earlier. His thought was that since small towns like Rock Island and Green Bay could make a buck off of pro football teams imagine what a large city like St. Loius could do. He bought into the NFL for $100 and found that getting true All-Stars to play for his squad was diffficult. Many players either lied that they were All Stars from the East or gave alias names so that their parents wouldn't know they were playing. Unfortunately for Kraehe his fans did not support his team and in September of 1924 the NFL cancelled the All-Stars franchise.

Born May 15, 1969, in Pensacola, Florida, was Emmitt Smith the legendary University of Florida running back of 1987 to 1989 was born. Emmitt joined the college ranks with a bang as he arrived at University of Florida as the national player of the year, scoring 109 touchdowns at his Pensacola, Florida high school.  

The NFF says that in just his first game he broke the school single-game rushing mark in an upset of Alabama. He gained 1,341 yards as a freshman, and finished ninth in the Heisman voting. His top-ten finish was only the second time a freshman had broken into the top ten. He also earned national freshman of the year honors that initial season.  Smith was gifted with exceptional balance and great vision which allowed him to seemingly do the impossible. In his junior season he finished third in the nation in rushing, was a near-unanimous All-America selection and placed seventh in the Heisman vote. In three years he set 58 school records rushing for 3,928 yards, scoring 36 touchdowns and earning SEC Player of the Year honors. The College Football Hall of Fame proudly placed a display in honor of Emmitt Smith into their legendary museum in 2006. Emmitt was the first round pick of the Dallas Cowboys in the 1990 NFL Draft as the 17th overall selection. He played 15 seasons as a back in the League and came out of it as the All-Time Rushing Champion with 18,355 yards with 11 straight 1000 yard seasons and 3 Super Bowl Titles.

In 1993, Smith was names as the NFL’S MVP as well as the Most Valuable Player in Super Bowl XXVIII.  Emmitt Smith was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010.

Towering at 6'5" and weighing over 300 lbs, Roger Brown wasn't just a football player; he was a force of nature. From 1960 to 1966 and again from 1967 to 1969, he terrorized offensive lines in the trenches for the Detroit Lions, solidifying his place as one of the team's most iconic defensive tackles.

But Brown wasn't just a cog in the machine. His individual talent shined brightly. He earned six consecutive Pro Bowl selections (1962-1967), a feat unmatched by any Lions defensive lineman before or since. Two First-Team All-Pro selections (1962, 1963) further cemented his status as an elite performer.

Numbers don't fully capture Brown's impact. His size, speed, and relentless motor disrupted offensive schemes. He possessed an uncanny ability to penetrate lines and pressure quarterbacks, forcing hurried throws and interceptions. His ferocious tackling instilled fear in opponents and inspired his teammates.

In a surprising move, Brown was traded to the Los Angeles Rams in 1967. He continued his stellar play, earning another Pro Bowl selection in 1967. He returned to the Lions in 1968, proving his loyalty and dedication to the team.

Brown retired in 1969, leaving behind a legacy of dominance and leadership. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2009, solidifying his place among the NFL's all-time greats.