You’re here in a great place before kickoff, as we are going to discuss YA Tittle and Johnny Unitas, a guy named Pug, Skip, and Simms, and go over one of the greatest defensive games in history in this post.
Today, we are going to go over the events of football history from September 18. We’ve got a lot of information to cover today, so buckle up and let’s get started.
September 18 American Football History Timeline
Let’s start with a football historic event where the weather played a significant factor—
- September 18, 1938 – This day held one of the most defensively dominated games in history. The Chicago Bears defeated the Green Bay Packers by a single safety, the only score of the contest. Bears 2, Packers 0, according to reports, the Green Bay squad seemed to outplay the Bears for most of the game in a torrential downpour.
Green Bay moved the ball decently but missed three field goals, partly due to the sloppy conditions.
The score occurred on the second play of the fourth quarter when Bears guard Tommy Jones intercepted an errant backward pass by Packers Arnie Herbert for the two-point conversion.
Green Bay had its chance with just a few ticks remaining on the clock, but Green Bay kicker Clark Hinkle missed a 37-yard field goal to the left of the post, and the Bears ran out the remaining time for the W.
Golden Arm Sets Record
Flip the calendar forward a few pages, and we go to 1966.
- September 18, 1966 – Johnny Unitas passed YA Tittle as the NFL’s career passing touchdown leader. Johnny U. tossed four scoring strikes in a Baltimore Colts win over the Minnesota Vikings by the score of 3823. Tittle’s record was 212 touchdown passes. Unitas went on to throw many more, finishing his remarkable career with 290 total scoring passes.
No wonder he was called the man with the Golden Arm.
New Orleans First Overtime “W”
Seventeen years to the day after that… on
- September 18, 1983 – The New Orleans Saints posted the franchise’s first overtime win in history, overcoming the Chicago Bears by a field goal in the extra period by the score of 34-31.
Vols Suffer Penalty
- September 18, 1991 – The NCAA penalized the University of Tennessee with two years of probation due to a confirmed football recruiting violation.
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September 18 Birthdays of Football Hall of Famers
It’s time to celebrate the Hall of Fame birthdays. On Tap today, we have the following legends:
Pug Rentner [1910] – An all-around powerhouse halfback and passer for Northwestern University, Rentner led the Wildcats to back-to-back Big Ten titles in 1930 and 1931, earning consensus First-Team All-American honors before his 1979 enshrinement into the College Football Hall of Fame. He went on to play professionally for the Boston Redskins and Chicago Bears, serving as a dual rushing and passing threat in the rugged 1930s NFL.
Skip Minisi [1926] – A versatile halfback and defensive back who starred for both Navy and the University of Pennsylvania, Minisi was named a consensus All-American in 1947 and elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1985. Selected second overall in the 1948 NFL Draft, he played one season with the New York Giants before retiring from the gridiron to earn his law degree and practice law for over four decades.
Billy Sims [1955] – A dynamic, tackle-breaking running back for the Oklahoma Sooners, Sims captured the 1978 Heisman Trophy and was later inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1995. Drafted No. 1 overall by the Detroit Lions in 1980, he earned NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors, made three Pro Bowls, and racked up over 5,100 rushing yards before a severe knee injury prematurely ended his dominant pro career.
