1953 Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project Class.

Here we are!  Again!!

If you have been following our Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project, you know that we have asked the rhetorical question…what if the PFHOF began in January of 1946?

After soliciting and obtaining a passionate group of football fans and historians, we sent out a ballot for a Preliminary Vote, which we asked each voter to give us 25 names as their semi-finalists, and 5 in the Senior Pool. Following that, we asked the group to vote for their 15 Finalists in the Modern Era, and 3 in the Senior Category. The final stage was to vote for their five Modern Era inductee, one Senior inductee and one Coaches/Contributor inductee.

This is the result of the eighth official class;

Below, are the final results of this project based on 30 votes, with a major change:  ALL FINALISTS MUST obtain 50% of the VOTE!

This is for the “Modern Era”

*Bold indicates they have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Class of 1953:

This is for the “Senior Era”, which resulted in no entry. Three also voted for None of the Above.

This is for the Coaches/Contributor.  There was one vote for None of the Above.

*Bold indicates they have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Class of 1952:

About the 1953 Inductees:

Ken Strong FB-TB-HB-WB-DB-K, SIS 1928-32, NYG 1933-35, 1939 & 1944-47: Inducted in 1953 on his 7^th Ballot.  Was inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1967.

Listed mostly as a Halfback, Ken Strong could do everything as he excelled at every aspect of the game and could claim the title of the most complete player of his day.  Beginning his NFL career with the Staten Island Stapletons, Strong joined the New York Giants when the Staten Island folded in 1932.  Strong willed the Gants to the 1934 Championship, scoring 17 Points in their win over Chicago.  He missed some time in the NFL as he played for the New York Yanks of the short-lived AFL due to a salary dispute, but returned for another year in 1939.  Strong came back in 1944, where he was mostly used as a kicking specialist.  Overall, Strong was named an All-Pro four times.

Turk Edwards T, GNB 1930-40, BOS/WAS 1932-40: Inducted in 1953 on his 8^th Ballot. Was inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1969.

After becoming the first player in Washington State history to be named an All-American, Turk Edwards signed with the Boston Braves and joined them in their inaugural season in the National Football League.  Edwards was with the team as they changed their name to the Redskins and relocated to Washington, playing all nine of his pro years with the team.  A punishing two-way Tackle, Edwards was a three-time First Team All-Pro and a stud player who led the Redskins to their first league championship in 1937.  Following his retirement as a player in 1940, Edwards became an Assistant Coach for Washington winning a second NFL Championship in 1942.  Edwards later became their Head Coach in 1946 and held that role for three years.  

Tuffy Leemans FB-TB-QB-DB, NYG 1936-43: Inducted in 1953 on his 5^th Ballot.  Was inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1978.

After a good college run at George Washington, the New York Giants drafted Tuffy Leemans in 1936, where he would have an eight-year career with the New York Giants.  Like many NFL players of the 30s and 40s, Leemans played multiple positions on both sides of the ball (FB, TB, DB, QB), and he was exceptional at all of them.  As a rookie, Leemans led the NFL in Rushing Yards (830), and he was second in that stat in 1938, the same season he led the Giants to an NFL Championship.  Leemans also helped New York reach the Championship Game in 1939 and 1941. Leemans, who was named to the 1930s All-Decade Team, was involved in more passing in the 1940s, finishing ninth in Passing Yards, each year from 1941 to 1943.  Defensively, he also recorded four Interceptions over his career.

Ralph Hay: Inducted in 1953 on the 4^th Coaches/Contributor Ballot. Was never inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame.

In 1918, 27-year-old Ralph Hay bought the Canton Bulldogs, a member of a loose affiliation of teams that competed in the Ohio League. Canton was one of the better professional teams, but pro football, which was far behind college football in the national consciousness, needed a better organizational structure to move forward. This is where Hay came in.  Hay arranged a meeting with the Akron Pros, Cleveland Tigers, and Dayton Triangles managers to form the American Professional Football Conference. Four team does not a league make, and Hay, acting as the secretary, sent off letters to other football teams in the Midwest looking to form a league and request a meeting in Canton on September 17. Representatives from ten teams would be there, all in the automobile showroom of Hay's dealership. The American Professional Football Conference now had ten teams, and the league that would rename itself the National Football League two years later was born. Hay was asked by the owners to be the first president, but instead, he pushed (and got) Jim Thorpe as the first president, which he felt lent the new league credibility.

Canton won the league title in 1922, but Hay could not celebrate for long. The Bulldogs were not profitable, and Hay could not afford to keep the team. He sold the organization before the 1923 season, and Canton would win it all again, though Hay was no longer a part of it.  The Pro Football Hall of Fame would be awarded to Canton, and while Hay was not a part of that decision (he died 20 years before it opened), the vision that Hay had was bred in Canton, Ohio.

1952 SEMI-FINAL RESULTS:

Thank you for all of you who have participated in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project, and if you are unaware of what that is, simply, we acted as if the PFHOF had their first class in January of 1946?

We have completed the first two years, where a Preliminary, Semi-Final and Final vote for the 1946 Class, which inducted two full classes

For “1950” a Preliminary Vote with 132 players whose playing career ended by 1943. We are also following the structure in that players have 20 years of eligibility, and if they do not make it into the Hall, they are relegated to the Senior Pool.

Each voter was asked to select 25 names from the preliminary list, with the top 25 vote getters named as Semi-Finalists.

A week later, the voters were asked to pick 15 names from the 25 Semi-Finalists, and next week, they will pick five from the remaining 15. We will continue this process weekly until we catch up to the current year.

30 Votes took place

This is for the “Modern Era”

Bold indicates they advanced to the Finals:

This is for the “Senior Era”

*Bold indicates they advanced to the Finals:

This is for the Coaches/Contributors

*Bold indicates they advanced to the Finals:

Next Saturday, we will be posting the results of the 1952 Class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project.

Thank you to all who contributed, and if you want to be a part of this project, please let us know!

1952 PRELIMINARY RESULTS:

Thank you for all of you who have participated in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project, and if you are unaware of what that is, simply, we acted as if the PFHOF had their first class in January of 1946?

We have completed the first two years, where a Preliminary, Semi-Final and Final vote for the 1946 Class, which inducted two full classes

For “1951” a Preliminary Vote with over 130 players whose playing career ended by 1945. We are also following the structure in that players have 20 years of eligibility, and if they do not make it into the Hall, they are relegated to the Senior Pool.

Each voter was asked to select 25 names from the preliminary list, with the top 25 vote getters named as Semi-Finalists.

A week later, the voters will be asked to pick 15 names from the 25 Semi-Finalists, and next after, they will pick five from the remaining 15. We will continue this process weekly until we catch up to the current year.

30 Votes took place

This is for the “Modern Era”

Bold indicates they advanced to the Semi-Finals:

This is for the “Senior Era”

*Bold indicates they advanced to the Semi-Finals:

This is for the Coaches/Contributors

*Bold indicates they advanced to the Semi-Finals:

Next Saturday, we will be posting the results of the 1952 Finalists of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project.

Thank you to all who contributed, and if you want to be a part of this project, please let us know!

1951 Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project Class.

Here we are!  Again!!

If you have been following our Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project, you know that we have asked the rhetorical question…what if the PFHOF began in January of 1946?

After soliciting and obtaining a passionate group of football fans and historians, we sent out a ballot for a Preliminary Vote, which we asked each voter to give us 25 names as their semi-finalists, and 5 in the Senior Pool. Following that, we asked the group to vote for their 15 Finalists in the Modern Era, and 3 in the Senior Category. The final stage was to vote for their five Modern Era inductee, one Senior inductee and one Coaches/Contributor inductee.

This is the result of the sixth official class;

Below, are the final results of this project based on 30 votes:

This is for the “Modern Era”

*Bold indicates they have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Class of 1951:

This is for the “Senior Era”

As none of the Senior Candidates obtained 50 percent of the vote, no Senior Candidate was chosen.  This is the second year where this rule was instituted.  Please note that voters could also opt out of this vote, as per the request of members of the voting body.

This is for the Coaches/Contributors

*Bold indicates they have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Class of 1951:

About the 1951 Inductees:

Don Hutson E-DB-DE, GNB 1935-45: Inducted in 1951 on his 1^st Ballot.  Was inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963.

An All-American and NCAA Champion at Alabama, Don Hutson became Football’s first “Super End”.  Hutson was arguably the game’s first real Receiver, originating passing routes and combining his unique skills and athleticism to become a legend.  Hutson led the league in Receptions and Receiving Touchdowns eight times, Receiving Yards seven times was a three-time NFL Champion with Green Bay, and was an eight-time First Team All-Pro.  He would also be named the league MVP twice.  When he retired, he was 200 higher than anyone else in Receptions.  As this was the 60-minute era, Hutson played on defense where he recorded 30 Interceptions, making one of the better Defensive Backs of his era.  How could he not enter on the first ballot?

Mel Hein C-LB, NYG 1931-45: Inducted in 1951 on his 1^st Ballot. Was inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963.

Mel Hein was one of the first great players from Washington State, and it was the New York Giants who were able to sign him in 1931.  This was the team he stayed with for his entire career, which ended in 1945.  Hein led the New York Giants to two NFL Championships, and the two-way player (Center and Linebacker) never missed a game.  Hein was an All-Pro in eight consecutive years and was named the league MVP in 1938, and he joins Hutson as a first ballot inductee.

Bill Hewitt E-DE, CHI 1932-36, PHI 1937-49 & 1943: Inducted in 1951 on his 3^rd Ballot.  Was inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1981.

Bill Hewitt might have been best known for his refusal to wear a helmet, a stance he held until it was league-mandated, but this tough-as-nails player was a dominant two-way end and one of the top football players of the 1930s.

Hewitt played for the Chicago Bears from 1932 to 1936, propelling them to two NFL Championships.  A very good player on offense (he led the NFL in Touchdown Receptions in 1935), he was positively devastating on defense.  Known as the “Offside Kid” for his penchant for jumping the snap, Hewitt has blistering speed for his day and was often the best defensive player on the field. 

He finished his career with the Philadelphia Eagles, playing until 1939, save for a brief comeback when the team was shorthanded in 1943 due to World War II.

Walt Kiesling G-T, DUL 1926-37, POT 1928, CRD 1929-33, 1934 CHI, GNB 1935-36. PIT 1937-38: Inducted in 1951 on his 6^th Ballot (technically his 8^th year of eligibility). Was inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1966.

A large man for his time, Walt Kiesling was one of the top linemen of the 1920s, doing the grunt work that opened holes on offense and closed them on defense.  Kiesling played for multiple teams, most notably for the Chicago Bears in 1934, who were undefeated, and the 1936 NFL Championship Green Bay Packers.

Ray Flaherty E, NYY 1937-38, NYG 1927-35: Inducted in 1951 on his 6^th Ballot (technically his 11^th year of eligibility). Was inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1976 as a Coach.

A seven-year veteran player at End for New York (both the Yankees and Giants), Flaherty signed on with the Boston Redskins as their Head Coach in 1936.  The team relocated to Washington the following year, and the Redskins won the NFL Championship, and did so again in 1942.  An innovator of offense, Flaherty is credited with inventing the screen pass among other schemes.  Despite that coaching prowess, he enters the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project as a player, where he was a three-time First Team All-Pro, won a Receiving Title and an NFL Championship.

Joe Carr: Inducted in 1951 on the 2^nd Coaches/Contributor Ballot. Was inducted into the actual Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963.

Joe Carr is responsible for much of the structure that exists in the National Football League, and he did it simply by learning and executing what worked in Major League Baseball.  A newspaper man from Columbus, Carr revived the Columbus Panhandles Football Team in 1907.  The Panhandles would be a charter member of the NFL, and Carr, due to his vision, became the league’s first President; a position he held until his death in 1939.  Carr brought structure to the NFL, organizing how college players could migrate to the NFL, and his no-nonsense approach might have been a hardline one, but without it, the existence of the league could have been in doubt.

1951 SEMI-FINAL RESULTS:

Thank you for all of you who have participated in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project, and if you are unaware of what that is, simply, we acted as if the PFHOF had their first class in January of 1946?

We have completed the first two years, where a Preliminary, Semi-Final and Final vote for the 1946 Class, which inducted two full classes

For “1950” a Preliminary Vote with 128 players whose playing career ended by 1943. We are also following the structure in that players have 20 years of eligibility, and if they do not make it into the Hall, they are relegated to the Senior Pool.

Each voter was asked to select 25 names from the preliminary list, with the top 25 vote getters named as Semi-Finalists.

A week later, the voters were asked to pick 15 names from the 25 Semi-Finalists, and next week, they will pick five from the remaining 15. We will continue this process weekly until we catch up to the current year.

30 Votes took place

This is for the “Modern Era”

Bold indicates they advanced to the Finals:

This is for the “Senior Era”

*Bold indicates they advanced to the Finals:

This is for the Coaches/Contributors

*Bold indicates they advanced to the Finals:

Next Saturday, we will be posting the results of the 1952 Class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project.

Thank you to all who contributed, and if you want to be a part of this project, please let us know!

1951 PRELIMINARY RESULTS:

Thank you for all of you who have participated in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project, and if you are unaware of what that is, simply, we acted as if the PFHOF had their first class in January of 1946?

We have completed the first two years, where a Preliminary, Semi-Final and Final vote for the 1946 Class, which inducted two full classes

For “1951” a Preliminary Vote with 130 players whose playing career ended by 1945. We are also following the structure in that players have 20 years of eligibility, and if they do not make it into the Hall, they are relegated to the Senior Pool.

Each voter was asked to select 25 names from the preliminary list, with the top 25 vote getters named as Semi-Finalists.

A week later, the voters will be asked to pick 15 names from the 25 Semi-Finalists, and next after, they will pick five from the remaining 15. We will continue this process weekly until we catch up to the current year.

30 Votes took place

This is for the “Modern Era”

Bold indicates they advanced to the Semi-Finals:

This is for the “Senior Era”

*Bold indicates they advanced to the Semi-Finals:

This is for the Coaches/Contributors

*Bold indicates they advanced to the Semi-Finals:

Next Saturday, we will be posting the results of the 1951 Semi-Finalists of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project.

Thank you to all who contributed, and if you want to be a part of this project, please let us know!

1949 PRELIMINARY RESULTS:

Thank you for all of you who have participated in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project, and if you are unaware of what that is, simply, we acted as if the PFHOF had their first class in January of 1946?

We have completed the first two years, where a Preliminary, Semi-Final and Final vote for the 1946 Class, which inducted two full classes

For “1949” a Preliminary Vote with 130 players whose playing career ended by 1943. We are also following the structure in that players have 20 years of eligibility, and if they do not make it into the Hall, they are relegated to the Senior Pool.

Last week, each voter was asked to select 25 names from the preliminary list, with the top 25 vote getters named as Semi-Finalists.

This week, the voters were asked to pick 15 names from the 25 Semi-Finalists, and next week, they will pick five from the remaining 15. We will continue this process weekly until we catch up to the current year.

29 Votes took place

This is for the “Modern Era”

Bold indicates they advanced to the Finals:

This is for the “Senior Era”

*Bold indicates they advanced to the Finals:

Next Saturday, we will be posting the results of the 1949 Class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Revisited Project.

Thank you to all who contributed, and if you want to be a part of this project, please let us know!

After a good college run at George Washington, the New York Giants drafted Tuffy Leemans in 1936, where he would have an eight-year career with the New York Giants.