Who Were The Dayton Merchants?

The Dayton Merchants were one of five professional football teams to play in the Ohio Professional Football League in 1941. On Sunday October 5, 1941 The Dayton Merchants faced off against the Middletown Merchants which resulted in a 6-0 defeat. The following Sunday the Dayton Merchants were defeated by the Dayton Dakotas 25 to nothing. The following week the Dayton Merchants were defeated against the Cincinnati Pepsi-Colas 26-0. On Sunday October 26, 1941 in a rematch of the prior week in Cincinnati, Ohio the Dayton Merchants faced off against the Cincinnati Pepsi-Colas, the Dayton Merchants would lose 38 to nothing. On Sunday November 2, 1941 the Dayton Merchants would face off against the Columbus Avondales in a 13-0 defeat. On Sunday November 9, 1941 the Dayton Merchants would face off against the Middletown Merchants in a scoreless tie. On Sunday November 16, 1941 the Dayton Merchants would face off against the Dayton Dakotas in a 12-0 defeat. In the last week of the season and ultimately last week of games for the league, the Dayton Merchants played against the Cincinnati Pepsi-Colas in which the Merchants would lose 33-0. The Merchants went 0-7-1 which resulted in fifth and last place in the league. The team never scored a single point in all games.

The Story And Significance Of Lenny Moore - 111 Total Touchdowns In 143 Regular-Season Games

Leonard Edward Moore is an American former professional football player who played both halfback and flanker in the National Football League for the Baltimore Colts from 1956 to 1967. He played college football for Penn State Nittany Lions. He was named the NFL Rookie of the Year in 1956 and was selected to the Pro Bowl seven times. Moore was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1975.

Moore's achievements at Penn State did not go unnoticed by scouts from the NFL, and he was drafted by the Colts in the first round of 1956 with the ninth pick.

Moore was both a great runner and receiver, lining up in the backfield as a halfback and split wide as a flanker, and was equally dangerous at both positions in the Colts' offense run by quarterback Johnny Unitas. Moore averaged at least seven yards per carry in three seasons, and has a career average of 4.8 yards per carry. He had 40 receptions for 687 yards and seven touchdowns in 1957, the first of five years in which he would have 40 or more catches. In an era of pounding running games, Moore was a glimpse of things to come in the NFL, with a career average of 30 receptions per year out of the backfield.

During his rookie season in 1956, Moore established himself as one of the most well-rounded runners and receivers in the league, and won the NFL Rookie of the Year award. In 1958, he caught a career-high 50 passes for 938 yards and seven touchdowns in helping the Colts win the NFL championship. In 1959, Moore had 47 receptions for 846 yards and six touchdowns as the Colts repeated as champions.

Moore was injured in 1962, a knee injury, and lost his starting job in 1963 from the knee injury. In 1964, he had one of his best statistical seasons when he scored 20 touchdowns, helping to lead the Colts to a 12–2 regular-season record and a trip to the NFL Championship Game for the third time in seven seasons. He was voted by his fellow players as the Most Valuable Player, a remarkable award considering he played most of the season with complications from appendicitis, and gave credence to the claim that he was one of the toughest players in the NFL. He also won Comeback Player of the Year Award in 1964.

Moore scored a touchdown in an NFL-record 18 consecutive appearances starting in 1963 and continuing through the entire 1964 season, ending in 1965. This record stood for 40 years until being equaled by LaDainian Tomlinson in 2005.[6] Because his streak was interrupted by a five-game absence due to injury in 1963, he does not hold the NFL's official record for consecutive games rushing for a touchdown.

Moore faced the difficult task of being an African American in the NFL during the 1950s and 1960s. Most teams averaged about six African American players on their roster during his time in the league. His race also came into question after his retirement in 1968 when he was not given a long-term contract with CBS Television, ending his attempt to be the first black sports broadcaster for CBS.

Moore occasionally speaks to student groups about his experiences as a black football player during an era when, in the words of Baltimore Sun sportswriter Rick Maese, "Moore could travel with his teammates but couldn't always eat in the same restaurant, couldn't always stay at the same hotel, couldn't always fraternize with them the same way out of the locker room as he had in it."
"There was never anybody ever closer than me and the guys that I played football with on that Baltimore team – on the field," Moore told the Sun. "We were just like glue. One for all, all for one." But "once they blew the whistle and the game was over, they (the white players) went their way, we (the black players) went our way. We split. It was race."

Fellow NFL player Ollie Matson mentored Moore and warned him that "'they're going to call you the big N. You're going to hear it all. So don't get yourself all worked up, because it's going to happen.'"

Moore retired from professional football after the 1967 season. In 12 seasons and 143 regular-season games he scored 111 total touchdowns, accumulated 11,213 total yards, made seven Pro Bowls, and five all-NFL teams. His uniform number 24 was retired by Baltimore, and in 1969 a sportswriters' poll named him to the NFL's 50th Anniversary Team.

In 1975 Moore was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and was named to the NFL's 1950s All Decade Team. In 1999, The Sporting News' ranked Moore 71st on its list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. He is the only player in NFL history to have at least 40 receiving touchdowns and 40 rushing touchdowns.

Football Outsiders, in their book Pro Football Prospectus 2007, named six of his seasons among the top 500 running back seasons of all time, which was tied for the 5th most seasons among the top 500 of any player. Moore's retired number is honored along with all of the other Baltimore Colts retired numbers in M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, home of the Baltimore Ravens.

On January 19, 2008, Moore was inducted into the East-West Shrine Game Hall of Fame class. Moore was an honorary captain for Penn State's game versus Syracuse on September 12, 2009. It was the first time a former Penn State player has been invited to participate in the pre-game coin toss. Moore is a member of The Pigskin Club of Washington, D.C. National Intercollegiate All-American Football Players Honor Roll.

Moore retired in 2010 from the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services after 26 years of service. His job with the state included traveling to middle and high schools, mixing and mingling with at-risk children, trying to keep them straight. He was a keynote speaker for churches, organizations and youth groups, teaching children and adults about the risks of drugs and he worked to improve the lives of troubled teens.

On October 8, 2013, Moore had a road in Baltimore County named after him in his honor.
Moore's charity work includes raising money for the fight against scleroderma. He holds an annual benefit dinner in memory of his son Leslie, who died at 43 of that disease.

The Story And Significance Of Dante Lavelli - In The 1950 NFL Championship Game, Dante Caught 11 Passes, Then A Record, And Scored Two Touchdowns

Dante Bert Joseph "Gluefingers" Lavelli was an American professional football player who was an end for the Cleveland Browns in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and National Football League from 1946 to 1956. Starring alongside quarterback Otto Graham, fullback Marion Motley, placekicker Lou Groza and fellow receiver Mac Speedie, Lavelli was an integral part of a Browns team that won seven championships during his 11-season career. Lavelli was known for his sure hands and improvisations on the field. He was also renowned for making catches in critical situations, earning the nickname "Mr. Clutch". "Lavelli had one of the strongest pairs of hands I've ever seen," Browns coach Paul Brown once said of him. "When he went up for a pass with a defender, you could almost always count on him coming back down with the ball."

Lavelli grew up in Hudson, Ohio and played football, baseball and basketball at his local high school. After graduating, he enrolled at Ohio State University, where he played only a handful of games before he was drafted for service in the U.S. Army during World War II. Returning in 1945 after serving in Europe, he joined the Browns in the team's first-ever season in the AAFC. Helped by Lavelli's play, the Browns won each of the AAFC's championships before the league dissolved in 1949 and the team was absorbed by the NFL. Cleveland continued to succeed in the NFL, winning championships in 1950, 1954 and 1955. Lavelli, who helped found the National Football League Players Association toward the end of his career, retired after the 1956 season.

After retiring from football, Lavelli held a variety of coaching and scouting jobs and was active in NFL alumni affairs. He also ran a furniture store in Rocky River, Ohio. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1975. He died in a Cleveland hospital in 2009.

On arrival at Ohio State, Lavelli roomed with Les Horvath and Don McCafferty and played on the freshman team under coach Trevor Rees. Brown switched Lavelli to end (the position is now called wide receiver). His playing time with the football team was limited, however, due to injury. He became a first-string end as a sophomore in 1942, but was ailing from a charley horse in his thigh and sat out the first game of the season against a Fort Knox military team. He had recovered by the third game of the season and started in a game against Southern California. Lavelli was hit in the knee while grabbing for a pass near the end of the game, however, he broke a bone. He was sidelined for the rest of the season. The Buckeyes won the college football national championship that year.

After the 1942 season, Lavelli was drafted by the U.S. Army as American involvement in World War II intensified. After basic training and a number of other specialized courses on land-sea assaults, he was sent with the 28th Infantry Division to fight in the European Theatre of World War II. There his division landed on Omaha Beach, part of the Allied invasion of Germany-occupied France in 1944. He was involved with American forces in Germany's Battle of the Bulge offensive and in the Siege of Bastogne later the same year. One in five members of his division was killed in battle.

After returning from the war, Lavelli was again offered a chance to play baseball with the Tigers. He saw a matchup in late 1945 between the National Football League's New York Giants and Washington Redskins and noticed that a former teammate at Ohio State named Sam Fox was an end for the Giants. "I thought if he could make the grade, so could I," Lavelli later said. When Paul Brown offered him a chance to play on a new professional team he was coaching in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) in 1946, Lavelli jumped at the opportunity. He was given a $500 bonus ($6,948 in today's dollars) for signing with the team, called the Cleveland Browns.

Lavelli attended the Browns' first training camp in 1946. Competition was fierce for a spot on the roster, but Lavelli was one of the men who made it. He was up against a number of National Football League veterans and former college stars. "The toughest game I ever played in was the first intrasquad scrimmage game," he said later. "Nobody talked to each other for two days." He joined an offense that featured quarterback Otto Graham, fullback Marion Motley, placekicker Lou Groza and fellow end Mac Speedie. Lavelli quickly became Graham's top passing target and led the AAFC in receiving as a rookie with 40 receptions and 843 yards. The Browns made it to the league championship that season, and Lavelli caught the game-winning touchdown in a 14–9 victory over the AAFC's New York Yankees. The victory "didn't mean so much then, but as time goes on, it builds," Lavelli said in 2008.

The Browns won the AAFC championship again in 1947. Lavelli finished second in the league in receiving behind his teammate Speedie. Both Lavelli and Speedie were named to all-AAFC teams, as they had been in 1946. Lavelli broke his leg in a preseason game in 1948 and sat out seven weeks. He came back later in the year and helped Cleveland finish a perfect season, catching a touchdown pass in a 31–21 win over the AAFC's Brooklyn Dodgers in the championship game. In a game against the Los Angeles Dons the following year, Lavelli caught four touchdowns and had 209 receiving yards, an AAFC record. In 1949 Cleveland won the AAFC championship for the fourth year in a row. The AAFC dissolved before the 1950 season and three of its teams, including the Browns, were absorbed by the more established National Football League. Lavelli was the AAFC's all-time leader in yards per catch and second in receiving yards behind Speedie.

As the Browns won in the AAFC, Lavelli continued his studies at Ohio State between seasons and got his degree in 1949. He married Joy Wright of Brecksville, Ohio that year.

When Cleveland entered the NFL in 1950, questions lingered about whether the team could sustain its early dominance. The Browns, however, began the season by beating the defending NFL champions, the Philadelphia Eagles. Dante Lavelli recalls, "The game I'll never forget is the first game we played in the National Football League. We beat the Philadelphia Eagles, 35-10. We went back to Cleveland the next day and waiting for us was something else we could be proud of. The press has asked Bert Bell, commissioner of the NFL, what he thought of the game. 'The Browns are the greatest football club I ever saw,' he said."

The team finished with a 10–2 regular-season record and reached the championship game after winning a playoff game against the New York Giants. In the championship against the Los Angeles Rams, Lavelli caught 11 passes – then a record for a title game – and had two touchdown receptions. The Browns won the game 30–28.

Cleveland reached the NFL championship game the following year but lost to the Rams. The 1952 and 1953 seasons followed a similar pattern: the Browns made it to the championship game but lost both times to the Detroit Lions. Lavelli was named to the Pro Bowl in 1951 and 1953. He was seventh in the NFL in receiving yards in 1951, with 586. He gained 783 receiving yards in 1953, the fifth-highest total in the league.

Over the years, Lavelli developed a reputation for making big plays when they counted most, as he had done with his touchdown reception in the Browns' first championship game in 1946. He was nicknamed "Mr. Clutch" in a Pittsburgh Steelers scouting report, although "Gluefingers" – a name bestowed upon him by Browns announcer Bob Neal – was more widely used. He practiced with Graham tirelessly to refine routes and was not afraid to run over the middle, where he risked a pounding from defenders when the ball came his way. "Dante was the greatest guy at catching a ball in a crowd that I have ever seen," Brown once said. Among other innovations, he and Graham also mastered sideline patterns at a time when few teams used them.

The Browns won another championship in 1954, thanks in part to a strong regular-season performance from Lavelli. Lavelli led the team in receiving that year and made the Pro Bowl after the Browns beat the Lions for their second NFL title. A third NFL championship followed in 1955. In the championship game against the Rams, Lavelli caught a touchdown in the second quarter and scored a second time on a 50-yard pass just before the end of the first half. The Browns won 38–14.

Lavelli initially planned to retire in 1955 but came back for a final year in 1956, when the Browns posted a 5–7 record, the team's first-ever losing season. In his 11-year career, Lavelli caught 386 passes for 6,488 yards and 62 touchdowns. He was a confident receiver, former teammates said in later years. He could often be heard calling for Graham to throw him the ball while running routes. He was also known for his ability to improvise on the field. In a 1955 game against the Eagles in slippery conditions, he caught the winning touchdown with less than a minute left by swinging around the goalpost with his arm to get open.

During his Browns career, Lavelli was involved in the creation of the National Football League Players Association. The concept of a union to represent players in league matters was hatched in Lavelli's basement in 1954. Lavelli and two teammates, Abe Gibron and George Ratterman, met every Wednesday to discuss the union. They approached Creighton Miller, a Cleveland lawyer and former Notre Dame star who had worked briefly as an assistant coach with the Browns, for help. The union was founded at a meeting before the NFL championship game in 1956. The following year, the players got $50 per exhibition game, a $5,000 minimum salary, injury pay and medical care. The union is now the primary representative of players in labor negotiations and disputes with the NFL.

After retiring from football, Lavelli ran an appliance business on Cleveland's west side. From 1961 through 1963, he served as an assistant to Graham, who was coaching college stars in the annual College All-Star Game. Lavelli was also an assistant coach with the Browns and a scout for the Chicago Bears. He later owned a furniture store in Rocky River, Ohio and had an interest in two bowling alleys. He had a hand in founding the NFL Alumni Association, a charitable organization.

Lavelli was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1975, joining former teammates Graham, Motley and Groza and coach Paul Brown. Later in life, he golfed and attended NFL alumni events and lobbied to get the NFL to recognize his and other players' AAFC statistics. The NFL refused to incorporate AAFC statistics into its own when the league dissolved and the Browns became part of the NFL, in contrast to the NFL's recognition of statistics from the American Football League (AFL) following the AFL-NFL merger. Lavelli called it a "double standard". He died in 2009 at 85 at Fairview Hospital in Cleveland and is buried in St. Mary's Cemetery, Hudson, OH. He and his wife Joy had three children, Lucinda, Edward and Lisa; as well as four grandchildren, Aaron, Noah, Luke and Danielle; and two great-grandsons, Alexander, Warren and Harrison. Hudson High's stadium is named in honor of him.

The Akron Community Foundation established a Dante Lavelli Scholarship Fund in 2010 to help Hudson High athletes pay for college. "He was one of the best I’d ever seen," Willie Davis, a defensive end who played for the Browns shortly after Lavelli retired, said. "He set the mold with his running patterns and catching the ball." After Lavelli retired, Graham praised his abilities and remembered his eagerness to get his hands on the ball. "He was always coming into the huddle and telling me he was open and that I should throw to him," Graham said. "He wasn't saying that to be a big shot. He just loved to play. If he was open by a few inches, he'd be yelling, 'Otto, Otto.' Many a time when I was stuck and heard that voice I would throw it in his direction and darned if he didn't come down with it. He had fantastic hands."

The Story And Significance Of George Connor - In Eight Seasons, He Was Named A First-Team All-Pro Five Times

George Leo Connor was an American professional football player for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League from 1948 to 1955. He played offensive tackle on offense, and on defense was recognized as one of the sport's first linebackers. He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and of the College Football Hall of Fame. He attended both the College of the Holy Cross and the University of Notre Dame. He won the first Outland Trophy as the best college lineman in 1946. Sportswriter Grantland Rice once observed Connor was "the closest thing to a Greek God since Apollo."

After graduating, Connor received an offer from the Cleveland Browns of the All-America Football Conference, but chose to sign with his hometown Chicago Bears in 1948 for $13,000 a year guaranteed for three years, a high salary at the time for a lineman. He played for the Bears from 1948 through 1955. In eight seasons, he was named a first-team All-Pro five times, and was an invitee to the first four Pro Bowls. At first exclusively a tackle on defense, in a game in 1949 Bears head coach George Halas ordered Connor to stand upright outside the end in an attempt to thwart the running of Philadelphia Eagles halfback Steve Van Buren. The plan worked, as Connor held Van Buren in check and the Bears handed the Eagles their only loss of the season. "We always set high standards for George Connor and he exceeded them," said Halas. He became one of the first big, mobile linebackers in the NFL. Connor retired during training camp in 1956, still bothered by a knee injury sustained in 1954.

In 1963, Connor was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. He was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame with the class of 1975. He is a member of the National Football League 1940s All-Decade Team, selected by the Pro Football Hall of Fame committee in 1969 to honor the best players of the 1940s.

For several years Connor was a color commentator on CBS telecasts of NFL games, often working with lead announcer Jack Drees.

Connor worked as a manufacturers' representative in Chicago after his retirement from the NFL. He died in Evanston, Illinois on March 31, 2003, aged 78 after a long illness.

The Story And Significance Of Rosey Brown - 9 Time All-Pro Offensive Tackle For The New York Giants

Roosevelt "Rosey" Brown Jr. was an American professional football player who was an offensive tackle in the National Football League for the New York Giants from 1953 to 1965. He previously played college football for Morgan State University.

After being selected with the 321st pick in the 1953 NFL Draft, he appeared in 162 games for the Giants, missing only four games in a 13-year career. In his prime, between 1956 and 1963, he helped lead the Giants to six division championships and the 1956 NFL Championship Game. He was selected as a first-team All-NFL player eight consecutive years and was also selected to play in the Pro Bowl nine times.

After retiring as a player, Brown remained with the Giants as an assistant coach and later as a scout. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1974, was named to the NFL's 75th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1994 and was named to the NFL's 100th Anniversary All-Time Team in 2019. He was also included on the NFL's 1950s All-Decade Team and The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.

In January 1953, the New York Giants selected Brown in the 27th round (322nd overall pick) of the 1953 NFL Draft. The Giants drafted Brown after seeing him featured in the Pittsburgh Courier's All-American team. Brown signed a one-year contract for $3,500 on March 25, 1953. Having been picked as the 321st player in the draft, he is considered "one of the biggest steals in draft history."

As a rookie, Brown appeared in all 12 games for a Giants team that compiled a 3–9 record during the 1953 season. In October 1953, sports writer Earl Wright wrote of Brown: "He is built like a museum statue, slender hips and broad shoulders. But he is no statue on the field. He surprised the Giants by outrunning Arnie Weinmeister, New York's fleet defensive tackle, in windsprints." Brown also gained attention as a rookie for his style, wearing "fancy street clothing" and regularly sporting a mustache, derby hat and umbrella.

Brown again started all 12 games for the 1954 and 1955 Giants teams that compiled records of 7–5 and 6–5–1. The Giants teams during these years was overwhelmingly white, and Brown spent most of his time with Emlen Tunnell, the other African-American starter on the team. The two were roommates in New York. On the road, team owner Wellington Mara arranged for the two to stay in private homes with black families rather than staying in the hotels with the white players.

In 1956, the Giants compiled an 8–3–1 record and won the 1956 NFL Championship Game. Brown played a key role for the Giants' championship team, blocking for the team's backs Frank Gifford (819 rushing yards), Alex Webster (694 rushing yards), and Mel Triplett (515 rushing yards). Sports writer Murray Olderman wrote: "The New York Giants have football's greatest ground threat, and Roosevelt Brown, an ultra-fast 245-pounder, is an integral part of it." Gifford, the NFL's Most Valuable Player in 1956, later said: "I wouldn't be in the Hall of Fame if it weren't for him. ... The longest run of my career was on a pitchout against Washington. Rosie made a block at the line of scrimmage. I cut it up, and then I'm running downfield and I look up and I see No. 79 in front of me, and he wiped out another guy."

At the end of the 1956 season, Brown was unanimously selected as a first-team All-NFL player by the Associated Press (AP), United Press (UP), NEA, The Sporting News, and New York Daily News. Brown was one of only two players to be chosen by all 28 AP voters as a first-team All-NFL player. He was also received the NFL's Lineman of the Year award.

Brown remained a fixture in the Giants' offensive line through the 1965 season. In his prime, between 1956 and 1963, he helped lead the team to six division championships and one NFL championship. Brown was known primarily as an offensive tackle but also played on the Giants' kickoff, kickoff return, punt, punt return, and field goal attempt platoons. He was also known on defense as the "head 'traffic cop' on New York's last-ditch 'goal-line stand' platoon."

In November 1964, at age 32, Brown acknowledged that time was catching up with him: "You lose a step and you're done. You know how to do things, but you can't do them any more." Brown lasted one more year, appearing in all 14 games for the 1965 Giants.

In all, Brown appeared in 162 games for the Giants, missing only four games during his 13-year NFL career. Brown was selected as a first-team All-NFL player eight times during his NFL career: 1956 (AP, UPI, NEA, Sporting News); 1957 (AP, UPI, NEA, Sporting News); 1958 (AP, UPI, NEA, Sporting News); 1959 (AP, UPI, NEA, Sporting News); 1960 (UPI, Sporting News); 1961 (AP, UPI, NEA, Sporting News); 1962 (AP, UPI); and 1963 (UPI, NEA).[1] He was also selected to play in the Pro Bowl nine times: 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1964, and 1965.

While playing with the Giants, Brown and his wife Thelma were residents of Teaneck, New Jersey, where they were neighbors of New York Yankees catcher Elston Howard.

In March 1966, Brown was hospitalized with phlebitis, calling into doubt his ability to continue his playing career. Brown participated in the Giants' summer camp, but on August 23, 1966, he announced his retirement as a player. The Giants announced at the same time that the team had hired Brown as an assistant coach. He became the Giants' assistant offensive line coach and was promoted to offensive line coach in 1969. He later worked as a scout for the Giants. As a player, coach and scout, his career with the Giants spanned more than 50 years.

Who Were The Columbus Avondales?

The Columbus Avondales were one of five professional football teams to play in the Ohio Professional Football League in 1941. On Sunday October 5, 1941 The Columbus Avondales faced off against the Dayton Dakotas which resulted in a 12-6 defeat. The following Sunday the Columbus Avondales were defeated by the Middletown Mercahnts 7 to nothing. The following week the Columbus Avondales were victorious against the Dayton Merchants 13-0. On Sunday November 9, 1941 in Columbus, Ohio the Columbus Avondales faced off against the Cincinnati Pepsi-Colas, the Columbus Avondales would lose 25 to nothing. On Sunday November 23, 1941 the Columbus Avondales would face off against the Cincinnati Pepsi-Colas again in a 32-0 defeat. In the last week of the season and ultimately last week of games for the league, the Columbus Avondales played against the Dayton Dakotas in which the Dakotas would win 37-6. The Avondales went 1-5 which resulted in fourth place in the league.

The Story And Significance Of Dick "Night Train" Lane - Most Interceptions In One Season With 14

Richard Lane, commonly known as Dick "Night Train" Lane, was an American professional football player who was a cornerback for 14 years in the National Football League. He played for the Los Angeles Rams (1952–1953), Chicago Cardinals (1954–1959), and Detroit Lions (1960–1965).

As a rookie in 1952, Lane had 14 interceptions, a mark that remains an NFL record 70 years later. He played in the Pro Bowl seven times and was selected as a first-team All-Pro player seven times between 1956 and 1963. His 68 career interceptions ranked second in NFL history at the time of his retirement and still ranks fourth in NFL history. He was also known as one of the most ferocious tacklers in NFL history and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1974. He was named to the National Football League 50th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1969, named to the 75th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1994 and unanimously named to the National Football League 100th Anniversary All-Time Team in 2019. In 1999, he was ranked number 20 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.

After retiring from professional football, Lane worked for the Detroit Lions in various administrative positions from 1966 to 1972 and then held assistant coaching positions at Southern University (1972) and Central State University (1973). For 17 years, from 1975 to 1992, he was in charge of Detroit's Police Athletic League.

After graduating from high school, Lane lived for a time in Council Bluffs, Iowa, with his birth mother, Etta Mae King. She had visited during Lane's youth, and the two reconciled. His mother and a man had opened a tavern in Council Bluffs. While in Council Bluffs, a baseball scout signed Lane, and he played for a time with the Negro league Omaha Rockets, a farm team for the Kansas City Monarchs.

In the fall of 1947, Lane enrolled at Scottsbluff Junior College in Scottsbluff, Nebraska. He played one season of college football at Scottsbluff. He was the only African American player on the team, and a clipping from the college newspaper noted, "He is outstanding for his vicious tackles, hard running and pass snatching." The Scottsbluff football team compiled a 5–3–1 record with Lane in the lineup in 1947 and finished in third place in the Nebraska Junior College Conference.

In 1948, Lane enlisted in the United States Army and served for four years. He served at Fort Ord on Monterey Bay in California and played on a Fort Ord football team. In 1951, he caught 18 touchdown passes for Fort Ord. He received second-team All-Army honors in 1949 and first-team honors in 1951. After his discharge from the Army, Lane worked in an aircraft plant in Los Angeles, lifting heavy sheets of metal out of a bin and placing them into a press.

While working at the aircraft plant in Los Angeles, Lane passed the Los Angeles Rams offices on his bus ride to work. He walked into the office with a scrapbook of clippings in 1952 and asked for a tryout. He was recommended to the Rams by Gabby Sims and signed as a free agent. Lane initially tried out as a receiver, the position he had played at Fort Ord, but was switched to a defensive back by the Rams. In the Rams' first scrimmage on August 3, 1952, Lane drew praise as "the outstanding player in the scrimmage by a country mile" due to his "ferocious" approach to the game and his speed in chasing down Elroy Hirsch. After the scrimmage, Rams head coach Joe Stydahar said, "Lane came out here to make the ball club. Well, last night he got himself a job."

Lane acquired the nickname "Night Train" during his first training camp with the Rams. Teammate Tom Fears had a record player in his room and frequently played the record, "Night Train", by Jimmy Forrest. The record was released in March 1952 and was the #1 R&B hit for seven weeks. According to an account published by the Los Angeles Times in August 1952, "Whenever Fears plays it Lane can be found in the hall outside Tom's room dancing to the music." Lane was initially uncomfortable with the racial implication of the nickname, which had been bestowed on him by his white teammates, but he embraced it after a newspaper reported on his performance against Washington Redskins star Choo Choo Justice with the headline, "Night Train Derails Choo Choo".

As a rookie in 1952, Lane appeared in all 12 regular season games and broke the NFL single-season record with 14 interceptions. He also led the league with 298 interception return yards and two interceptions returned for touchdowns. In his first NFL game, a 37–7 loss to the Cleveland Browns, Lane was credited by the Los Angeles Times with playing "a positively sensational game at defensive halfback (he made about 50% of the tackles)." On December 7, 1952, he intercepted three passes in a 45–27 victory over the Green Bay Packers, including an 80-yard return of a pass from Tobin Rote. The following week, he intercepted three more passes in a 28–14 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, including one that he returned 42 yards for a touchdown. However, he sprained an ankle after making his third interception against the Steelers and was lost to the Rams for their playoff game against the Detroit Lions. The NFL later prepared a list of the greatest single-season performances of all time and ranked Lane's 1952 season fourth on that list.

After Lane blocked two field-goal attempts during a July 1953 scrimmage, Rams coach Hamp Pool said, "Night Train has the reflexes of a cat. It just doesn't seem possible that a man can come in from so far out and get in front of the ball in a matter of a couple of seconds." During the 1953 season, Lane appeared in 11 games for the Rams, but he intercepted only three passes. The highlight of his 1953 season was a blocked field goal against the Green Bay Packers; Lane blocked the kick at the Rams' 25-yards line, caught it on the bounce 45 yards downfield, and returned it for a touchdown.

In January 1954, the Rams traded Lane to the Chicago Cardinals in a three-team deal that also involved Don Doll. During the 1954 season, Lane appeared in all 12 regular season games for the Cardinals and again led the NFL in both interceptions (10) and interception return yards (181). Lane was occasionally used as a receiver by the Cardinals, and on November 13, 1955, he caught a pass from Ogden Compton, a play that covered 98 yards, the second longest pass in NFL history up to that time.

Lane remained with the Cardinals for six seasons from 1954 through 1959, appearing in 68 games and intercepting 30 passes. During his years with the Cardinals, Lane received All-NFL honors in 1954 (AP and UPI second team), 1955 (UPI second team), 1956 (AP and UPI first team), 1957 (Sporting News first team), 1958 (AP second team), 1959 (NEA first team). He was also invited to play in the Pro Bowl in 1954, 1955, 1956, and 1958.

On August 22, 1960, the Cardinals traded Lane to the Detroit Lions in exchange for lineman Gerry Perry. Lions great Joe Schmidt later called it "one of the greatest trades that will ever be made in any sport." At the time of the trade, Lions head coach George Wilson noted: "He has a reputation as a gambler. We are aware of that but he still has speed and experience."

In the Lions' first win of the 1960 season, a 30–17 victory over the Baltimore Colts, Lane intercepted a Johnny Unitas pass and returned it 80 yards for a touchdown, quickly becoming a fan favorite in Detroit. In his first two seasons with the Lions, Lane intercepted 11 passes for 175 return yards. In all, Lane played six seasons with the Lions from 1960 to 1965, appearing in 66 games with 21 interceptions for 272 yards. During his time with the Lions, Lane received All-NFL honors in 1960 (UPI, NEA, and Sporting News first team), 1961 (AP, NEA, and Sporting News first team), 1962 (AP, UPI, Sporting News, and NEA first team), 1963 (UPI and Sporting News first team). He was also invited to play in the Pro Bowl in 1960, 1961, and 1962.

Lane appeared in the 1962 Pro Bowl despite suffering from appendicitis. Weakened and in pain, he blocked an extra point kick and intercepted a Y. A. Tittle pass and returned it 42 yards for the West All-Stars. He checked into a Los Angeles hospital the next day and had his appendix removed.

In early July 1963, Lane married jazz singer Dinah Washington and began serving as her business manager, leading to reports that he may not continue his football career. However, he signed a contract with the Lions in late July. Lane intercepted five passes and recovered two fumbles in 14 games for the 1963 Lions.

Lane was hampered by injuries after the 1963 season. In August 1964, he was injured in a pre-season game, had surgery on his knee, and was out of action for the first part of the 1964 season. Lane ultimately appeared in seven games for the 1964 Lions, managing only one interception, the lowest total of his career up to that point.

On September 7, 1965, after undergoing off-season knee surgery, Lane, at age 37, was released by the Lions. When no other team claimed him, Lane returned to the Lions as a taxi squad player. He was returned to the active lineup on October 20, 1965, appearing in seven games with no interceptions for the first time in his career.

Lane was known as a ferocious tackler, and his style of play led to changes in the rules of the game. In 1961, he tackled Jon Arnett by the face mask as he ran at full speed down the field. Arnett lay motionless on the field after the tackle, and the play left a lasting impression. The following year, the NFL adopted a rule prohibiting the grasping of an opponent's face mask.

Lane's practice of tackling opponents about the head and neck, which was then a legal technique, was sometimes called a "Night Train Necktie". It later became known as a clothesline tackle and prohibited.

During his 14 years in the NFL, Lane recorded 68 interceptions, 1,207 interception return yards, and five touchdowns on interception. He also recovered 11 fumbles, returning them for 57 yards and one touchdown. From 1954 to 1963, he was selected as a first-team All-NFL player seven times and played in seven Pro Bowls. His single-season record of 14 interceptions still stands despite the lengthening of the NFL season from 12 to 16 and eventually 17 games. Lane's 68 career interceptions ranked second in NFL history at the time of his retirement and still ranks fourth in NFL history as of the end of the 2018 NFL season. His 1,207 interception return yards also ranked second in NFL history when he retired and still ranks sixth in NFL history. His 298 interception return yards in 1952 was three yards short of the NFL record at the time and remains the seventh best single-season total in NFL history.

The Story And Significance Of Lou Groza - Played 21 Seasons For The Cleveland Browns

Louis Roy Groza, nicknamed "the Toe", was an American professional football player who was a placekicker and offensive tackle while playing his entire career for the Cleveland Browns in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and National Football League. Groza was professional football's career kicking and points leader when he retired after the 1967 season. He played in 21 seasons for the Browns, helping the team to win eight league championships in that span. Groza's accuracy and strength as a kicker influenced the development of place-kicking as a specialty; he could kick field goals from beyond 50 yards at a time when attempts from that distance were a rarity. He set numerous records for distance and number of field goals kicked during his career.

Groza grew up in an athletic family in Martins Ferry, Ohio. He enrolled at Ohio State University on a scholarship in 1942, but after just one year in college, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and was sent to serve in World War II. Groza deployed as an army surgical technician in the Pacific theater, where he stayed until returning in 1946 to play for the Browns. Helped by Groza's kicking and play at offensive tackle, the Browns won the AAFC championship every year between 1946 and 1949, when the league disbanded and the Browns were absorbed by the more established NFL. Cleveland won the NFL championship in its first year in the league on a last-minute field goal by Groza. Groza set NFL records for field goals made in 1950, 1952 and 1953. Sporting News named him the league's Most Valuable Player in 1954, when the Browns won another championship. The team repeated as NFL champions in 1955.

Groza retired briefly after the 1959 season due to a back injury, but returned in 1961. He was part of a 1964 team that won another NFL championship. Groza retired for good after the 1967 season. Later in life, he ran an insurance business and served as a team ambassador for the Browns. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1974. In 1992, the Palm Beach County Sports Commission named the Lou Groza Award after him. The award is given annually to the country's best college placekicker. Groza died in 2000 of a heart attack.

Groza graduated from high school in 1942 and enrolled on an athletic scholarship at the Ohio State University in Columbus, where he played as a tackle and placekicker on the Buckeyes' freshman team. Groza played in three games and kicked five field goals, including one from 45 yards away. In 1943, he enlisted in the U.S. Army as World War II intensified. He first went for basic training to Abilene, Texas, and then to the Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio.

After a stint with the short-lived Army Service Training Program, Groza was sent with the 96th Infantry Division to serve as a surgical technician in Leyte, Okinawa, and other places in the Pacific theater in 1945. The day he landed in the Philippines, Groza saw a soldier shot in the face. He was stationed in a bank of tents about five miles from the front lines and helped doctors tend to the wounded. "I saw a lot of men wounded with severe injuries", he later said. "Lose legs, guts hanging out, stuff like that. It's a tough thing, but you get hardened to it, and you accept it as part of your being there."

While he was in the Army, he received a package from Paul Brown, the Ohio State football coach. It contained footballs and a contract for him to sign to play on a team Brown was coaching in the new All-America Football Conference (AAFC). He signed the contract in May 1945 and agreed to join the team, called the Cleveland Browns, after the war ended in 1946. Groza got $500 a month stipend until the end of the war and a $7,500 annual salary.

Following his discharge from military service, Groza reported to the Browns' training camp in Bowling Green, Ohio. He showed up in army fatigues carrying all his clothes in a duffel bag. There, he joined quarterback Otto Graham, fullback Marion Motley and receivers Dante Lavelli and Mac Speedie to form the core of the new team's offense. Groza was mainly a placekicker in his first two years with the Browns, but he played a big part in the team's early success. In his first season, he set a professional football record for both field goals and extra points. The Browns, meanwhile, advanced to the AAFC championship against the New York Yankees. Groza sprained his ankle in the game and missed three field goals, but Cleveland won 14–9. Behind a powerful offense led by Graham, Motley and Lavelli, the Browns finished the 1947 season with a 12–1–1 record and made it back to the championship game. Groza, however, was injured and could only watch as the team won its second championship in a row.

Further success followed for the Browns and Groza, who was nicknamed "The Toe" by a sportswriter for his kicking abilities. Groza led the league in field goals and the team won all of its games in 1948, recording professional football's first perfect season. As he grew into a star placekicker, Groza began playing regularly at offensive tackle beginning in 1948. One highlight of that year for Groza was a 53-yard field goal against the AAFC's Brooklyn Dodgers that was then the longest kick in pro football history. With Groza, the Browns could attempt field goals at a range many other teams could not. "Anywhere from 40 to 50 yards, he was a weapon", Tommy James, Groza's holder for eight years, later said. Another championship win followed in 1949, but the AAFC dissolved after the season, and the Browns were among three teams absorbed by the more established National Football League.

The war had shortened Groza's college career, so he continued to study at Ohio State in the offseason in his early years with the Browns. He graduated with a degree in business in 1949. Groza married that year, to Jackie Lou Robbins, a girl from Martins Ferry who was working as a model in New York City when they first dated.

The Browns' debut in the NFL in the 1950 season was closely watched; while the team dominated the AAFC in its short existence, some sportswriters, NFL owners and coaches considered the league inferior. Cleveland put all doubts to rest in its first game against the two-time defending champion Philadelphia Eagles, winning 35–10. In a game against the Washington Redskins later in the season, Groza broke a 24-year-old NFL record by kicking his 13th field goal of the season. He also scored the only touchdown of his career in that game on a reception from Graham. The Browns ended the regular season with a 10–2 record in the American Conference, tied with the New York Giants. That forced a playoff against the Giants in which Groza kicked the winning field goal for the Browns with under a minute to play.

The Browns next faced the Los Angeles Rams in the championship game. Groza came into the game as the NFL's leading kicker, both in terms of points scored and accuracy. He had a success rate of 68.4% in an era when most teams made fewer than half of their attempts. The Rams went ahead early in the game on a touchdown pass from star quarterback Bob Waterfield and a scoring run by Dick Hoerner. But Graham and the Browns came back with four touchdowns, two to receiver Dante Lavelli. As time wound down in the fourth quarter, however, the Rams were ahead 28–27, and Cleveland had a final chance to win the game. Graham drove the offense to the Rams' nine-yard line and set up a Groza field goal attempt. The 16-yard try sailed through the uprights with 28 seconds left, giving the Browns a 30–28 victory. It was the biggest kick of Groza's career. "I never thought I would miss", he said later. After the season, Groza was named to the first-ever Pro Bowl, the NFL's all-star game.

Cleveland again reached the championship game in 1951, but lost this time in a rematch against the Rams. Groza had a 52-yard field goal in the game, a record for a championship or Super Bowl that stood for 42 years. He was again named to the Pro Bowl after the season. The same scenario was repeated in 1952 and 1953: the Browns reached the championship both years, but lost both times to the Detroit Lions. Groza was playing with cracked ribs in the 1952 championship loss, and he missed three field goals. Groza set a record in 1953 when he made 23 field goals and had an 88.5% success rate, a single-season mark that stood for 28 years. He made the Pro Bowl again in 1952 and 1953, and was a first-team All-Pro selection both years.

The Browns came back in 1954 to win another championship. That year, Groza was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by Sporting News. Cleveland won the championship again in 1955, beating the Rams 38–14. Groza was named to the Pro Bowl and sportswriters' All-Pro teams in 1954 and 1955.

Hurt by Graham's retirement before the season, Cleveland had its first-ever losing season in 1956. Groza's kicking continued to be a strength through the ensuing three years: he reached the Pro Bowl in 1957, 1958 and 1959, and tied Sam Baker for league leader in points scored in 1957. Cleveland reached the championship game in 1957 but lost to the Lions. The Browns lost to the New York Giants in a single-elimination playoff in 1958, and failed to reach the postseason in 1959. Groza sat out after the 1959 season due to a back injury and was presumed to be retired. While his kicking was his most visible contribution to the team, Groza was also an offensive tackle up until his injury, when Brown replaced him with Dick Schafrath. "Lou never got all the credit he deserved for his tackle play, probably because his great kicking skills got him more notoriety", Andy Robustelli, a defensive end who played against Groza, later said.

Groza took 1960 off and did some scouting for the team. He also focused on an insurance business he started. "I was 36 and I thought I had retired", he said. The following year, however, he came back to the team at the urging of Art Modell, who bought the Browns that year. Not wanting to use a roster spot on a kicking specialist (Groza's back injury prevented him from playing on the line), Brown had signed Sam Baker to kick and play halfback. But Groza was eager to return and Modell insisted. Groza stayed with the team as a placekicker until 1967, and was on a Browns team that won the 1964 championship. Groza scored the first points in that game on a third-quarter field goal. He also kicked four kickoffs more than 70 yards and out of the Baltimore Colts end zone, preventing a return. Cleveland won 27–0.

When Groza retired for good in 1968 after 21 seasons in professional football, he held NFL career records for points scored, field goals made and extra points made. He had 234 field goals, 641 extra points, and 1,349 total points in the NFL. Counting his AAFC years, his career point total was 1,603. He was the last of the original Browns still on the team. Groza, who was 44 years old when he quit the game, said in his memoir that retiring was "the saddest day of my football life." His top salary was $50,000 in his final year.

After Groza retired, he entertained an offer to play for the San Francisco 49ers, but was reluctant to do so because he did not want to move his family and insurance business to the West Coast. He was offered a spot with the Browns as a kicking coach, helping mentor the young Don Cockroft, but he declined. Later in life, he became an ambassador and father figure for the Browns, inviting rookies over for dinner and helping them find apartments. He continued to run a successful insurance business and lived in Berea, Ohio near the Browns' headquarters and training facility. He and his wife Jackie were known as the team's First Family.

Modell relocated the Browns to Baltimore in 1995 and renamed the team the Ravens, provoking a wave of anger and disbelief from fans and former players. Groza was a leading critic of the move, saying it was "like some man walking off with your wife." In 1996, Groza wrote a memoir titled The Toe: The Lou Groza Story. The Browns restarted as an expansion team in 1999.

Groza was hobbled in the late 1990s by back and hip surgeries and Parkinson's disease. He suffered a heart attack in 2000 after dinner with his wife at Columbia Hills Country Club in Columbia Station, Ohio. He was taken to a hospital in Middleburg Heights, Ohio, where he died. He was buried in Sunset Memorial Park in North Olmsted, Ohio. Groza and his wife had three sons and a daughter. Following Groza's death, the Browns wore his number 76 on their helmets for the 2001 season.