OT: John Hadl dead
- Thread starter Tango Two
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AFL West with Dawson, Hadl and Lamonica had some serious QB play back in the day.
Remember Hadl throwing that slant across the middle many times to Lance Alworth.
Rest in Peace
Remember Hadl throwing that slant across the middle many times to Lance Alworth.
Rest in Peace
True! Don't forget George Blanda coming off the bench in the fourth quarter to rally and kick the Raiders to victory.
Bambi.
CBS' Sports story on Hadl is not accurate,giving the impression that he was the starting QB for the Chargers' '63 team that won the AFL title.
To the contrary,it was Tobin Rote,the only QB to win titles in both the NFL and the AFL.
I'm sure you know (but many of our younger posters may not) that Tobin's s cousin, Kyle Rote, starred for the New York Giants, and that Kyle Rote's son, Kyle Rote, Jr. was one of the first American soccer stars.
Or Otis Sistrunk. The only NFL player suspected to be a graduate of the University of Mars.
During a Monday Night Football telecast, a television camera beamed a sideline shot of the 6'5", 265-pound Sistrunk's steaming bald head to the nation. That, along with the Raiders’ listing of his educational background in the team program as "U.S. Mars” (shorthand for United States Marine Corps), prompted ABC commentator and ex-NFL player Alex Karras to suggest that the extraterrestrial-looking Sistrunk's alma mater was the "University of Mars."
In reality Sistrunk never played a minute of college football. After a stint in the Marines he played for the semi pro Norfolk Neptunes of the Atlantic Coast Football League. NJ had two teams in that league: the Jersey Tigers played at Williams Field in Elizabeth and the Jersey Jays at Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City.
He was signed by the Raiders after his time in Norfolk.
During a Monday Night Football telecast, a television camera beamed a sideline shot of the 6'5", 265-pound Sistrunk's steaming bald head to the nation. That, along with the Raiders’ listing of his educational background in the team program as "U.S. Mars” (shorthand for United States Marine Corps), prompted ABC commentator and ex-NFL player Alex Karras to suggest that the extraterrestrial-looking Sistrunk's alma mater was the "University of Mars."
In reality Sistrunk never played a minute of college football. After a stint in the Marines he played for the semi pro Norfolk Neptunes of the Atlantic Coast Football League. NJ had two teams in that league: the Jersey Tigers played at Williams Field in Elizabeth and the Jersey Jays at Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City.
He was signed by the Raiders after his time in Norfolk.
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Remember both Rote Sr and Jr. Kyle was my mother's maiden name and my younger brother's name.
Rote Sr was also a great broadcaster too. He was the guy who came up with the phrase "You can't stop him, you can only hope to contain him"
Loved those AFL games on NBC. Always felt the TV pictures blew away CBS and the entire atmosphere came through. Curt Gowdy the voice of the AFL setting the scene was always exciting to me. Just like MLB including interleague play, I think if there wasn't a merger between the AFL , NFL, ABA, NBA, and the NHL and WHL the excitement and talk that era produced would still be here today. I fully understand each league was financially killing each other to obtain players to the point of ruin. It doesn't change the fact I miss all the debates, I miss those days.
All i want for chanukah is warren wells and daryl lamonica..
These names jump off the page to me, memories of that league. Willie Lanier, Buck, those helmets with a rig on top, so menacing ,lol.https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/kan/1970.htm
One last memory of those days for me. Harmony Bowling Lanes in Middletown had a bar inside that had a rotating antenna to pick up Philly broadcasts that weren't on in NYC. I was a kid and had to sit at a table not the bar. One game I'll never forget was a Rams vs Eagles game. Roman Gabriel was the Rams QB and Eagles players were draped all over him and he'd still get passes off. I don't mean swing passes I mean bombs down field. He was physically ahead of his time at that position,just something that always stuck with me.
Passaic NJ's own. The hit he put on Sammy White in the Super Bowl against the Vikings was a classic that was immortalized by NFL Films.
Your younger brother is one of many. To quote Kyle Rote, Jr, ":"To me the most remarkable thing about him from a football standpoint was that he had fourteen teammates who named their sons after him."https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyle_Rote
Unfortunately, theres also the more notorious other hit …
Ironhead also from Passaic I believe
Was it my imagination growing up watching the AFL on NBC that the Kansas City Chiefs played the Oakland Raiders about eight or nine times a season with a Raiders-Chargers game thrown in once in awhile? heh-heh.
Rutgers held Hall of Fame Games in the 1950s to raise money for a building for the College Football Hall of Fame at the site of the first game. The first game invited dozens of former famous players and coaches to attend. Jim Thorpe was to come but bad weather the day of the game prevented him from doing so. He passed away shortly thereafter.
As our historian, is that the Source of our football curse ? Failed CFHOF initiative and the single greatest athlete ever dying same time ?
Of course but we gave him the business in 1982. More importantly when I hear Passaic ... Tyronne Stowe.
Joe theismann, Jack Tatum, Richard Wood, Franco Harris, Lydell Mitchell, Jim Kiick, Gil Chapman, Phil Vilapiano.
Those names were the start of my if we only had a college in NJ for these guys to play at we’d play with anyone rants.