1960s Timeline

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Dec 4, 2021

NFL: Ernie Davis Drafted by Washington Redskins

Dec. 4, 1961 - Ernie Davis, the Syracuse halfback, today became the first Negro ever drafted by the Washington Redskins, but rumors spread quickly at the 26th NFL player draft meeting that he would be traded to the Cleveland Browns. The rumors were denied by both clubs. Davis was also the first choice of the Buffalo Bills in the American Football League draft Saturday. Davis said today that he would go where he could get the best deal, be happy, and have a promising future an

Dec 3, 2021

NFL: Packers Clinch Western Conference Title

Dec. 3, 1961 - Pile-driving Jim Taylor hammered into the Giant line for a fourth-quarter touchdown today that clinched the NFL’s Western Conference title for Green Bay. This second score of the game by the Packers’ fullback put Coach Vince Lombardi’s team ahead, 20-17. That became the final score, and 30 minutes later enthusiasts in an overflow crowd of 47,012 at Milwaukee’s County Stadium leveled the goal posts. As a result of the defeat, the Giants fell back into a tie for

Nov 30, 2021

Private Hornung Gets Pass from Army to Play Giants Sunday

Nov. 30, 1961 - Just as the New York Giants had suspected, Paul Hornung (center) will be on the receiving end of a long pass from the Army this weekend. He will carry it from Fort Riley, Kan., to Milwaukee, where he will try to score for the Green Bay Packers in Sunday’s big game with the Giants. Before the Giants worked out yesterday, Coach Al Sherman (left) said his team’s plans had been made in the expectation that Pvts. Hornung, Boyd Dowler, and Ray Nitschke all would get

Nov 28, 2021

NFL Championship Game to Be Played Dec. 31

Nov. 28, 1961 - The NFL championship game will be held on Dec. 31 in the home park of the Western champion. The Green Bay Packers are currently in first place in the Western Conference, and there is little chance that any team can catch them. The New York Giants are now leading the Eastern race. The Philadelphia Eagles are a game back and the Cleveland Browns two games behind. The selection of the site was made in the usual manner — by flipping a coin. #NFL #football #footbal

Nov 26, 2021

NFL: Eagles Rout Cowboys, 35-13, at Franklin Field

Nov. 26, 1961 - Some Eagle fans among the 60,127 persons at Franklin Field today booed Sonny Jurgensen (pictured) when he was introduced before the game against the Dallas Cowboys. In the next 60 minutes, however, Jurgensen was cheered as he passed for all 5 Philadelphia touchdowns and the Eagles romped to a 35-13 decision over the Cowboys. Apparently blamed by many for the two recent Eagle defeats, Jurgensen, more than any other member of his team, was responsible today for

Nov 26, 2021

NFL: Giants Top Steelers, 37-21, at Yankee Stadium

Nov. 26, 1961 - Shaky on defense and stalled on the ground in the first half, the Giants pulled themselves together at halftime and walloped the favored Cleveland Browns, 37-21, today before a stunned crowd of 80,455 at Cleveland Stadium. With this victory, Coach Allie Sherman’s New Yorkers maintained their one-game lead over the Philadelphia Eagles in the race for the NFL’s Eastern Conference title. By losing, the Browns, who had been tied with the Eagles, dropped to third p

Nov 23, 2021

NFL: Packers Beat Lions, 17-9 in Rain and Mud

Nov. 23, 1961 - The Green Bay Packers mounted two touchdown drives in the rain and mud today and took firm command of the NFL’s Western Division with a 17-9 victory over the Detroit Lions. The Packers pushed over their winning touchdown on Jim Taylor’s one-yard run on the first play of the final quarter. Pvt. Paul Hornung, on weekend pass from the Army, contributed 5 points, including a field goal in the final 38 seconds. A steady downpour pelted the 55,662 fans who watched t

Nov 20, 2021

NFL: Packers Rout Rams, 35-17

Nov. 20, 1961 - The Green Bay Packers scored 28 points in the second period last night on the passing of Bart Starr for a 35-17 NFL victory over the Los Angeles Rams. Starr, the league’s leading passer, tossed for three touchdowns and set up two others as the Packers raised their record to 8-2, the best in the Western Conference. In their first game since Paul Hornung went on active duty with the Army, the Packers started slowly, but Starr took charge and the game was won. #N

Nov 19, 2021

NFL: Jimmy Brown Breaks Rushing Record as Browns Destroy Eagles

Nov. 19, 1961 - Jimmy Brown, the 228-pound fullback of the Cleveland Browns, had his greatest effort as a professional as the Browns routed the Eagles, 45-24. He rushed for a record total of 242 yards, scored 4 touchdowns, and blocked savagely. The victory for Paul Brown’s bruisers lifted them into a tie with the Eagles for second place behind the Giants. The Giants, who meet the Browns in Cleveland next Sunday, have had success stopping Brown in his four years as a pro. The

Nov 19, 2021

NFL: Giants Rout Steelers at Yankee Stadium

Nov. 19, 1961 - Recovering quickly from a stumbling start, the Giants routed the Pittsburgh Steelers, 42-21, today. By winning, the New Yorkers took sole possession of Eastern Conference leadership in the NFL. By improving their won-lost record to 8-2 with their third straight victory, the Giants took a one-game lead over the Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles, who are tied for second place in the East. Y.A. Tittle, the 35-year-old quarterback obtained from the Forty-Ni

Nov 17, 2021

NFL: Patriots Rally to Defeat Raiders, 20-17

Nov. 17, 1961 - The Boston Patriots rallied today when an Oakland fourth-quarter punt bounced off the goal posts and defeated the Raiders, 20-17, in an American Football League game. The Oakland punter, Wayne Crow, was kicking from deep in his own end zone when the ball struck an upright after a bad snap from center at 2:20 of the final period. A Boston defensive end, Leroy Moore, pounced on the loose ball in the Raider end zone for the winning touchdown. A last-second 61-yar

Nov 17, 2021

Packers Sign Kicker to Fill In for Hornung

Nov. 17, 1961 - The Green Bay Packers signed Ben Agajanian (pictured), a 41-year-old kicker, today to take over part of Paul Hornung’s duties. Agajanian will play in Green Bay in Sunday’s NFL game against the Los Angeles Rams. Agajanian formerly played with the Rams and Giants. He was waived out of the American Football League by the Dallas Texans earlier in the day. While playing in college, Agajanian had four toes of his kicking foot crushed in a work accident and then ampu

Nov 6, 2021

NFL Setting Attendance Records

Nov. 6, 1961 - The 7 National Football League games yesterday drew 353,084 spectators for a 1-day league record. The top crowd was 62,723 at Cleveland, where the Browns were upset by the Steelers. The average crowd was 50,440. Three games in the rival American Football League yesterday drew 61,982 fans. The two first-place teams in the NFL currently are the Eagles in the Eastern Conference and the Packers in the West. In the AFL, the top two teams are the Patriots in the East

Nov 5, 2021

NFL: Unitas Excels as Colts Upset Packers

Nov. 5, 1961 - John Unitas and his Baltimore Colt offense came alive with a vengeance today and ripped the Green Bay Packers, 45-21, in an NFL upset. The Packers had yielded only 68 points in 7 previous games and had won the last 6. The Colts, gaining revenge for a 45-7 shellacking by the Packers last month, appeared to catch fire on a spectacular run by Lenny Moore just before the first half ended. It put the Colts ahead, 21-14, and they smashed the Packers on both offense a

Oct 29, 2021

NFL: Packers Top Vikings, 28-10, Hornung and Starr Shine

Oct. 29, 1961 - The Green Bay Packers, paced by the running of Paul Hornung and the passing of Bart Starr, struck for 3 touchdowns in the first half today and held on for a 28-10 victory over the Minnesota Vikings. Starr passed for two touchdowns and Hornung for one. The game was the last before the scheduled Army call-up of Ray Nitschke and Boyd Dowler of the Packers. Hornung was injured early in the second half and didn’t return to action. He has a ten-day medical deferment

Oct 29, 2021

NFL: Jurgensen, Eagles Send Redskins to 7th Straight Defeat, 24-27

Oct. 29, 1961 - Sonny Jurgensen’s 41-yard touchdown pass to Tommy McDonald in the last 16 seconds enabled the Philadelphia Eagles to beat the Washington Redskins, 27-24, today. The play sent Washington to its seventh straight defeat of the season and its fifteenth straight in two seasons. The Eagles, who won the NFL title last year, appeared beaten when the Redskins took a 24-20 lead with 51 seconds to play. But the Eagles prevailed and have now taken over first place form th

Oct 27, 2021

NFL: Packers Star Paul Hornung Directed by Army to Take Second Physical

Oct. 27, 1961 - Paul Hornung of the Green Bay Packers, originally scheduled for active Army duty next Monday, was directed today to take another physical examination requiring a ten-day hospital stay. Hornung, 26 years old and unmarried, previously was scheduled to report Monday for active Army duty at Fort Riley, Kan. He has suffered from a pinched neck nerve, which has sidelined him several times. The Army’s summoning of Hornung, Ray Nitschke, and Boyd Dowler of the Green B

Oct 22, 2021

NFL: Billy Wade Leads Bears to Victory over 49ers, 31-0

Oct. 22, 1961 - With Billy Wade (right) throwing 4 touchdown passes, the Chicago Bears defeated the San Francisco 49ers, 31-0, in an NFL game today. The 49ers, who had scored 122 points in their last 3 games, were halted by a 5-2-4 defense that recovered three fumbles and intercepted three passes. The teams battled on even terms well into the second quarter before Wade passed to Mike Ditka (left), a rookie, for 22 yards. Wade’s next pass hit John Farrington for the game’s fir

Oct 22, 2021

NFL: Charlie Conerly Leads Giants to Comeback Win over Rams at Yankee Stadium

Oct. 22, 1961 - Charlie Conerly, one of the NFL’s great clutch players, led the New York Giants to a comeback 24-14 victory over the Los Angeles Rams today. Reactivated by Coach Allie Sherman, the 40-year-old quarterback from Mississippi fired touchdown passes of 10 and 37 yards to Kyle Rote and Del Shofner. These scoring strikes, accomplished within a 2-minute-3-second span in the closing stages of the fourth quarter, wiped out the 14-10 lead the Rams had gained. A Yankee St

Oct 17, 2021

NFL: Packers Star Paul Hornung Called to Active Duty by Army

Oct. 17, 1961 - Paul Hornung (pictured), the leading scorer in the NFL, was called to active duty by the Army today, together with Ray Nitschke, his teammate on the Green Bay Packers. Though both Hornung and Nitschke are members of the Army Reserve, their call to active duty shocked the Packers, who are tied for first place in the league’s Western Conference. The 14th Army Corps headquarters in Minneapolis said that Hornung had been ordered to report to the 896th Engineer Co.