Preseason: Washington Redskins 33, Green Bay Packers (1-4) 31
Saturday September 10th 1955 (at Winston-Salem, NC)
GAME RECAP (GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE)
(WINSTON-SALEM, NC) - The Packers, as they opened drills today for next Saturday’s final non-league game against the Chicago Cardinals in Milwaukee, was sure of one thing about that last-play loss to the Washington Redskins in Winston-Salem, N.C., over the weekend – it was all very confusing. A touch of irony was added to the situation by the honest admission of Eddie LeBaron, Washington quarterback, that he hadn’t scored the decisive “touchdown” on that last-second “quick play”. Cornerback Doyle Nix, the rookie from Southern Methodist who tackled LeBaron, said Sunday, “When he came down, it looked to me like he was a foot from the goal line. He just threw the ball into the end zone. He started griping at the referee that he had scored and I walked over to him and said, ‘quit your griping, Eddie, you didn’t make it.’ He said, ‘I know it.’” Head Coach Liz Blackbourn, reviewing the situation, pointed out, “that pass brought ‘em down to the one or two-yard line and they rolled right up to the line – never called a signal, never stopped. Our team was never lined up either, neither team was onside. LeBaron started off to his right and Nix hit him.
‘SAID NO TOUCHDOWN’
“I’m not exactly clear on what happened from there on – I don’t think anybody is,” Liz said wryly. “All I know is the referee (John Glascott) said no touchdown and the headlinesman (John Highberger) came in and said it was a touchdown.” Liz said he doubted that “pictures of the game will show exactly what happened since the cameraman was at a bad angle for that particular situation.” Liz admitted that “so many things happened to us during the game but it was the injuries that hurt us in the latter stages of it. All of our right defensive ends, Jim Temp, Gene Knutson and Nate Borden, were injured at one time or another, along with Jerry Helluin, Deral Teteak and Steve Ruzich.”
SATISFIED ON WHOLE
The injuries to Ruzich and Knutson are sufficiently serious that they might not play against the Cardinals Saturday night, Blackbourn said. “There is a possibility,” he announced, “that Roger Zatkoff may have to go to defensive end.” On the whole, he was satisfied with the Packers’ performance against Washington, he said, observing, “We played pretty good football. They’re (the Redskins) a real good ball club. In fact, they may be as good as anyone we’ve played. There was more hard knocking in that game than you see in any ordinary league game.” Blackbourn had high praise for Howie Ferguson, declaring, “He looked terrific on his runs. His run for the touchdown was one of the greatest I’ve ever seen.” The Packers were scheduled to open practice for the Cardinal game at 3 o’clock this afternoon, following a 2 o’clock practice…At Winston-Salem, it was the diminutive LeBaron, the Redskins’ wandering quarterback freshly returned from the Canadian league, who put the blast on the Packers before 13,000 fans at Bowman Gray Stadium. That last touchdown, which saw Dale Atkeson kick the meaningless extra point after time had run out, was his last but not his only contribution. Before that, LeBaron’s passes had accounted for two touchdowns, set up a third and put the Redskins in position for the two field goals they kicked. The 168-pound ball-handling wizard went all the way for the Redskins on offense, while highly-publicized rookie Ralph Guglielmi, the former Notre Dame star, appeared only as a defensive halfback. LeBaron, who pitched all but one of the Washington passes, completed 18 of 31 attempts for 229 net yards…Good as LeBaron’s record was, it was not so good as that of Packer quarterback Tobin Rote, who also played the entire game on offense. Rote completed 14 out of 25 passing attempts for 343 net yards. He tossed for two touchdowns, scored a third on a one-yard sneak and set up Fred Cone’s first period field goal, with a brilliantly-executed screen pass to Howie Ferguson, who dashed from the Packer 15 to the Redskins’ 10. On the ground, the Redskins got good running from halfbacks Bert Zagers and Leo Elter and fullback Atkeson to stack up 166 yards rushing, compared to only 26 for the Packers. Green Bay’s hardest running was exhibited by defensive back Veryl Switzer, who was a menace all night with his punt and kickoff returns. The wild final quarter had the 13,000 fans, who attended the only professional football game to be played in the two Carolinas this year, standing up and screaming. The Redskins went into it trailing by 24-12 and seemingly due for a worse licking that that…On the first play of the quarter, LeBaron passed to end John Carson to the Redskin 49, and a roughing penalty gave his team a first down on the Green Bay 38. Atkeson got another first down in two line strikes, moving the ball to the 27. He drove another three yards before LeBaron tossed to Cox for a third first down on the 16. Elter then found a hole at right guards and sped into the end zone. Norb Hecker’s placement moved the score to 24-19, Green Bay. The Redskins successfully executed an onside kick but an interception – only one of the game – by Bobby Dillon gave the ball to the Packers on their own 28. Rote went to work and found end Billy Howton open for a pass and a first down on the 50. A personal foul penalty moved the Packers on to the Washington 35, another pass to Howton got a first down on the 21 and still another moved the ball down to the five. Ferguson stabbed through for four yards at left guard and Rote sneaked over for the score. Fred Cone’s fourth conversion made the score 31-19…The Packers were done then, but no one in the stands believed it. Less than 10 minutes were left to play. Starting on second down after the kickoff, with the ball on the Washington 32, LeBaron threw three consecutive passes to Bill Cox for a touchdown. The first was good for 17 yards to the Redskin 49 and was followed by a 15-yard roughing penalty which put the ball on the Green Bay 36. The second pass to Cox got a first down on the 23 and the third found the lanky end open on the three yard line, from where he jumped into the end zone. Hecker’s conversion put the score at 31-26. There were five and a half minutes to play. The Packers couldn’t gain with the kickoff and punted. A 15-yard penalty nullified the boot and gave Green By a first down on the Redskins’ 49. A line plunge and two incomplete passes forced a second punt and the Redskins took over on their own 29 with two minutes and 30 seconds to play. On third down, LeBaron tosses to Atkeson for a first down on the Packer 49. A toss to Cox was incomplete but another to Carson was good to the Packer 33. Two plays later, Charlie Jones snared a pass on the 17, for a first down…A penalty put Green Bay back to its 12. LeBaron threw to Cox on the goal line but the Packers held him six inches short of a score, and one second short of the final whistle. When LeBaron dove into the line, officials debated a full minute before awarding the score. Both squads and part of the crowd swarmed on the field and had to be cleared before the conversion made the final score 33-31. Washington had also opened the scoring, on Vic Janowicz’s 37-yard field goal in the first quarter. Minutes later, Ferguson took a screen pass from Rote on his own 15 and dashed 70 yards before Hal Norris got him from behind. The Packers couldn’t get through the Washington line and Fred Cone’s 13-yard field goal tied it at 3-3. On the third play of the second quarter, Rote passed 38 yards to Howton on the Redskins 22 and, behind good blocking, the tall end sped down the sidelines for the game’s first touchdown…Hard running by Atkeson and two passes by LeBaron gave the Redskins a first down on the Green Bay 25, after the kickoff. The little quarterback, trapped trying to pass, slipped around right end to the 10-yard line, from where he passed to Leo Elter for the score. The conversion try was fumbled and the score was Green Bay 10, Redskins 9. On the first play after the kickoff, Rote and Ferguson worked their deceptive screen pass again. Ferguson set sail at the 30, was bounced down by Redskin defenders at midfield, but got up and stepped niftily down the sidelines for another touchdown. Cone’s conversion made the score 17-9 at halftime. Breezy Reid’s first fumble in two years was recovered in the third quarter by Guglielmi and the Redskins moved from their 35 deep into Packer territory in 10 plays. Hecker took aim from 33 yards out and booted a field goal to make it 17-12. The Redskins started moving again but rookie defensive back Billy Bookout alertly grabbed Elter’s fumble of a LeBaron pass at the Washington 48 and outlegged the Redskin downfield men to the goal line. Cone’s conversion gave the Packers their wide lead that looked so secure when the Redskins began their spectacular last-quarter comeback.
GREEN BAY - 3 14 7 7 - 31
WASHINGTON - 3 6 3 21 - 33
WASHINGTON GREEN BAY
First Downs 27 13
Rushing-Yards-TD 166 26
Att-Comp-Yd-TD-Int 32-18-229-2-1 25-14-343-2-0
Total Yards 445 369
Fumbles-lost 1 1
Turnovers 2 1
Yards penalized 25 60
SCORING
1st - WASH - Vic Janowicz, 37-yard field goal WASHINGTON 3-0
1st - GB - Fred Cone, 13-yard field goal TIED 3-3
2nd - GB - Billy Howton, 62-yard pass from Tobin Rote (Cone kick) GREEN BAY 10-3
2nd - WASH - Leo Elter, 11-yard pass from Eddie LeBaron (Kick failed) GB 10-9
2nd - GB - Howie Ferguson, 70-yard pass from Rote (Cone kick) GREEN BAY 17-9
3rd - WASH - Norb Hecker, 33-yard field goal GREEN BAY 17-12
3rd - GB - Billy Bookout, 52-yard fumble return (Cone kick) GREEN BAY 24-12
4th - WASH - Elter, 16-yard run (Norb Hecker kick) GREEN BAY 24-19
4th - GB - Rote, 1-yard run (Cone kick) GREEN BAY 31-19
4th - WASH - Bill Cox, 23-yard pass from LeBaron (Hecker kick) GREEN BAY 31-26
4th - WASH - LeBaron, 1-yard run (Hecker kick) WASHINGTON 33-31
2,500 FANS GREET PACK AT AIRPORT
SEPT 12 (Green Bay) - An estimated 2,500 of the faithful and a wave of signs proclaiming “Welcome Packers, Beat Detroit Here Sept. 25” greeted the Packers as they arrived at Austin Straubel Field Sunday afternoon from Winston-Salem, N.C. The strains of “Packers Down The Field”, with the sprightly Lumberjack Band doing to honors, also drifted up to them as their chartered Capitol airliner rolled to a stop on the airport apron. The Packers, still inside the plane, were officially welcomed back to the city from their two-week sojourn in the east by Mayor Otto Rachals. Speaking into the DC-4 over a public address microphone, he told them, “I hope you can be as proud of us as we are of you.”…’THINGS WILL LOOK UP’: General Manager Verne C. Lewellen, first to debark, declared, “I’ve always said Packer fans are the best in the land and you’re proving it again. I’m only sorry we couldn’t come back with a win.” Head Coach Liz Blackbourn, managing a smile despite that painful last-play loss to the Redskins, said, “We’ve had a little rough time, but I thought we played the best football we have played this year against Washington.” “We have some injuries but I think things will look up as soon as we get those injuries out of the way,” he added. “I want to particularly thank you all for the many letters I have received, for your constructive criticism and your continued interest.” The players were introduced individually as they left the plane by WJPG Sports Director Tony Flynn, then headed for a string of 28 convertibles that brought them into the city. Bernard Darling, president of the Packer Alumni Association, which arranged the welcome, served as master of
ceremonies.
PRESSURE - PACKERS CAN'T STAND IT, APPARENTLY, SO THEY LOSE CLOSE ONES
SEPT 12 (Milwaukee Journal) - It's beginning to look as though the Packers, as a club, just can't stand pressure. They expect the worst in the clutch, which in truth has now happened for several years, tighten up completely - and lose. For losing, and fearing about losing, they are forgetting all about how to win. It was the same story at Winston-Salem, NC Saturday night when a football game they had right in their mitts eluded them in the last seven minutes of play - on the last play of the game to be exact. Washington's Redskins, well contained until this time and behind 31-19, twice drove three quarters the length of the field behind Eddie LeBaron's passing to pull out the victory. The first drive of 73 yards started with seven minutes left, the second drive of 71 yards with less than three minutes left. The winning touchdown in the midst of a lot of confusion at the goal line, was scored on the last play of the game. The final score was 33-31. A few suck lickings are understandable. All teams lose close ones or sometimes blow down the stretch. In Green Bay's case, though, the proclivity in this as a team is becoming rather disturbing. Either their defenses fall apart as in the closing stages Saturday night, or their passing goes sour as in the Pittsburgh game, or their receiving becomes butter-fingered as in the Philadelphia game. Always something. A year ago much was made of the fact that the club suffered its first six defeats by a total of 23 points. Tough luck, the good burghers said. But was it all tough luck? The Packers led Pittsburgh, 20-14, as the fourth quarter opened a year ago, let Jimmy Finks suddenly pass them dizzy and lost, 21-20. They led the Bears as the fourth quarter opened in the first game, 3-0, but lost, 10-3, on a fumbled lateral pass inside the 10 yards line. They led San Francisco, 17-10, as the fourth quarter opened, but lost, 23-17, when a pass that never should have been thrown because of the rush was intercepted. They led the Bears, 16-14, as the fourth quarter opened in the second quarter, led 23-14 with only 7:42 left, in fact, but lost, 28-23, partly because they fumbled a punt inside their 10 yard line. They had a chance to beat the Lions at Green Bay in the fourth quarter with a 21-17 deficit, but dropped a perfect pass in the end zone for the lead touchdown. And they had a chance again to beat Detroit at Detroit Thanksgiving Day, but dropped passes all over the field, one in the closing minutes for a cinch touchdown. For losing, they are forgetting all about how to win. "We're really disturbed about the tendency to blow games the way we have," Lisle Blackbourn said Monday before starting work for the final exhibition game with the Cardinals in the annual Shrine game at Marquette Stadium Saturday night. "We just can't figure it out. If it isn't one way we blow them it's another. Football is no different than baseball. You have to win the close ones. We just can't it seems." The consolation at this point this season is that so far all of the "blowing" has been done in exhibitions. Actually, this is a much better team than its exhibition record of 1-4 suggests. Blackbourn, scouts from other teams, old observers all agree. But that complex in the clutch - it must be shaken off, and shaken off quickly, if the club is not to sink to the depths again.
FERGUSON IN NEW ROLE VS. CARDINALS? KNUTSON OUT
SEPT 13 (Green Bay) - There is a possibility that Packer partisans will see Howie Ferguson, the versatile bulldozer from New Iberia, La., in a new role when the injury-ridden Packers square off against the Chicago Cardinals in the annual Shrine attraction at Milwaukee’s Marquette Stadium Saturday night. The big fullback, who had one of the biggest nights of his career in that lamented last-second reversal at Winston-Salem, N.C., Saturday night, was running at a new position – halfback – as the Packers ran out the kinks acquired in the Washington game in a sweat clothes drill at Joannes Park Monday afternoon. Head Coach Liz Blackbourn, queried about the maneuver, played it close to the vest. Asked if he might unveil Ferguson at that position against the Cardinals, Liz replied enigmatically, “Could be, could be.” If he should, it would mean that either veteran Fred Cone, who impressed the coaching staff and a scattering of spectators alike with his abandoned running in practice, or rookie Bob Clemens from Georgia would be running at fullback. The switch, if employed, “will give us another halfback,” Liz said, also admitting that the presence of both Ferguson and Clemens or Cone would augment the pass protection for both Tobin Rote and Charlie (Choo-Choo) Brackins…”IN THE WORST SHAPE”: Blackbourn discovered yesterday that the injury situation was not as serious as had first been feared but he held out little hope that one of the weekend casualties, end-tackle Gene Knutson will be available for Saturday night’s engagement. “His left knee is all puffed and it’s unlikely that he’ll play. From what we have been able to tell, it appears that Deral Teteak and Len Szafaryn will be all right,” he continued. “Steve Ruzich is pretty well crippled up but there is a possibility he also will be all right. Nate Borden dislocated a couple of fingers but he should be able to play, too.” As the result of the injuries to Knutson and Borden, both right defensive ends, Blackbourn said he plans to have Roger Zatkoff, veteran linebacker, “ready for duty at defensive end
if needed.”…In the Cardinals, the Packers will be facing a club which has undergone major changes since the 1954 season, chief among them a new head coach, Ray Richards, former line coach of the Cardinals, Baltimore Colts and Los Angeles Rams. He replaced Jumbo Joe Stydahar as head man of the “Big Red”. The Cards, after opening non-league campaigning with “upset” victories over the Los Angeles Rams and Detroit Lions (17-16), have met with misfortune in recent days, bowing to the San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore in their last engagements for a 2-2 record…The Packers’ limbering-up session yesterday was devoted to passing and signal drills under the supervision of Blackbourn and aides Ray (Scooter) McLean and Lou Rymkus, while Tom Hearden worked with the defensive backs in another corner of the field. Blackbourn announced that single afternoon drills, starting at 3 o’clock each day following a 2 o’clock meeting, will be held the balance of the week. The team will leave for Milwaukee on the Chicago and North Western at 10:30 Saturday morning, after breakfast here.
PACKERS NEED CONVINCING WIN TO GAIN CONFIDENCE
SEPT 13 (Milwaukee Sentinel) - There's nothing wrong with the Packers that a good, rousing victory wouldn't cure - one that would create a winning frame of mind. Addicted to their old habit of losing the "oh, so close" ones, Green Bay needs a convincing win to steady it shaky exhibition nerves before it opens the rough league campaign against the Lions September 25. And it couldn't come at a better time than Saturday night against the Cardinals in the fifth annual Midwest Shrine game at Marquette Stadium. Victory was snatched from the Packers in a too often fashion last Saturday by the Redskins, scoring their winning points in the last seconds of play. Another exhibition loss, their fourth straight by an aggregate of 24 points! It shamefully points to last season's rut which saw the Packers lose six league games by a total of 27 points. Close, it's often said, counts only in horseshoes. But Coach Liz Blackbourn, disheartened Washington's 33-31 comeback win, isn't discouraged. Far from it. "Actually this is a much better club than last season," admits Liz. "We need confidence and a couple of good wins would do the trick. Thank heavens we've been blowing them when it doesn't count." Saturday night's loss to the Redskins pointed out the failure to move the ball on the ground was as fatal to the Packers as their collapsing pass defense in the fourth quarter when little Eddie LeBaron drilled 'em dizzy. The Packers rushed for only 26 yards. They netted on seven in the second half. Washington gained 166 yards rushing. Tobin Rote and Howie Ferguson were clicking with perfection, but that was the only offensive spark Green Bay could show. You can't match the Lions, Bears, Rams and 49ers sputtering on two cylinders. Four Packers are on the doubtful list for the Cardinal game. Tackles Gene Knutson, Steve Ruzich and Len Szafaryn all have knee injuries. Defensive halfback Val Joe Walker has a similar ailment. While the Packers were losing their fourth straight, they were still loved in Green Bay. More than 2,000 faithful turned out to greet the club upon its arrivals from Winston-Salem Sunday. Now for some confidence on the field and a winning frame of mind - it's badly needed before opening league plays against the powerhouse in two weeks.
EFFECTS OF PACKERS' CLASSIC 7-6 VERDICT OVER MIGHTY MINNEAPOLIS MARINES IN 1921 STILL FELT
SEPT 13 (Green Bay) - “In the greatest game of football ever seen on a Green Bay gridiron, the Packers celebrated their entrance into the Professional Football League by taking the far-famed Minneapolis Marines into camp to the tune of 7 to 6 before a crowd that jammed every corner of the field at Hagemeister Park.” Under Cal’s familiar by-line, that sentence, opening his account in the Press-Gazette of the game of Oct. 23, 1921, is probably the most significant in the history of the Green Bay Packers, if not professional football itself. How much of what happened in the next 34 years hinged on that Sunday afternoon, it is impossible to say, but the effects are still felt. The 1921 Marine-Packer clash wasn’t the most spectacular in the annals of the Packers, although it was thrilling enough, but it is a classic moment in the Packer story. Any account of great games in the team’s history that didn’t include it wouldn’t be worth the paper it was written on…TRAMPLED ALL COMPETITION: Why? Well, that takes some knowledge of the situation. For two years, the Packers had trampled all nearby competition until forced to look further afield for opponents. They had been nibbling on the fringes of the big stuff, but hadn’t been able to interest any of the top dogs. Then the professional league was organized, and Curly Lambeau saw his chance. If $50 hadn’t been big dough to the boys who were trying to establish pro football, Curly probably wouldn’t have got the time of day from them. Since the whole outfit was living on peanuts, however, Curly got a
franchise, thanks to Don Murphy, who hocked his Marmon roadster to raise the cash. Even so, his possession was tenuous. League officials had their doubts about admitting the small fry upstarts from the north. Unless the club made a satisfactory showing in its early league games, Green Bay wasn’t going to last long. The Packers opened the 1921 season with much the same squad that had started the whole thing in 1919. They had been changes in 1920, but by and large the players were all local or regional products. The only “big name” on the roster was Cub Buck, former Wisconsin captain and All America center, but Cub was a neighborhood boy, too, hailing from Kaukauna…COULDN’T CARRY BURDEN: As the team disposed of its first four opponents in preparation for the league inaugural against the Minneapolis Marines on Oct. 23, it was evident that strictly local talent couldn’t carry the burden. New men were gradually worked in, but not until the week before the game were well known outside players obtained. That week, Curly signed Billy DeMoe, former Syracuse wingman; Jigger Hayes and Paul Malone, both of Notre Dame. Hayes, another end, and Malone, a fullback, joined the squad on Friday. Even so, the club wasn’t at full strength. Fullback Tubby Howard had an injured ankle, and Lambeau had been ordered by his doctor not to play. The Marines, on which the Packers were expected to cut their teeth, were quite an outfit. Organized for 12 years, they had claimed the middle-western championship for the past six. Their line averaged over 200 pounds, real tonnage in 1921, and the roster contained a well blended mixture of seasoned pros and young former college stars. Rube Ursella, who never went to college but who, in 12 years in the rough and tumble of pioneer pro ball, had established a reputation as one of the canniest signal callers in the business – if you could call it a business…HOLDOVERS FROM 1919: When the Packers lined up for the opening kickoff that crucial afternoon, only one “charter” member was on the field – Sammy Powers at right guard. DeMoe and Hayes were on the wings, Buck and Jab Murray were at the tackles, Jim Cook held down the other guard slot, and Fee Klaus was at center. The backfield consisted of Roger Kliebhan at quarterback, Malone and Buff Wagner at the halves and Art Schmael at fullback. Before the game was over, Lambeau, Joe Carey, Milt Watson, Tubby Howard, Cowboy Wheeler and Toodie McLean saw action, Howard only briefly. Wilson, Wheeler, Lambeau and McLean were holdovers from the 1919 squad. Thanks to Cal’s fervent drum beating, the entire town was in a stew of enthusiasm tempered by anxiety. The largest crowd ever to see a football game here was on hand, although attendance figures were never published. Shortly after the opening kickoff, the Marines missed a field goal from 30 yards out, then took over at midfield and launched a smashing attack on the Green Bay line. With Art Sampson doing most of the carrying, they registered four successive first downs to the Green Bay four yard mark. The Packers piled up three thrusts, but on fourth down Dvorak burrowed through for the first score of the year against the home team. The precision of the drive didn’t make Sampson’s flub of an easy try for goal seem too important…PACKERS SEIZE INITIATIVE: Thereafter, the first half was a standoff, the Marines having a slight offensive edge, until a partly blocked punt gave Green Bay possession on the Minneapolis 30. An intercepted pass squelched the threat, but the Packers marched back to the visitors’ 35, only to be thwarted again when a forward pass grounded in the end zone with less than a minute to go. (In those days, an incomplete pass over the goal line meant loss of the ball.) Early in the second half, the Packers seized the initiative when Malone carted an intercepted aerial to the Marine 20. Schmael plunged to a first down, but Minneapolis braced and took over on its four yard line. Again the visitors opened a well executed assault and, with Sampson punching through the middle and Dvorak and Regnier sweeping the flanks and slicing off the tackles, rolled to the Packer 35 as the third quarter ended. Carey opened the last period by recovering a fumble, but the Packers couldn’t gain. The pattern continued as minutes ticked off, neither team being able to make much headway. Time was getting short when Sampson punted over the Green Bay goal line. Once more, the Packers stalled after reaching their 40, and with only six minutes remaining, Buck kicked…CAME UP ROARING: Dvorak tried to field the ball on the run, bobbled, and Jigger Hayes gathered it in on the Marine 35. The crowd, resigned to just a good try in Green Bay’s opening bid for the big time, came up roaring, but two cracks at the line netted only a couple of yards. With the fans pleading for the obvious pass, Lambeau – who had been at quarterback most of the way in defiance of Doc Kelly’s orders – obliged with a throw to Wagner. Buff made a circus catch and raced down to the Minneapolis 14 yard line before being pulled down. Four line smashes gained ten yards, but the distance was so thin that the sticks had to be brought in to give the Packers a first down on the four with only an inch to spare. The park was tense and silent as Curly barked his signals above the crouching line – the huddle hadn’t come into use yet – and Schmael, taking a direct pass from center, disappeared under a huge pileup on the Minneapolis goal line…CROWD WENT NUTS: When the stack peeled off and Art was found across the big stripe with the tying touchdown, the crowd went nuts. Cushions and hats sailed through the air, as Cal put it, “as thick as Green Bay flies on a July night. Staid businessmen jumped around like kids, and there was one continual din that could be heard for blocks away. When Capt. Lambeau booted the ball between the uprights for the point that beat the Gophers, the crowd opened up again.”
ARMY GRABS JIM TEMP
SEPT 14 (La Crosse) - Jim Temp, former Wisconsin star end and No. 2 draft choice of the Green Bay Packers, left Wednesday to report to the Army at Ft. Eustis, VA. Before leaving his home here, Temp, a second lieutenant, said that there might be a mistake in his orders, which directed him to report for duty September 16, because he understood the call would be delayed.
'GIRARD DAY' SET HERE AT LION GAME
SEPT 14 (Green Bay) - "Jug Girard Day" will be observed when the Green Bay Packers meet the Detroit Lions at Green Bay on Sunday, Sept. 25, at the request of Girard's friends and fans in Marinette and Menominee, where the Lions' triple-threat star first distinguished himself in sports. A committee headed by Harris (Mickey) McCormick, Packer director and Menominee auto dealer, and Howard L. Emich, manager of radio station WMAM, Marinette, has lined up a number of gifts which will be presented to Girard in a brief ceremony before the start of the second half. It is understood a group of Kaukauna area fans are also arranging a gift to be given to Girard, who formerly managed the Kaukauna city baseball team. Other members of the twin city committee planning to honor the Lions' star are Charles Goldenberg, James Gleason, Circuit Judge Arnold F. Murphy, Julius Rettke, Jr., and Richard (Jab) Murray, all of Marinette; Fred Klaus, James Ripley and Samuel Wells, all of Menominee.
CARDINALS TO UNVEIL NEW 'DREAM BF' AGAINST PACK
SEPT 14 (Green Bay) - The Chicago Cardinals, with fond memories of palmier days, will undrape what they are pleased to envision as their new "Dream Backfield" against the Packers in the fifth midwest Shrine game at Milwaukee's Marquette Stadium Saturday night. Their original foursome - quarterback Paul Christman, halfbacks Charley Trippi and Elmer Angsman and fullback Pat Harder - roamed the NFL in the "good old days" of 1947 and '48. After they had borne the "Big Red" to a world championship in 1947 and a second straight Western Division title the following year, even the more cynical members of the sportswriting gentry were constrained to agree that the term "dream" was, indeed, apt...Trippi is the only member of that talented quartette still active, Christman, Angsman and Harder having long since retired. With their departure (Christman was dealt to the Packers in 1950 and Harder to Detroit the following year), the drought set in and it's been some time now since the Cardinals have been in contention for the NFL's Eastern Division title, let along the world championship. Hence the enthusiasm engendered in the Cardinal camp over the possibility that a new "million dollar backfield", featuring Ogden Compton, Ollie Matson, Dave Mann and Johnny Olszewski may be in the making. Eddie McGuire, Cardinal publicity director who christened that first foursome, is of the opinion that the 1955 version could outstrip the old one, observing "There's more speed in this backfield."..."For one thing, Olszewski is faster than Harder was and hit just as hard and Matson and Mann have more speed than either Trippi and Angsman. And Compton, though he is a rookie, has one advantage over Christman at quarterback - in that he can run. He's a very good passer, too. Paul, of course, was a great field general and a good passer." Of these, both Compton (6-1, 180) and Mann (6-1, 190), a cousin of former Packer end Bob Mann, are rookies. The ability of Matson (6-2, 200), in this third full NFL season, never has been questioned. Ditto for Olszewski (5-11, 205). Ray Richards, the Cardinals' new coach, reportedly holds both Mann and Compton, who was recommended to the "Big Red" by Sammy Baugh, is high esteem. "Richards thinks Mann is a terrific back," McGuire says. "He was a running mate of Matson's at Fort Ord and while he hasn't quite the speed of Matson, he's a shifty back. Richards says he has one factor few backs have - he can take off straight ahead, then veer in any direction without losing speed."...Compton, who will start against the Packers Saturday night, may hold the key to this quartette's possible greatness. Eddie indicated, "He joined us in 1953, after playing under Baugh during spring practice for two years at Hardin-Simmons, but he went to service before he had a chance to play," McGuire explained. "He's just returned from service and so far he has looked very good," Eddie elaborated. "Ogden is an exceptionally good passer and he isn't a bad runner, either. It's just a matter of his acquiring timing in handling the ball. Against the Colts last Saturday, Lamar McHan couldn't seem to find the combination so Compton took over the quarterbacking chore and did a very good job," McGuire said. "He completed 11 of 17 passes and, against the Forty Niners the week before, he completed seven out of 14. He would have had a better record in the 'Frisco game but several of his passes were dropped."...The Cardinals enter the Shrine engagement with a .500 record, 2-2. They have beaten the Bears (21-6) and the Detroit Lions (17-16) and lost to San Francisco (43-7) and the Colts (24-14). Since dispatching the New York Giants in their opener, 31-24, the Packers have lost four in a row by a total of only 24 points, an average of six per reversal, and can't think of a better way of closing out their non-league season than by sabotaging the Cards. Trippi and three Cardinal teammates are definitely out of Saturday's game with injuries. Trippi, who may not play again this season, had all of the bones in his nose and sinuses smashed by John Henry Johnson's elbow, rookie All-American, and Max Boydston from Oklahoma and defensive back George Brancato suffered knee injuries and end Frank McPhee a shoulder hurt. All were injured in the San Francisco game...The Packers are likely to be missing end-tackle Gene Knutson, being treated for a knee injury sustained in the Washington game, and the effectiveness of several others, particularly Steve Ruzich, may be impaired by an assortment of bumps and bruises. As of today, the Packer roster still numbered 41 players and Head Coach Liz Blackbourn indicated it is likely to remain at that figure until after the Cardinal game. An offensive drill, featuring a pair of skilled catches by newcomer Jim Philbee, occupied the greater portion of Tuesday afternoon's workout at Joannes Park. Blackbourn said it is likely that Phillbee, a :09.7 man in the 100-yard dash who was used only on kickoffs and punt returns against Washington because he was unfamiliar with the Packer offense, will "play some" against the Cardinals.
TEMP LEAVES FOR ARMY; MISTAKE?
SEPT 14 (La Crosse) - Jim Temp, Packer rookie defensive end and former University of Wisconsin star, left here this morning for service with the Army Transportation Corps at Fort Eustis, Va. Temp is a second lieutenant in the ROTC. His orders reportedly directed him to report at Fort Eustis Friday. Before leaving his home here, Temp said that there might be a mistake in his orders, which directed him to report for duty Sept. 16, because he had understood the call would be delayed. However, he said, he would go to Ft. Eustis prepared to stay in event there was no error.
CARDINALS COULD BE 4-0 NOW; INJURIES HURT IN REVERSALS
SEPT 14 (Green Bay) - Eddie McGuire, the genial soul who has been the Chicago Cardinals' drumbeater for lo these many years, makes it sound like the "Big Red" should have a 4-0 grapefruit record going into Saturday night's Shrine date with the Packers in Milwaukee. This sort of thing is characteristic of publicitors, it being their traditional function to glamorize the athletes they represent, but it listens like gospel coming from the polished Windy City Irishman, particularly over the telephone. McGuire, who did happen to mention in passing that the Cardinals had dispatched the Chicago Bears (21-6) and Detroit Lions (17-16) before falling upon evil days, had a ready explanation for their less fortunate and more recent experiences against the San Francisco Forty-Niners and Baltimore Colts. "In that 'Frisco game, for example, the Forty-Niners had five touchdown passes and all of them came after Charley Trippi was injured on the first series of plays. Then we had to pull Dick Lane out of our pass defense when Max Boydston and Frank McPhee got hurt and use him at end. Actually, there was only a difference of 60 yards in total yardage between the two teams. And we scored a couple of touchdowns that we called back, not to mention the fact that the club got down after John Henry Johnson belted Trippi with his elbow. Charlie thought Johnson would run right by him since neither one of 'em was involved in the play, which was 40 yards away. But when John Henry came by, he came up with that elbow, right in Trippi's kisser. It smashed all the bones in his nose, as well as his sinuses, and Charlie came out with a concussion. He's already had one operation and we don't know whether he'll play at all the rest of the season. As for that Baltimore game last Saturday," Eddie related, "the Colts score their first touchdown on a fake placekick. We should have been expecting something like that but, for some reason, we weren't looking for it. Their second touchdown came on a pass and the receiver caught the ball with one foot inside and that would never have been allowed in a league game. Their last touchdown (he was willing to conceded this one) came on a 78-yard run by L.G. (Long Gone) Dupre. We came back in the second half and looked like the club we had been earlier in the season. During that time we scored two touchdowns and held the Colts to three points, but it wasn't enough, of course." Eddie's voice grew vibrant when he recalled those pleasant outings with the Bears and the erstwhile champion Lions. "We held the Bears to two field goals and the Lions to one touchdown and three field goals - that's quite a record, allowing only one touchdown to those guys in two games," he exulted. As a matter of fact, he allowed, "We think we've got a good ball club." He could be right.
LIZ SURE BAYS CAN DO BETTER
SEPT 14 (Milwaukee Sentinel) - There are a few optimistic observations being spoken in Green Bay these cool September days that the Packers should not be sneezed at despite a not-so-hot pre-season showing. Those assuring words come from the head man himself, Liz Blackbourn, who saw his Packers beat a good Giant team, 31-24, and then lose four straight, sputtering in the clutches. The optimistic feeling stems from:
* Tobin Rote is starting to hit like a Layne. But watch out when he starts running! Rote has strictly been a passer during the exhibition trail, but it's his running which makes him a feared quarterback.
* The Packer offensive line is much improved. Guard Joe Skibinski, obtained from the Browns, and tackle Tom Dahms, traded by the Rams, have been the kind of talent needed to fill the rubbery spots.
* Fullback Howie Ferguson has been the sparkplug of the running attack. But wait until Breezy Reid gets going. He was the league's ninth best last season with a 5.1 average.
* Al Carmichael, although sidelined with a shoulder separation, is the club's best pass catching back. When he returns, the backfield should click with perfection with a bigger, faster line in front of them.
Milwaukee gets an eyeful of the Packers Saturday night at Marquette Stadium when the fifth annual Midwest Shrine game matches Green Bay and the Chicago Cardinals. Surprisingly enough, the Cardinals boast the second best exhibition record in the Eastern Division, winning two of four starts. They've got the closest resemblance to the "dream backfield" of 1947 and it lines up something like this: Lamar McHan at quarterback, Ollie Matson and Dave Mann at halfbacks, and Johnny Olszewski at fullback. It was more than the Lions and Bears could handle in early season play. While the Packers have won but one exhibition game, they've played three on equal terms. A little midseason spunk could have been the difference. Only in the Eagle game were the Packers outplayed. And that the one Rote's receivers dropped nine and took the 10 count. "We really wanted that Redskin win," said Blackbourn again Wednesday, still trying to figure out how Washington had won when it appeared the Packers had it all but wrapped up. "That was one of the toughest pro games I've ever seen. Both clubs whaled the daylights out of each other. But Eddie LeBaron's passing was phenomenal - the best we've seen this season. After watching the exhibition season develop, it looks like the whole league is well balanced," continued Blackbourn. "Everyone's going to have their troubles, everyone."
WEATHER LOUSY BUT FANS REMEMBER ONLY FIRST WIN OVER BEARS
SEPT 14 (Green Bay) - Sept. 21, 1924 started out to be a lousy Sunday in Green Bay. There was a drenching cloudburst in the morning, and another snappy downpour just after noon. But before suppertime rolled around, it had been transformed into one of the brightest, happiest Sabbaths within the memory of the club's oldest inhabitants. That afternoon, out at old Bellevue Park on Main St., the Packers licked the Chicago Bears, 5-0. It wasn't a spectacular football game as pro contests go today, but few were in those days. If anything, it would have bored the ears off the modern fan who has been weaned on high scoring track meets. As the first Green Bay victory in what has become the classic rivalry in the NFL, however, it rates star billing on any list of great Packer games...HAD MAKINGS OF FEUD: The Bear-Packer rivalry was only beginning then, but already it had the makings of a grudge feud. In 1921, the Packers had wrangled a game with the Decatur Staleys, as George Halas' club was then called, and the Staleys, roaring to the national professional crown, had nonchalantly slapped down the local prides, 20-0. The teams didn't meet in 1922, but the following year the Bears condescended to come to Green Bay for the first time where they lucked out a 3-0 decision. From the outset the Bears had a faculty for ruffling the feathers of the Green Bay faithful. Although he was operating on a shoestring and usually needed the dough he got in Green Bay, Halas cannily adopted a supercilious attitude about playing here that had the local fans doing a slow burn - and flocking to the park. His team was perfectly cast to play up to his pitch. Champions in 1921 and runners-up the next two seasons, the Bears were a
swashbuckling crew who shed whatever gentlemanly instincts they may have had as soon as they saw a set of goal posts. That was easy for such characters as Halas, Dutch and Little Joe Sternaman, Hunk Anderson, Dave Healy, Duke Hanny, Hugh Blacklock, Laurie Walquist, Ralph Scott, Larry Knop, Brute Garvey and George Trafton. Especially Trafton, whose antisocial tendencies in a football uniform made him one of the most hated athletes who ever dared show his face in town...NO STUMBLEBUMS EITHER: The 1924 Packers were no stumblebums either. In 1923, they had finished third, right behind the Bears, and they boasted a good, rugged roster. The end contingent consisted of Tillie Voss, Tom Milton and Dick O'Donnell; Cub Buck, Rosie Rosatti and Jug Earpe were the tackles, although the Jugger also played center, as he did that day when Walt Nieman was incapacitated; and the guards were Whitey Woodin, Walt Buland, Moose Gardener and Norm Ludtke. The backfield was made up Curly Lambeau, Charlie Mathys, Verne Lewellen, Myrt Basing (it was murder to call him by his full name, which was Myrtle), Dutch Hendrian, Tom Hearden and Jack Beasey. The week before the game the local citizenry was brought to a boil by a series of snide stories, ostensibly emanating from Chicago, to the effect that the great Bears expected no more than a good workout from their country cousins. The general style of those stories leads to the suspicion that they were written by George Calhoun, who printed them under a Chicago dateline. Whoever concocted them, they worked, and the Packer management happily made arrangements to accommodate a record crowd of over 5,000. The league's top official, little Bobbie Cahn, was assigned to tote the whistle, and everything was set for a rousing brawl...HAD TO DIG TRENCHES: The rain put a crimp in the attendance, but didn't hurt the playing field too much except for the area around the baseball diamond, which was pretty sloppy. It was a different story on the sidelines, where trenches had to be dug to carry off the water and planks laid across mudholes to let the turnout of 4,000 reach their seats without capsizing. The first quarter was an evenly waged battle of stubborn lines, neither of which permitted the opposition to move consistently, and an equally fine punting duel between Cub Buck and Duke Hanny. Early in the second, however, the Packers got off the jump when Buck got off a beauty from his own 30 that was downed on the Bear 15. Hanny was dumped for an eight yard loss, and on the next play, attempting to punt from the end zone, he dropped the slick ball and was forced to fall on it for a safety. The Packers had scored their first points on the Bears, although through the back door, but the lead was dangerously slim as Dutch Sternaman shortly emphasized when he missed a field goal. Dutch made a quite a production of changing his shoe for the effort, and his failure delighted the partisan crowd...STOPPED BY INTERCEPTION: The rest of the half was a see-saw affair, in which neither team seriously threatened. The Packers gained ground on the punt exchanges through Buck's splendid kicking, but were unable to dent the ponderous Bear wall. An early third quarter Packer drive was stopped by a pass interception. Hanny then booted out of bounds on the home one yard line, but Buck relieved the pressure by kicking to his 40. Dutch Sternaman missed another field goal, but soon had a third chance when his brother, Joe, ran a punt back to the Packer 45. The try was short, however, and Mathys caught it at the five, and Buck kicked to midfield as the quarter ended. The Packers moved into a threatening position when Lambeau hit Mathys with a 20 yard aerial. Buck's try for a field goal was partly blocked, but the Packers recovered, only to be stymied by Halas' interception. Basing, whose fumble the year before had set up Sternaman's winning field goal, forever cleaned his record by picking off a Bear pass and racing down the sidelines to the visitor's 20. The Packers worked the ball out in front of the goal posts, and this time Buck sent the oval cleanly through the slot to make the count 5-0. An interesting sidelight on the contest was that, although Verne Lewellen was in the lineup, Buck did the punting. Lew was a rookie and didn't take over that chore until later. The Bruins lashed back with a desperate overhead attack that penetrated to the Packer 30, where an interception stopped the drive. Only time for two plays remained before the clock ran out.
REMEMBER NOV. 24, '29; CITY THROWN INTO DELIRIUM BY PACKER WIN OVER GIANTS, CINCHING FIRST TITLE
SEPT 15 (Green Bay) - Remember Nov. 24, 1929? If you don’t, you qualify for one of three categories: (1) You didn’t live here. (2) You were still in three-cornered pants. (3) You’re dead. That was the day an event a thousand miles away threw Green Bay into a delirium that lasted for three years. On Nov. 24, 1929, the Packers stormed onto the muddy, drizzle-soaked gridiron in New York City’s Polo Grounds and won the professional football championship of the world by crushing the New York Giants, 20-6. The victory didn’t actually clinch the championship but it was the big one, and the Packers swept through their remaining games to the first of three consecutive titles. It also put them firmly in the Big Time…The Packers had done pretty well in eight years of National League competition but, as more metropolitan centers joined the league, were gradually being relegated to the status of a curiosity rather than a serious contender. The previous year they had made their first invasion of the east, but aside from an upset of the Giants it wasn’t a success. Green Bay was still on the outside peeking in as far as the big boys were concerned. The upset of the Giants have the Packers a split with the New Yorkers, the latter having beaten the Packers in an earlier game here. The 1928 invasion of the Polo Grounds had been highlighted by the PA announcer’s sympathy for the “underequipped” squad, a statement that nettled the Packers no end. The Packers started the 1929 campaign with a rush and boasted a string of nine straight victories when they headed east late in November. Meanwhile, the Giants, with Benny Friedman throwing strikes all over
the lot, were rolling, too. When the climax game came up, the Giants had been tied once, but were likewise undefeated in nine contests. It was a perfect setup. Hitherto, New York papers had delegated little space to professional football, but as the Giants roared along they began to loosen up. When the team from the smallest city in the league came unbeaten into a crucial test with the circuit’s largest, the sportswriters pulled out all the stops…They had a lot of fun describing Green Bay as a northwoods whistle stop whose district attorney – Verne Lewellen – was also the star halfback and where the entire population crowded into the largest hall to watch the out-of-town games by Gridgraph. They made the Columbus Club, new then and the city’s pride, look like a backwards town hall full of bearded lumberjacks who sat around squirting tobacco juice on a pot-bellied stove while they waited for play-by-play reports to come in by dogsled. It was all colorful buildup, though, and the Big Town loved it. The 1929 Packers were a colorful lot. The 23 players who constituted the squad for that eastern trip included some of the most intriguing characters who ever wore blue jerseys. They were tough, too. The roster consisted of Curly Lambeau (who was still playing occasionally and who had cracked an aging rib against the Cardinals the week before), Verne Lewellen, the imitable Johnny Blood, Bo Molenda, Carl Lidberg, Hurdis McCrary, Eddie Kotal, Red Dunn, Dick Smith, Dave Zuidmulder, Lavvie Dilweg, Dick O’Donnell, Tom Nash, Cal Hubbard, Claude Perry, Roger Ashmore, Roger Kern, Jim Bowdoin, Whitey Woodin, Mike Michalske, Paul Minnick, Jug Earpe and Boob Darling…The team arrive in New York in the poorest physical shape of the season. In addition to Lambeau, regular quarterback Red Dunn and halfback Eddie Kotal were sidelined with wrenched shoulders, end Dick O’Donnell had a couple of cracked ribs, and Hurdis McCrary was battered, although he played the whole Giant game. As a result, the able bodied few had to go all the way in a sustained iron man stint that saw them playing without relief and taking only two times out until the last minute when Minnick replaced Bowdoin. The boys hollered about it, but Paul justified his presence on the field by clearing the way for the final touchdown. The wise guys along Jacobs and Beach knew the score and they weren’t buying the romantic fare being dished out in the sport columns. To them it was unthinkable that anyone could upend their Giants, much less a banged up gang of country boys. The Giants were 5 to 3 favorites when the teams trotted onto the soggy Polo Grounds turf before an exceptional pro game turnout of around 18,000…The odds didn’t phase the small town lads, however, and the Packers struck quickly. Early in the first quarter, Lewellen got off a towering punt from his own 25 that rolled over the Giant goal line. The New Yorkers worked out to their 35, fumbled, and Johnny Blood recovered. The Packers ground to a fourth down, goal-to-go situation on the Giant three, where Lew faked a dive into the line, then flipped to McCrary in the end zone. Molenda made the conversion. After the kickoff, the Giants reached the Packer 10 yards stripe on a beautiful pass from Friedman to Flaherty, but the alert Blood intercepted on his goal line and was dumped on the three. As the second quarter opened, Lew punted to Friedman at midfield and Benny came back to the Packer 30. The Packers stood fast and took over on downs on their 15, and Lewellen booted another beauty that rolled dead on the Giant 20 yards line. Before the half ended, the Packers had driven to the home 19 but were halted when Friedman stole an aerial on the three. Most of the afternoon the charging Packer line was dogging Friedman so thoroughly that the Giant ace, who usually had time to count the house and figure out his share of the gate receipts before letting fly, was forced to eat the ball or to throw wildly. In the third period, however, Benny got a little protection, and the Giants marched 66 yards to score on Friedman’s short toss to Plansky. His conversion attempt was wide, and the Packers still led, 7-6…The touchdown was a mistake. The Packers caught fire after that and made a shambles of the last quarter. From their own 20, with Lewellen and McCrary throwing passes to each other, Green Bay flashed to the New York 27 yard line. From there, they took to the ground and Lew, Molenda and Blood cracked the yielding Giants wall until Bo smashed through center for one yard and converted. Jug Earpe was laid out on the play, but shortly after the kickoff Jugger picked off a desperate Friedman aerial and lumbered to the Giant 37. Another smashing line assault carried to the four, and Blood, with Minnick clearing the way, shot through tackle for the final tally. As Johnny romped into the end zone, he yelled, “Let’s make ‘em like it!” At least that’s the way it came out in translation and the lead Cal used on his game account, which next day rated a banner head, Page One position in the Press-Gazette, one of the rare times a football game has ever enjoyed such distinction.
PACK EYEING 'BIG PUSH'?
SEPT 15 (Green Bay) - Will the Packers go by land against the Chicago Cardinals Saturday night? Head Coach Liz Blackbourn, for obvious reasons, will not neglect the Packer air arm but there is mounting evidence that his athletes will be “running”” more than they have of late in the that fifth midwest Shrine production at Marquette Stadium. To begin at the beginning, the club’s offense was the major problem confronting Blackbourn and his assistants when the Packers opened training at their Stevens Point base July 16, this situation arising out of the loss of Max McGee, Art Hunter and Al Barry, all offensive regulars a year ago, to military service…As the non-league season wore on, the Packers’ air game was the primary cause for concern, save for that victorious opener against the New York Giants in distant Spokane, Wash., where Tobin Rote fired four touchdown strikes. In their three succeeding outings against the Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, the Packers’ overhead game faltered and there once more was cause for alarm. Judging by what happened in last Saturday night’s engagement with the Washington Redskins at Winston-Salem, N.C., this situation had been corrected, the statistics revealing that Rote was on target in 14 of 25 attempts for the impressive total of 343 yards and two touchdowns…In the interim, however, the Bays’ rushing offense has tapered off, leaving Liz with 50 percent of that original knotty problem once again remaining to be solved. Against the ‘Skins, for example, Blackbourn’s disciples finished with a rushing net of 26 yards and the week before, against the defense-minded Eagles, the grand total was 73. This decline came as something of a surprise since the Packers had rushed for 199 yards in that grapefruit opener against the Giants and for 151 more in their home debut against the Steelers, Howie Ferguson amassing 74 of this total in 13 thrusts on that occasion. Even against the niggardly Browns, who takes pride in frustrating their rivals’ offensive maneuvers, the Packers’ rushing figure was only one yard shy of that century mark…That Blackbourn has been giving the statistics more than a little thought has been manifest in his emphasis upon perfection of ground maneuvers this week. Another indication that Liz, a purposeful fellow, is determined to accelerate this department’s production and keep the defense “honest” has been the experiment which saw Howie Ferguson, a fullback ever since he joined the club in 1953, running at halfback. If the local prides can couple a land offensive like the one they mustered against the Giants and Steelers with a repeat of their air success against the Redskins, Liz reasonably assumes, the Packers well could end the grapefruit season on a happy note…The concern occasioned by recent misfortune, both artistic and physical, was partially dispelled Wednesday by the report that veteran halfback Al Carmichael, presently recuperating at his Los Angeles home from a shoulder separation sustained in the Pittsburgh game here, will rejoin his colleagues Monday. He won’t be able to resume normal operations immediately but “he should be able to run,” Blackbourn said. “Then he should be able to play the following week against the Bears, according to what I’ve been told.” Defensive end Gene Knutson, the club’s only other major casualty, was released from the hospital yesterday “but he won’t be ready this week,” Liz announced. Another injury, Steve Ruzich, “is coming around all right,” and is expected to play against the Cardinals…There was no hint of defeatism in yesterday’s mid-afternoon session, conducted under an unmerciful sun at Joannes Park. The coaches evinced pleasure over the fire their proteges exhibited in a rousing play rehearsal and the athletes themselves left the field in high spirits, declaring that their legs “felt good” after the hour-long drill on turf softened by a heavy overnight rain.
ZATKOFF MAY BE DEFENSIVE END FOR PACKERS IN EXHIBITION HERE
SEPT 15 (Milwaukee Journal) - Linebacker Roger Zatkoff, Green Bay Packer defensive star, may come up with a new assignment in the Shrine exhibition game with the Chicago Cardinals Saturday night. Coach Lisle Blackbourn said Thursday he was considering shifting Zatkoff to defensive end as a replacement for the injured Gene Knutson. Knutson was hurt in the exhibition with the Washington Redskins last week and both he and offensive guard Steve Ruzich will miss Saturday's game. Blackbourn said he was well satisfied with the Packer defense and passing attacks but that the ground game needed improvement. "Our running game needs stepping up and we've worked on it this week," said Blackbourn. "Our defense should hold up although injuries hurt us against the Redskins." The Packers lost to Washington in the final minute, 33-31. The Packers have a 1-4 exhibition record and Saturday night's Cardinal game will be the last pre-season contest.
CARDS SEND 'DREAM' BACKS AGAINST BAYS
SEPT 15 (Milwaukee Sentinel) - It has been five years since the Packers and Cardinals have played a league game - five years and the disappearance of the famed Big Red "dream backfield" and the rebirth of probably just as potent an attack. The year was 1949 in which the Packers were more than happy to call it quits with the Cardinals after being drubbed at Comiskey Park, 41-21, for the seventh consecutive time. Those were the days of Christman, Angsman, Trippi and Harder. "Dream backfield", they called it... the best in the league as the Cardinals won the league title in 1947 and were Western Division champs the year after. Saturday night at Marquette Stadium, the Packers meet the Cardinals in the fifth annual Midwest Shrine game - the last tuneup before they open the league season September 25 against the Lions in Green Bay. But Saturday night's affair means more than a forgotten exhibition. It's a chance for both clubs to carefully test each other - seven weeks later it will be for keeps when the teams resume one of the oldest rivalries in the league in Green Bay November 13. Tabbed as the closest resemblance to that "dream outfit" which had its own way in those glorious '40s is this quartet" Lamar McHan, quarterback; Ollie Matson, halfback; Dave Mann, halfback, and Johnny Olszewski, fullback. McHan learned the T formation the hard way, being plucked from his Arkansas tailback spot to the Cardinals' starting quarterback post last season. His first year jitters have seemed to subside as he passed the Cardinals to pre-season wins over the Bears and Lions. Matson needs no introduction. Considered the fastest back in pro ball (he runs the 100 in 9.5), Matson was the Cardinals' leading ground gainer, despite the fact he joined the club late because of service commitments. He was second in pass receiving and was the team's top scorer with nine touchdowns. Mann, drafted in 1954 despite the fact he had another year of military service, was a member of the Fort Ord team which included Matson. Speed is Mann's chief talent. He's touted as another Matson. Olszewski shattered Jackie Jensen's records at California before coming to the Cardinals. He was second only to Matson as a ball carrier last season. He's an explosive runner, booming 25 yards for one touchdown against the Bears this season. McHan, Matson and Olszewski were all first draft choices, a true indication that the Cardinals were going to build another "dream outfit". Add this year's top college choice, end Box Boydston of Oklahoma, and it's easy to predict the Cardinals could be the surprise team of the season. Green Bay gets first crack at this explosive package Saturday and hopes that history won't repeat itself.
'PIKERS'? PACKERS MADE PORTSMOUTH SPARTANS EAT WORDS IN HISTORIC 1932 GRUDGE BATTLE HERE, 15-10
SEPT 16 (Green Bay) - If Portsmouth, Ohio, had remained in the NFL, the Packers might have two blood feuds on their hands today instead of one. The Packer-Portsmouth rivalry didn’t last long, but it made up in bitterness what it lacked in length. Feeling reached a peak on Oct. 9, 1932, when the Packers rubbed the Spartans’ noses in the mud of City Stadium, 15-10, and made them eat the epithets of “pikers” and “cheese champions” the Ohioans had been hanging on the three-time titlists. The Packers were wearing their triple crown at a rakish angle that day, and Portsmouth was out to knock it off. The result was a wild, slashing game, studded with vicious tackling and belting blocks that could be felt up in the cheap seats. Its outcome was in doubt until the final minute as both clubs cut loose with one scoring threat after another, only to be balked by inspired defensive stands…Portsmouth trotted onto then rain and wind-swept field in an angry mood. It was a pennant-hungry club, determined to wipe out the frustration of 1931 when the Packers refused to meet them in a postseason game, which, had they won, would have netted them a share of the championship. The Packers knew it, and they were just as sore about the insults they had endured from Ohio for the past year. Portsmouth and Green Bay first met in 1929, before the Spartans entered the league, when the Packers won an exhibition game, 14-0. The next season, the Packers whipped the Spartans badly in an early contest here, 47-13, but were subsequently held to a 6-6 deadlock in Portsmouth. In 1931, Portsmouth made its bid for the top and refused to play in Green Bay. They did, however, want the Packers to come to Portsmouth, and Curly Lambeau seems to have made a tentative agreement to go. When the regular campaign ended, with the Packers still champions on a 12-2 record and the Spartans a game behind with 11 wins and three losses, a howl went up for the “promised” crack at the title...The Packers, with nothing to gain and
everything to lose, refused on the grounds that Curly’s arrangement had not been a definite commitment. The Portsmouth fanatics teed off, and their sportswriters used nothing by purple ink to express the opinion of the Packers. “Green Bay Pikers” and “cheese champions” were only two of the milder expressions used, while the tenor of Portsmouth speakeasy convention – Prohibition was still in effect – can be inferred. When they came to Green Bay early in the 1932 campaign, they made no bones of what they intended to do. The Spartans were a rugged, veteran club and quite capable of doing it. They were coached by Potsy Clark, and boasted a pounding backfield that included Dutch Clark, Father Lumpkin, Glenn Presnell, Mule Wilson, Gene Alford and John Cavposie. In the line were such bruisers was Ox Emerson, Bob Armstrong, Ace Gutowsky, Bill McKalip, Harry Ebding, Maurice Bodenger, Jack Wager, George Christensen, Gran Mitchell, Clare Rudolph and Amby Rascher. The game had figured to pull a capacity crowd, but some of the worst football weather in years cut attendance to only 5,000 hardy souls who braved icy rain and winds to watch the two clubs clash on a water-soaked field. In the second half, visibility was hampered by a clammy fog that settled over the stadium…The weather failed to cool off either side, however, and the game quickly developed into a rough, no-quarter contest between two highly keyed teams that never let up. The following paragraph from Art Bystrom’s breathless account of the struggle will give you an idea. “From the start to the
finish,” Art wrote, “the game was packed with action, sensational, and rough, hard football. Blocked punts, sensational dashes across a water-soaked field, defensive play that at times reached superhuman attacks that would have cracked a stone wall were thrown in the most thrill-packed 60 minutes of football seen here in years.” Portsmouth took the kickoff and smashed from its own 25 yard line to the Packer 38 before the home boys found the stop sign and continued to dominate the early going, once reaching the Bay 20, only to be thrown back to the 29. Here Verne Lewellen got a tremendous punt that sailed 70 yards before rolling dead on the Portsmouth 12. The Spartans were detected holding on the play, and the ball was put down on their one-yard line…Dutch Clark tried to kick from the end zone but the Packer line poured through to smother the punt, and Al Rose fell on the ball for a touchdown. Hal O’Boyle’s conversion made it 7-0. The Packers maintained the edge the rest of the half, twice penetrating the visitors’ 20 yard stripe but being set back by holding penalties on each occasion. The game’s complexion changed abruptly in the third quarter as Clark and Glenn Presnell collaborated in a line blasting drive that crunched 80 yards of the tying touchdown. The two alternated in hammering through the line to the Green Bay 40, where Clark switched to the air. Two successive passes to Ebding brought the score, Harry taking the payoff pitch and sprinting 27 yards. Dutch’s dropkick knotted it up. A few minutes later Clark got off a great punt that was downed on the Bay three. Johnny Blood was rushed on the return kick, and the ball dribbled out of bounds on the Packer nine. Here a snarling Packer defense rose up to smack down three running plays, but on fourth down Clark drifted back to the 20 and dropped a perfect goal to put the Spartans in front, 10-7…Green Bay came back fighting and got a break when Clark Hinkle punted over Clark’s head to the Spartan one. Rather than take a chance of booting the water-logged ball from the end zone, Duch grounded the ball for an intentional safety that made it 10-9. The Spartans elected a free kick from the 20 after the safety, and Paul Fitzgibbons carted it back to the Packer 40. From here the Big Bay Blues stormed to the winning touchdown as Hinkle and Hank Bruder splintered the Spartan wall and charged through gaping holes excavated by the forwards. The Packers needed a yard on fourth down at the Spartan 22 when Hinkle was given the ball again. Clark’s interference swept to the right. Hinkle faked to follow it, then reversed and cut sharply to the left through a huge opening at left guard torn out by Mike Michalske and Nate Barrager. Catapulted into the off-balance secondary, Hinkle evaded the only tackler near him and sped into the end zone. It made no difference that O’Boyle’s goal attempt was blocked. As sweet as the victory was to the Packers, it backfired. Going into the next-to-last game of the season still leading the league, the Packers invaded Portsmouth and were smeared, 19-0. That defeat, coupled with a 9-0 reverse by the Bears the following Sunday, cost them an unprecedented fourth straight title.
LAW OF AVERAGES RIDES WITH PACK AGAINST CARDINALS
SEPT 16 (Green Bay) - The law of averages will be riding with the Packers in their midwest Shrine engagement with the Chicago Cardinals at Milwaukee Saturday night. Though the Big Red has hardly been a threat to the Cleveland Browns in their recent domination of the NFL’s Eastern Conference, having won only 10 league matches in the last four years, the Packers haven’t been able to beat the Chicagoans since 1951. On that occasion, a 17-14 Packer victory in the Cards’ second visit to City Stadium under Curly Lambeau, a field goal from the talented toe of the since retired Ted Fritsch made the difference, as it had the year before by an identical score. Since that time, the home talent has had no luck at all in three non-league encounters with their big city brethren. They haven’t met in championship competition during that span, or since the absorption of the ill-starred All-American Conference following the 1949 season, for that matter. They, however, will be matched in league play this year, being scheduled for a performance here Nov. 13. Those still remaining on the Packer roster from the 1952 season would, it is safe to assume, be happy to forget their experience with the Big Red that year. Gene Ronzani’s proteges encountered the Cards at Chicago’s Comiskey Park and left with an embarrassing 38-7 deficit. The result was the same, although less convincing, in their 1953 meeting at Spokane, Wash. The time, the Windy City representatives escaped with a 13-7 verdict. A year ago, the Cardinal whammy was still in force in the Packers’ grapefruit opener at Parade Stadium in Minneapolis. With Johnny Olszewski, a fellow the Bays will see again tomorrow night, scoring two touchdowns and Charlie Trippi another, the Cards made off with a 27-10 decision to spoil Liz Blackbourn’s debut as Packer head coach. In view of these recent circumstances, the L.O.A. should be operating for the Packers tomorrow, giving rise to the possibility that Blackbourn’s athletes will end their four-game grapefruit losing streak…Speaking of Trippi, an Associated Press report from Jacksonville, Fla., today indicated that the Cardinal veteran may have played his last game of football. Trippi, a standout halfback with the Cards for the past eight seasons, was injured two weeks ago in a 43-7 non-league loss to the San Francisco 49ers and presently is in a Chicago hospital suffering from a smashed nose and a fractured skull. Walter Wolfner, executive director of the Cardinals, told the Jacksonville, Fla, Times-Union yesterday that “I doubt very much where he’ll ever play football again.”…Blackbourn announced today that Nate Borden, rookie from Indiana, will open at right defensive end against the Cardinals in place of the injured Gene Knutson. Since Jim Temp also is among the missing, veteran linebacker Roger Zatkoff also will be ready for duty at that position tomorrow night. Liz and Line Coach Lou Rymkus handled Thursday’s sweat clothes session at Joannes Park alone. The other two members of the Packer staff, Tom Hearden and Ray (Scooter) McLean, were in Chicago to scout the Chicago Bear-Cleveland contest. The Packers were scheduled to conclude the week’s work with the customary platoon drill this afternoon.
DETROIT TICKETS GOING FAST!
SEPT 16 (Green Bay) - Carl Mraz, Packer ticket director, reported today that tickets for the Packers’ opening NFL game against the Detroit Lions in City Stadium, Sunday, Sept. 25, are going at a brisk pace but tickets are still available in the $4.75. 3.50 and 2.40 price ranges. The Packer ticket office, 349 S. Washington, will remain open until 8 o’clock each night next week for the benefit of ticket buyers who are unable to come in during the day, Mraz said. He also stated that a limited number of tickets still remain for the Chicago Bears game on Oct. 2. More than 1,000 tickets already have been sold here for Saturday night’s Packer-Cardinal Shrine attraction in Milwaukee, Mraz announced. A capacity house is expected.
GREEN BAY AIMS TO HALT SLIDE AGAINST CARDS HERE SATURDAY
SEPT 16 (Milwaukee Journal) - A couple of losing streaks will get Green Bay's thorough attention in the annual Tripoli Shrine exhibition game with the Chicago Cardinals at Marquette University Stadium Saturday night at 8:15 o'clock. The first one concerns the game itself. Since the Packers won the first of these appearances here in 1950, beating the Colts, 16-14, they've lost four in a row. The Eagles beat them in 1951 (14-10), the Giants in 1952 (7-0), the Steelers in 1953 (26-23) and the Giants last year (38-27). The second concerns this entire exhibition season which will end with Saturday's game - and it has Coach Lisle Blackbourn both a little worried and bewildered. Since beating the New York Giants in the opener, substantiating early hopes, the Packers have lost to Cleveland, 13-7; Pittsburgh, 16-14; Philadelphia, 24-10 and Washington 33-31 - Washington on the last play of the game. Each one of the games, except for a collapse of one kind or other, the club might have won. The Cardinals come with a record not unlike Green Bay's although it looks a little better in print. After a fast start in which they beat both the Chicago Bears, 21-6 and the Detroit Lions, 17-16, they took a beating from the San Francisco 49ers, 43-7, and the Baltimore Colts, 24-14. Green Bay Friday ruled a 6 point choice. The Washington licking last week, while a crusher in the way it was suffered, did have more than one redeeming feature of play. The defense was solid until injuries in the fourth quarter took Deral Teteak, Gene Knutson, Jim Temp, Nate Borden, Steve Ruzich, Len Szafaryn, Jerry Helluin and Val Joe Walker from the lineup. Washington got three of its touchdowns in the final period of play - the last two in the last seven minutes. All but Knutson and Temp will be ready ot play here.
CARDS CALL ON COMPTON FOR PACKERS DUEL
SEPT 16 (Milwaukee) - A rookie from Hardin-Simmons university, Ogden (Bingo) Compton, is expected to start at quarterback for the Chicago Cardinals tomorrow night when they meet the Green Bay Packers in Marquette Stadium. Coach Ray Richards of the Cardinals decided to go with Compton in view of his excellent showing against the Baltimore Colts last Saturday in Chicago. Compton entered the game with the Cardinals trailing, 21 to 0, and led the team to a pair of last quarter touchdowns, one of them a pass by Compton to Jim Carr, a rookie halfback. The Cardinals will be trying to being their exhibition game percentage over the .500 mark. The Chicagoans opened in style, beating the Chicago Bears, 21 to 6, and the Detroit Lions, 17 to 16. Then the San Francisco 49ers stomed over the Cardinals, 43 to 7, in a rough game on the coast and the Colts beat them, 24 to 14. The Packer have fared even worse in preseason battles, losing to Cleveland, Philadelphia and Washington after beating the New York Giants in their opener. Two of the losses were 2 point margins Compton, a protege of the great Sammy Baugh, has completed 18 of his 31 passing attempts this season
for 178 yards and one touchdown. The Packers, who last Saturday dropped a 33 to 31 decision to the Redskins on the final play of the game, a plunge by Eddie Le Baron, probably will stick with Tobin Rote as their field general. Rote completed only 12 of 29 passes, but they represent 292 yards and two touchdowns and also set up a third.
PACKERS BOOBY-TRAPPED BEARS WITH HUTSON IN FIRST '35 GAME, THEN REPEATED KAYO IN 'CHI' RETURN GO
SEPT 17 (Green Bay) - This is the story not of one great Packer game but two. On Sept. 22, 1935, at City Stadium, Green Bay defeated the Bears, 7-0. Five weeks later at Wrigley Field, Chicago, on Oct. 27, they did it again, 17-14. The first game launched the career of the incomparable Don Hutson; the second looms like a lighthouse as the greatest last ditch comeback in the Packers’ 35-year history. The two contests lasted 120 playing minutes, yet nothing counted except the opening 30 seconds and the closing 2 ½ minutes. Everything in between was incidental, except as the events of the second game set the stage. Packer tails were dragging when they entertained the Bears here in the second start of the ’35 league season after dropping the opener to the Cardinals. For three years, encompassing a run of eight games, the Packer colors had been lowered as the Bears romped away with seven wins and a tie. The Chicagoans figured to do it again, but only because nobody except Lambeau counted on Hutson…If ever a booby trap was triggered against the opposition, Hutson was it for the Bears. In 1934, Don made All America at Alabama and then blew the Rose Bowl wide open. The Bears had a look at him in the 1935 All Star game, but miserable field conditions had prevented him from showing much. After joining the Packers, Hutson was put in a deep freeze. He appeared only briefly in practice games, and although he saw some action against the Cardinals, he rated no more ink than trainer Bud Jorgenson. The Bears didn’t know it, but they were looking straight down the barrel of a loaded blunderbus. Accordingly, he was just another untried rookie to most of the crowd of 14,000 still streaming leisurely into the stadium when Arnie Herber took the opening kickoff and brought it out to the 17-yard line. Seconds later, however, he was on his way to pro football immortality…On the first running play of the game, Arnie faded back to the home four-yard line. Meanwhile, Hutson broke from the flank with the deceptive lope of his, suddenly poured on the coal, and exploded past the napping Bear secondary as Herber pulled the trigger. The Alabama Antelope was all by himself when he took the throw over his shoulder at midfield and set sail for the record books. Bob Monnett made the point. For the next 59 minutes of a bruising contest, the Packers protected that lead by striking at every Bear weakness. Defensively, they rushed the Chicago passers relentlessly, tackled viciously and threw up a stone wall every time the invaders threatened. Offensively, Herber’s aerials had the Bear secondary’s tongues hanging out, and the running attack was equally sharp. Hutson didn’t get his hands on another pass all day, but he had Halas U. worried stiff. In the first half, the Bears fought courageously and twice penetrated the Packer 20, but each time the Bays slammed the door. The second half was all Green Bay as the home cub practically chased the Chicagoans out of the stadium but couldn’t score again. The Packers were on the Bear five-yard line when the game ended…The Bruins brooded over that one, and, when the Packers moved into Cubs Park five weeks later, a crowd of 20,426 was on hand to see the champions set the record straight. The primed Bears were well on the way to doing it, too, when once again Huston wrecked their wagon. The first half was a typical dog-eat-dog battle in which only a courageous Packer finger in the dike prevented a roaring flood. The Bears threw everything by the upper tier at the Packers, but still left the field at intermission trailing 3-0. It appeared to be a just of question of time, however, before the crushing offensive inside the Green Bay tackles would take its toll. Green Bay took the league midway of the second quarter when Tar Schwammel punched out an 18-yard placekick. After yielding a first down on the four, the Bears piled up and the Packers were penalized five for delaying the game. The extra yardage didn’t bother Tar, however, as he drilled a perfect placement between the poles…The dam began to crumble in the third quarter. Bernie Masterson picked off a Herber aerial on his 20-yard line and brought it back to midfield. Gene Ronzani bucked for six yards, then made a brilliant catch of Masterson’s pas on the Packer 30 and raced into the end zone, after which “Automatic Jack” Manders made the count 7-3. Late in the final period, the Bears took over after a punt exchange on their own 45. On the first play, Johnny Sisk squirted through a needle’s eye at tackle and scooted 55 yards to up the score to 14-3, and the fans started for the exit. With less than three minutes remaining, the Packer cause seemed hopeless. To everyone, that is, except Hutson. A messy kickoff gave Green Bay possession on its own 35-yard line with the clock showing two and a half minutes to play. Once more, Don floated downfield, grabbed Herber’s toss on the Bear 40 and lit out. He flashed between Masterson and Musso, who bumped heads trying to get him, shook off a hand Keith Molesworth barely laid on him and crossed the goal line going away. Schwammel’s conversion didn’t have the crowd or the Bears in much of a sweat with the score still 14-10 in their favor…Tar punched the kickoff over the end line and the Bears put the ball in play on their 20. Then it happened. Driving into the line on a time consuming maneuver, Masterson lost the oval, and there was a wild scramble to retrieve it. Ernie Smith, his face covered with blood, finally raked it in on the Bear 13-yard line, and it was suddenly a brand new ball game. Three plays carried to the Bruin three, and the clock hands were whirling faster than George Halas as the Packers lined up for their last chance. Hutson swung out parallel to the goal line, got a step ahead of Molesworth, then cut into the end zone, crashing into Keith as he fielded Herber’s bullet that pulled the fat out of the fire. Smith’s extra point was just that.
PACKERS IN 'LAST CHANCE' TONIGHT; TWO TO MISS
SEPT 17 (Green Bay) - The win-hungry Packers, likely to be going without two regular performers, will have their last chance to score their second victory in the NFL’s 1955 grapefruit competition when they tackle the Chicago Cardinals in the sixth midwest Shrine game at Marquette Stadium here tonight. It will be the final non-league appearance for both teams, proper to opening NFL championship campaigning a week hence when the Packers debut against the Detroit Lions at Green Bay’s City Stadium. On the basis of the combatant’s comparative records, however, the Cardinals must be cast as seven-point favorites. The Big Red enters the contest with a .500 record, 2-2, while the Packers are riding at 1-4, those four defeats having come in succession after an opening victory over the New York Giants. Since more than 25,000 Shriners have descended upon the world’s beer capital for a convention, a capacity house of 19,000 is expected to cram the compact home of Frosty Ferzacca’s Warriors…According to the weatherman, conditions are likely to be suitable for the fans but something less than comfortable for the athletes, since he has predicted temperatures ranging into the 90s. Misfortune, which has become a constant Packer companion, made another appearance yesterday and left these problems as the Packers awaited the Cardinals: (1) End-tackle Gene Knutson, who suffered a knee injury in last week’s game with Washington, may not only miss tonight’s contest by the rest of the season; Head Coach Liz Blackbourn says that Knutson’s trouble appears to be a cartilage lock and, if such is the case, surgery will be necessary. (2) Center Jim Ringo has developed a mouth infection, which already has necessitated one
tooth extraction, and may not play tonight. (3) Jim Temp, rookie defensive end from Wisconsin and the Packers No. 2 draft choice, is definitely lost for 1955 and probably 1956. An ROTC second lieutenant, he was placed on active duty with the Army Transportation Corps at Fort Eustis, Va., Friday. Temp had left to report entertaining the possibility that there had been a mistake in his understanding that a call to duty would come later in the year. Liz was inclined to tale a practical view of the situation, observing, with a pointed reference to the league opener here a week from Sunday: “It’s better to have these things happen now than next week.” As a result of these developments and two rookie experiments, Blackbourn announced there are likely to be four changes in the Packers’ starting offensive-defensive alignments tonight. George Timberlake probably will open at center in place of Ringo, Jim Jennings at left end instead of Gary Knafelc and Charlie Brackins, the lithe Negro from Prairie View A. & M., at quarterback replacing Tobin Rote on offense while Nate Borden will be at right defensive end, since both Knutson and Temp will be among the missing…The balance of the offensive lineup will remain the same with Bill Howton at right end, Len Szafaryn and Tom Dahms at tackle; Joe Skibinski and Buddy Brown guard; Breezy Reid and Veryl Switzer at halfback and either Howie Ferguson or Fred Cone at fullback, Liz said. Defensively, aside from Borden, it will be John Martinkovic at left end, Jerry Helluin and Dave Hanner at tackle, Bill Forester at middle guard, linebackers Deral Teteak and Roger Zatkoff, cornerbacks Doyle Nix and Billy Bookout and safetyman Val Joe Walker and Bobby Dillon. These last will be charged with the responsibility of containing what the Cardinals call their new “dream backfield”. It features rookie Ogden Compton of Hardin-Simmons, a Sammy Baugh protégé, at quarterback; mercurial Ollie Matson and rookie Dave Mann of Oregon State at the halves and Johnny Olszewski at fullback…Up front for the Big Red, it will be Don Stonesifer and Dick Brubaker, recruit from Ohio State and the only other rookie in the starting lineup, at end; Jack Jennings and Len Teeuws at tackle; Bill Lange and John Hatley at guard; and Jack Simmons at center. On defense, Head Coach Ray Richards indicated he would open with Tom Bieneman and either Leo Sugar or placement specialist Pat Summerall at end; Jerry Groom and Chuck Ullrich at tackle and rookie Tony Pasqueski of Notre Dame, lone freshman in this alignment, at middle guard. The secondary will include linebackers Leo Sanford and Bill Scott, a rookie from Pepperdine, and halfback Lindon Crow, Dick (Night Train) Lane, Tom Keane and Frank Bernardi. Like Scott, Crow and Bernardi are rookies. Both the Cards and Packers will be attempting to end losing streaks. The Big Red has lost its last two outings to the Baltimore Colts (24-14) and San Francisco 49ers (43-7) after beating the Bears (21-6) and Lions (17-16) while the Packers have lost to Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Washington following that opening decision over the Giants. The Packers also will be seeking their first victory over the Cardinals since 1951. Since the Bays’ 17-14 verdict that year, the Cards have triumphed 38-7 in 1952, 13-7 in ’53 and by 27-10 a year ago.
