PRESEASON: Green Bay Packers (4-0) 35, Chicago Bears 21
Saturday August 25th 1962 (at Milwaukee)
GAME RECAP (GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE)
(MILWAUKEE) - The World Champion Packers were really pushed for the first time this preseason and they came through royally - much to the delight of a record Shrine classic crowd of 44,236 in County Stadium Saturday night. The Packers roared from behind twice and then broke away from a 21-21 tie to defeat their fierce rivals, the Bears, by a final 35-21. This was like a midseason game. Both teams stuck with their best and the hitting was wicked. The Packer defense was murder - as it has been all this season. The Bears, though they played without stars Mike Ditka and Johnny Morris (both injured), never produced a sizable touchdown drive all night. Their first two TDs were short 25-yard moves, one following a blocked field goal and the other after a fumble recovery. The third TD was a 56-yard return of an intercepted Bart Starr pass by Larry Morris. The Packer offense, meanwhile, had to work like mad for at least three of their five touchdowns. Starr engineered drives of 77 and 80 yards for the "earners." The other two were set up from close in by recovery of a fumble by Willie Davis and an interception by Dave Hanner. Starr completed 14 out of 30 for 187 yards and two touchdowns under extreme pressure from the wild-charging Bears. Wade also was in a pressure cooker, getting off only 7 of 23 for 69 yards. Jim Taylor, who scored three touchdowns in the win over the Cards last Saturday, nicked the Bears for two - one a 26-yard jaunt and the other a three-yard squirm. Starr passed for two, hitting Max McGee for 34 yards and Lew Carpenter for 18. The final TD - a one-yard plunge near the end - was the first major league counter for Earl Gros, the first choice rookie. The Packers gave their foes a pretty good overhauling in the statistics, 362 yards to 209, but the most thrilling for the big gathering came on the kick returns. Herb Adderley, Willie Wood and Elijah Pitts ran up 183 yards on returning five punts and kickoffs. This was the Packers' 17th straight non-league victory - a string that was started in 1959. The Packers didn't get off to a flying start as they had in their previous three games. In the first series after receiving the opening kickoff, the Bays dropped two passes and had a field goal blocked. Green Bay has gained excellent position on Herb Adderley's 52-yard kickoff return. But Dowler and Taylor dropped short throws from Starr and Hornung. Hornung tried a field goal from the 43. Dave Whitsell blocked the boot, scooped it up and ran 25 yards to the Packer 25. The Bears scored in five plays after Casares made a first down on the 15 by inches. Casares then took a pitchout around left end for the TD at 3:42. Roger LeClerc made it 7-0. The Packers put together two quick first downs following a fine 47-yard kickoff return by Adderley but the roof caved in. Green Bay lost 20 yards in three successive plays. Hornung was tossed back six by Leggett. Starr's pass to Taylor lost 3 and Starr then was smacked back 11 by Atkins and Williams. The teams tightened their belts and traded punts until the Packers got a drive going early in the second quarter. The Bays scored from their own 27 and scored in six plays. While Ron Kramer was losing a shoe, Hornung opened the drive with a four-yard sweep.
Starr found Hornung loose and the pass play gained 15 to the Packer 47. Starr then threw 17 yards to McGee to the Bear 36 and after two short gainers McGee took Starr's rifle shot up the middle and high-stepped beautifully through three Bears for a 34-yard TD. Hornung's kick at 3:29 evened the score.
NITSCHKE INTERCEPTS
The Bears snapped back with three first downs, one on a Packer penalty on a fourth down punt with two to go, but Ray Nitschke ended that by intercepting a Wade pass. A fight broke out on the interception between Hank Gremminger and a couple of Bears, for which the Bays were penalized 15 yards. The ferocious Bears scored quickly. Tom Moore, backing up Hornung, fumbled and Bobby Bethune recovered in mid-air on the Packer 25. The visitors scored in five plays. On the third play Willie Galimore gained 11 and on the payoff Wade passed to Jim Dooley for 13 and the TD. LeClerc's kick at 9:55 put the Bears ahead 14-7. The Bays got a break just before the half when the Bears were penalized for having 12 men on the field while the Packers were punting with three to go. The free series didn't help. The Bays lost the ball on downs, Starr being rushed badly on a fourth down pass to Taylor.
WILLIE SHAKEN UP
The Bears opened the second half with 20 yards in two plays, but then made a mistake. Wade tried a pass. Willie Davis, who had just returned after being shaken up two plays earlier, and Nelson Toburen smashed Wade, who was dancing back to pass. The ball slipped off his throwing hand and Davis scooped it up and ran 15 yards to the Bear eight. The raging Taylor scored in three plays, squirming the last two. Hornung's kick tied the score at 14-up at 3:41. The Packers, apparently getting the Bears' number, slammed back 77 yards in 11 plays for the lead TD. Taylor was the big gun, running 10 yards and then taking a 22-yard pass from Starr to the Bear 43. Starr continued passing. First he hit Dowler for a 15-yard gain, but Boyd was hurt on the play, bringing in Carpenter as a substitute. After Taylor gained 7 to the 18, Carpenter took Starr's pass and ran away from J.C. Caroline for the TD to put the Pack ahead 21-14 at 11:30. The Bears evened the score in exactly three minutes. Taylor had just raced 33 yards and then added another six when Starr threw a screen pass toward him. The ball bounced off Fred Thurston's back into Larry Morris' arms. Big Morris rumbled 56 yards to a TD on the last play of the third quarter. LeClerc converted to tie the score 21-up at 14:44. The Packers quickly moved into a lead, marching 80 yards in nine plays. Starr's passing ate up most of the yardage. He threw to Ron Kramer for 13, Dowler for 9, Dowler for 22 and Dowler again for 9 before Taylor zipped off left end for 19 yards and the TD at 4:00. Hornung's kick made it 28-21. Just before the end of the game, end Bill Quinlan bumped Wade as he passed and Dave Hanner grabbed off the short wobbler and returned two yards to the Bear 12. Earl Gros, making his first appearance, slammed two yards, Moore ran nine and then Gros rolled over right tackle for the TD at 13:01. Hornung's kick made it 35-21. Just before the gun, Wade passed to Dooley for 27 and Wade ran 14.
CHICAGO - 7 7 7 0 - 21
GREEN BAY - 0 7 14 14 - 35
CHICAGO GREEN BAY
First Downs 9 10
Rushing-Yards-TD 36-80-1 32-162-3
Att-Comp-Yd-TD-Int 23-7-69-1-2 31-15-200-2-1
Sack Yards Lost 44 28
Total Yards 105 334
Fumbles-lost 1-1 1-1
Turnovers 3 2
Yards penalized 2-10 5-35
SCORING
1st - CHI - Rick Casares, 15-yard run (Roger LeClerc kick) CHICAGO 7-0
2nd - GB - Max McGee, 34-yard pass from Bart Starr (Paul Hornung kick) TIED 7-7
2nd - CHI - Jim Dooley, 14-yard pass from Billy Wade (LeClerc kick) CHICAGO 14-7
3rd - GB - Jim Taylor, 2-yard run (Hornung kick) TIED 14-14
3rd - GB - Lew Carpenter, 18-yard pass from Starr (Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 21-14
3rd - CHI - Larry Morris, 56-yard interception (LeClerc kick) TIED 21-21
4th - GB - Taylor, 26-yard run (Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 28-21
4th - GB - Earl Gros, 1-yard run (Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 35-21
RUSHING
GREEN BAY - Jim Taylor 19-119 2 TD, Tom Moore 3-30, Paul Hornung 8-10, Earl Gros 2-3 1 TD
CHICAGO - Rick Casares 21-14 1 TD, Charley Bivins 5-31, Willie Galimore 8-22, Bill Wade 1-14, Bill Brown 1-(-1)
PASSING
GREEN BAY - Bart Starr 30-14-187 2 TD 1 INT, Paul Hornung 1-1-13
CHICAGO - Bill Wade 23-7-69 1 TD 2 INT
RECEIVING
GREEN BAY - Boyd Dowler 6-67, Jim Taylor 3-26, Max McGee 2-52 1 TD, Ron Kramer 2-22, Lew Carpenter 1-18 1 TD, Paul Hornung 1-15
CHICAGO - Jim Dooley 2-41 1 TD, Bill Brown 2-13, Rick Casares 2-9, Charley Bivins 1-6
'WE NEEDED TOUGH ONE AND GOT IT'
AUG 26 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - "We needed this game. We needed a tough one and we got it tonight," Packer Coach-General Manager Vince Lombardi said the game Saturday night. "There is an indication that the Western Division of the NFL is going to be a hell of a lot tougher than a year ago." The coach commented he was "very satisfied" with the running game, especially with Jim Taylor, who gained over 100 yards in the second half. He added that punt and kickoff return runs were good "but then we didn't do anything with them." "Are you satisfied?" Lombardi was asked. He snapped back with a grin. "Yes, I'm always satisfied when we win."...George Halas, the Bears' veteran owner-coach, said his team played "a pretty good game with the exception of giving them two touchdowns." He said the Bears were hurt offensively through the loss of Mike Ditka, John Morris and Angelo Coia, whom he called "our top three receivers." But, Halas hastened to add, "You have to remember we played a great team."
CROSS-SECTION OF BIG 'D' STANDS IN AWE OF PACKERS PRACTICE
AUG 26 (Dallas-Green Bay Press-Gazette) - There were people from all walks of life watching the action on the Southern Methodist football practice field in Dallas, Texas. Young ladies attending a majorette school stopped to gaze and gape. Businessmen in their seersucker suits had gathered on the sidelines. Mothers with their youth still in buggies stood in the shade to watch the proceedings. Even the gentlemen from the gas station across the street had forsaken their lunch time for a peek at the festivities. It wasn't Ringling Brothers or
even Allen Funt with his Candid Camera that had drawn the crowd. The Green Bay Packers had come to town and the citizens of "Big D" wanted to see what a World Champion professional grid club looked like up close. Green Bay was indulging in a mid-morning workout in preparation for a scrap with the St. Louis Cardinals. As a battleground, the Pack had been given a grassy section of Texas soil about 10 yards from one of Dallas' busiest residential streets and across the street from a shopping center. On weekends, small boys use it for their private battles with the guys up the street, but on this occasion the boys were on the sidelines. The fellows they had seen on television were romping about before their eyes. The boyish-looking Paul Hornung, the talkative Jim Ringo and the speedy Boyd Dowler were close enough to reach out and touch. But the boys wouldn't dare. Coach Vince Lombardi saw to that. "You folks on the sidelines had better back up or you are going to get hurt," the coach yelled authoritatively. "We are going to run some sideline passes over there so back up." The backward movement was slow. Sure enough, tall, wide Ron Kramer came hurrying down the sidelines to take a Bart Starr pass and the youth quivered with delight. The backward movement became speedier. The Dallas temperature had cooled off to the mid-nineties, but it wasn't cool enough for the Packers. "We're warm enough now," shouted Lombardi soon after the workout began. "Let's go at full speed." At one of the field, the defense butted heads, but as usual, no one paid much attention to them. The assembled focused on the offense. Hornung traveled a pass pattern and cut sharply over the middle. His defender kept going, stopping just short of Mockingbird Lane. "Nice move, Pauly," shouted the coach. Pauly trotted back to the huddle and the small children stood in awe. "Is that really Paul Hornung?", said a small lad to his father. There were those who had come to see John Roach, the SMU product. The lanky ex-Mustang obliged by hitting his share of targets and then fumbling a snap from the center, bringing a chuckle from the crowd. "Must be nervous in front of the home folk," offered one bystander. While Lombardi was quick to praise what he thought was a good play on the part of one of his charges, he was just as quick to reprimand them for what he thought was a high school mistake. "You're not quick enough off the ball," he yelled at a quarterback. "Run that play again," he screamed angrily when one of the backs missed the play and went running off in the direction of a grocery story. "Is Jim Ringo the team captain?" said a fellow in red bermuda shorts. "If he isn't, he should be. Listen to him holler at those guys. All the time he is saying something." "That Jim Taylor doesn't look so big," explained a distinguished looking gentleman who had obviously not been reading the papers. "They ought to be able to stop him easy." Taylor went ripping through the line like the flour had just seeped out of the papier-mache. The distinguished gent said nothing. The workout ended and the kings of the football world departed to the depths of Ownby Stadium to cool themselves from a Texas August. The majorettes went back to twirling, the housewives wheeled their children on down the street and the men from the gas station went back to checking the oil. And after seeing the Packers, they were probably quite gratified that the Dallas Cowboys find themselves in a division that doesn't possess the Green Bay Packers.
PACKERS CLEAR BIG HURDLE IN BEATING BEARS
AUG 27 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The Packers cleared a big hump in Milwaukee Saturday night. They looked like their world championship selves for 30 minutes and beat an old and respected foe, the Bears, in the process - 35 to 21. Some folks think the Packers need to defeat to bring 'em down to earth and maybe sharpen 'em for the tremendous challenge ahead. Defeats are awful enough - without making 'em necessary, folks. But the Packers suffered what looks like a loss in the offing during the first half, Coach Vince Lombardi figured it this way after the game: "We looked like we did in the other games in the first half, but they came back. We needed a game like this. We had to take a tough one and got it." Lombardi issued a storm warning after the last two games vs. pro foes. The fired-up Bears, who really wanted this one, bore out his concern in the first half as they took a 14-7 halftime lead and forced the Bays into all sorts of mistakes. Herb Adderley's 52-yard runback of the opening kickoff set the Bays on the Bear 38 at the start. But here's what happened on the first four plays: 1 - Boyd Dowler dropped Bart Starr's pass; 2 - Jim Taylor gained three yards; 3 - Taylor dropped Starr's first-down pass; 4 - Paul Hornung's field goal was blocked and returned 30 yards. And so it went - for the first half, when the Bays were held to 24 yards rushing, 6 first downs and 82 yards passing. The Bays' aerial game, a real life-saver in the earlier games, might have kept the club ahead but even this phase sputtered - especially at the receiving end. End Coach Tom Fears estimated that "we dropped seven passes along the way" and Lombardi laughed "we even dropped two on defense," referring to the two hot potatoes Jess Whittenton had in his hands. Lombardi could hardly believe Starr's final completion total, 14 out of 30 attempts, and was quick to note that "he would have had a much better total if so many hadn't been dropped." The Packers were bristling in the second half. They apparently had suffered that "defeat" in the first half. The big record Shrine crowd of 44,326 gave the club a big ovation as it took the field after the intermission. What's more, the fans stirred up a lot of "let's go" noise every time the Bays took over on offense. The Packers' about-face produced four touchdowns, 13 first downs, 138 yards rushing and 118 yards passing. But it took the defense to set off the explosion. The Bears received and four plays later the Bays were on the Bear 8, thanks to Willie Davis' recovery and 15-yard return of Bill Wade's fumble. Wade coughed up the ball when hit by Ray Nitschke and Nelson Toburen. Jim Taylor scored in three smashes and the game was tied. Starr moved the Bays 77 yards in 11 plays and the next time the offense had the ball for a 21-14 lead. The Bears tied it again when Larry Morris returned a Starr interception for a TD. The big payoff came at the start of the fourth period. The Packers had to score and they did, marching 80 yards in nine plays. It wasn't easy, but it won the game. Max McGee, who highstepped for an earlier touchdown, dropped a pass on Play 4, a second and two situation. Then on third down Paul Hornung put on one of his clutch runs. He slithered along the ground, between legs to gain the all-important first down. Hornung was stunned on the play but he revived quickly...TOUCH OF MISFORTUNE: There was one more touch of misfortune. On the next play Starr was smeared back five yards to the Packer 42. This left a second and 15 play. Starr went to the air, throwing for 22 yards to Boyd Dowler. He hit Dowler again for 9 and then Taylor leaped off the left side and into the clear for a 26-yard TD run. Taylor gained 101 yard in the second half, 18 in the first. The Bears were tough on him, but as Jimmy put it after the game, "the tougher the going the better it is." And judging by the Bays' second half play, that's how the whole team feels...The Packers came out with one major injury. Tackle Ron Kostelnik sustained a shoulder separation and may be out for the next game - against the Giants at City Stadium Labor Day night. Both teams suffered cut, welts and bruises. Taylor, who rarely gets tackled by one player (it runs from three to six), had a puffed cheek and Bill Wade ditto. In fact x-rays were taken of Wade's injury and Coach George Halas was happy to report today that they were negative. Yep, it was a rugged game. Just a league game. Two Packers were chosen for the third consecutive year as the Shrine's game most valuable players. Newsmen this year picked Taylor on offense and Davis on defense. Dowler and Nitschke were chosen last year, and Starr and Bill Forester in 1960.
PACKER DEFENSIVE LINE SCORES 25 TACKLES; CORPS 'CUT' TO FIVE
AUG 28 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The defensive line? This unit is composed of "four darned good men," a waiting-in-the-wings sophomore, and two rookies. That makes seven people. This total has been reduced for the moment to five by injuries - within four days. Rookie Ron Gassert twisted his knee in practice last Wednesday. Highly-touted soph Ron Kostelnik hurt his shoulder in the Bear game Saturday night. The others are Willie Davis, Dave Hanner, Henry Jordan and Bill Quinlan who were labeled F-D-G-M by defense coach Phil Bengtson last winter, and rookie Dick Davis. The play of the regular foursome against the Bears was heart-warming. They were smacking hard and working beautifully with the linebackers, Dan Currie, Bill Forester, Ray Nitschke and Nelson Toburen. The four defense linemen piled up 25 tackles, with Quinlan and W. Davis getting seven apiece, Hanner six and Jordan five. They had a strong rush going all night. The Bears gained 140 yards rushing but only 37 stripes were permitted in the second half - when the Bay defense had solved the Bears' fake toss passes. The Bears got 20 of their second half yards on the first two plays of quarter 3. Rick Casares raced around right end and slammed into W. Davis full tilt. Willie was shaken up and winded and left the field. He was replaced by R. Davis who was quickly victimized by Bill Wade, Willie Galimore gaining 13 yards in the line. W. Davis raced onto the field after Galimore's run to replace R. Davis, who earned the only distinction of being the only rookie to make the regular lineup in this game until the last minute...SOMETHING WORKED: Casares added two yards on the next play and Toburen replaced Currie. Had coach Vince Lombardi and eagle-eyed aides Horb Hecker, Bill Austin, Red Cochran, Tom Fears and Bengston noticed something? With second and eight on the Bear 42, "something" worked. Nitschke, Toburen and Davis rushed in, upset Wade and Willie grabbed the inevitable fumble. This was just about the end of the Bears. They never made another first down until late in the fourth quarter. And this is just about the end of the Bears until the real Bear Week, which gets underway the last week in September. The major problem at the moment is New York - or rather the Giants. In case you haven't heard the Packers and Giants play in the second annual Bishop's Charities game at City Stadium Labor Day night, and this is sort of an "epic natural." The Giants will be coming into our town for the first time since they were throttled (37 to 0) by our boys in the championship game last Dec. 31. If the Giants aren't just a wee bit vengeful, they just aren't human. This could be a classic. The two clubs aren't scheduled to meet in the regulation season. The Packers were off Monday, but returned to work today to prepare for the Giants. The Labor Day game will be the Packers' second-last preseason test. They close against the Redskins in Columbus, Ga., Sept. 8, and then open the league season against the Vikings here Sunday, Sept. 16.
NO AXE-FRETTING IN PACK CAMP NOW; GIANT TEMPO PICKS UP
AUG 29 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - There is no axe-fretting in the Packer camp. This is the day NFL clubs must cut to 43 players and that's the number of playing participants on the Packer roster. Thus, Coach Vince Lombardi doesn't find it necessary to do any chopping - at least not until a week hence when the teams must reduce to 38. The final limit is 36. The Pack's 43 includes Bootin' Ben Agajanian, who is a sort of conditioned player-coach. Agajanian, who left the team after the Dallas game, rejoined the group Tuesday. "This is the first time in a few years I've gone through the regular training camp," he said recently, "and I'm in the best condition I've ever been in." Agajanian has been working with kickers Paul Hornung, Willie Wood and Jim Taylor. The Packer player total includes nine rookies - Gary Barnes, Oscar Donahue, Ed Blaine, Bob Joiner, Earl Gros of the offense and Dick Davis, Howard Williams, Paul Dudley and Ron Gassert of the defense...The Packers featured passing in their Tuesday drill and then topped the session off with (1) field goal blocking drill, (2) punt returning and (3) sprinting. This field goal business was rather intriguing since the Bears blocked Hornung's FG attempt in the Shrine game Saturday night. Hornung tried a dozen kicks and efforts were made to block them. Linemen went down under punts and knocked down dummies as they approached enemy territory. The receivers then swung around the fallen dummies and up-field...The Packers, in four games, have scored 149 points and allowed 69. Thus, they have an average winning score of 37 to 17...It's "New York Time" and the weather is a darned sight different than it was the last time the Giants played here - about 90 degrees different. The Pack drilled in 10 to 15 below temps before the Dec. 31 title game. It's been around the 80s thus far this week. The excitement over the Giants' return for the Bishop's Charities game is approaching the title-game temp - at least judging by the ticket sale. Chairman Gene Sladky said between 4,000 and 5,000 tickets remain for the only rematch between the Division champs (barring another playoff). The $5 seats are sold out and the rest are in the $3 and $3 ranges. Sladky and his agents are aiming for a full house...Dave O'Hara, state AP sports editor, visited the Packer camp today with a photographer and their first subjects were Earl Gros and Ed Blaine, the top two draft choices. Said Gros: "I'm just trying to learn the system. I don't think I'm capable or ready yet. But I'm learning fast. I'm certainly glad I signed with the Packers." Commented Blaine: "When I came up, I knew I'd be playing behind the two best guards in football. And I'm looking forward to playing behind them for a year - or two. I'm only 21 and have plenty of time. But you can bet I'll be giving it everything I've got every minute. I didn't expect to be drafted. I considered it a real challenge and thought right along I might have a chance even though they have such great guards as Kramer and Thurston."
DROP BABB, SUTRO
AUG 29 (Dallas) - The Dallas Cowboys of the NFL Monday released Gene Babb, linebacker with the team since it was organized in 1960, and three rookies, John Sutro, Lloyd Winston and Charles Sells. Sutro was an offensive tackle and guard who had been originally drafted by the Green Bay Packers and acquired last month by the Cowboys. Winston, an offensive halfback, and Sells, an offensive end, came to the club as free agents.
CARPENTER FIVE POSITION PLAYER; GIANTS IN STRIDE
AUG 30 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - Like the visitor said at the Packer practice the other day, "Who's this No. 33 playing quarterback?" That's Lew Carpenter. He only plays QB when the Bays practice defense. His QB partner is Paul Hornung. Each runs an offensive team which uses enemy plays, thus giving the Pack's defense a "feel" of the next opponent. Carpenter isn't the worst unknown quarterback in the league. Lew has no illusions about playing the position - for real, but like he says, "I'm ready." The seven-year veteran who saw action with the Lions and Browns now plays five positions - for real, which makes him the top handyman in the league. "I guess I've been at all of them this year. Let's see, both in the All-Star game and the others at end, yep, all five," Lew noted yesterday. That's Carpenter's way of saying he plays behind the two running backs (fullback and halfback) and the three ends (flanker, left end and right and/or tight end). Always in condition, Carpenter was the Pack's rushing bright spot in the All-Star game. He was buzzing around like Eiljah Pitts and reeled off several key gains...CAUGHT TD PASS: He saw spot action behind Max McGee, Ron Kramer and Gary Knafelc in the next two games and then, against the Bears Saturday night, Boyd Dowler went out briefly. Carpenter came forth and caught a touchdown pass, running right past J.C. Caroline. That put the Pack ahead 21-14. Carpenter probably isn't a big name in the Giants' preparation plans for their invasion of City Stadium Monday night, but he's on the "notice" list of every defensive player because he is a five-position man he's liable to show up in any sector of the Giant defense. Incidentally, Carpenter sat out as a punt returner against the Bears. Pitts was tried as a PR'er partner of Willie Wood. The aforementioned Giants are fresh from a 31 to 24 victory over the Rams - in Los Angeles. They scored the triumph on a 46-yard return of
an intercepted pass by Allen Webb. The pass was thrown by Zeke Bratkowski. The Giant rolled up 367 yards and allowed 384, New York, behind Johnny Counts, Frank Gifford, Alex Webster and Bob Gaiters, rolled up 174 yards rushing. The air total was 194. The Rams, the Bay defense might note, passed for 290 yards (18 out of 40) and rushed for only 94. The Giants' rushing total was topped by Webster with 59 stripes, followed by Counts, the promising rookie, with 46, Gifford 38 and Gaiters 23. Gifford, making a comeback after laying out a year, tried two of his famed option passes and completed one for 13 yards. The fabled Y.A. Tittle attempted nine and completed six for 78 and one TD, which is elegant mileage. Newcomer Ralph Guglielmi completed nine out of 16 for 114 yards and two TDs. Six different Giants figured in the reception department. Del Shofner, playing against his ex-teammates, caught four and Joe Morrison, Joe Walton and Webster each nailed three. Morrison, who played defense vs. the Pack in the championship game, is back on offense. It appears that the Giants are back in stride. The New York club will arrive here Sunday morning and conduct an afternoon drill. Normally, the team would have practices at their training camp (Fairfield, Conn.) but the annual "sky alert" is on Sunday afternoon and the Giants had to leave earlier. No commercial flying is admitted during the exercise...An 11-year-old Cuban refugee from St. Joseph's Home for Children will throw out the game ball to start the second Bishop's Charities game Monday night. Oscar Pichardo, a Cuban boy who has lived at St. Joseph's since last September, will officially start the game by throwing the ball to the kickoff squad. Bishop Stanislaus V. Bona, originally scheduled to throw out the game ball, is convalescing after undergoing major surgery Aug. 24. In other pregame ceremonies, which will start at 7:40, Auxiliary Bishope John B. Grellinger of Oshkosh will present Bishop's awards to linebacker Bill Forester and halfback Tom Moore for their performance in the Pack's victory over the Giants in the first annual Bishop's Charities game last year. Bill Howard, sports director of Channel 5, will be master of ceremonies. The Rev. William J. Spalding, director of Catholic Charities for the diocese, will participate.
GIANTS LOST 7 'CHAMPION' VETERANS
AUG 31 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - What about the Giants? Have they changed much since they battled the Packers for the world championship in City Stadium last Dec. 31? What are their chances of repeating as Eastern Division champions? Don Smith, the Giants' publicist, has all the answers, such as: Seven members of the 1961 Eastern champs are not with the team - quarterback Charley Conerly, halfback Kyle Rote, kicker Pat Summerall, defense back Dick Nolan, linebacker Cliff Livingston, end Pete Hall and linebacker Larry Hayes. Rote stayed with the club as an assistant coach; Connerly and Summerall left the sport; Nolan became an assistant coach at Dallas; Livingston was traded to Minnesota for Dick Pesonen, the onetime Packer defensive back; Hall went to Canadian football; Hayes also went to Canada but is now with the Rams. The Giants brought in seven new veterans - Frank Gifford, the NY immortal who is making a comeback after a year's absence; Ralph Guglielmi, the veteran QB obtained from the Cardinals; and Pesonen. "Other clubs were reluctant to trade with us. We tried all spring," Smith said. Other teams might have been scared off by the Giants' earlier success in trades that brought Y.A. Tittle, Del Shofner, Joe Walton, Erich Barnes and others. With Guglielmi on hand, Tittle stands to be a better and healthier QB. He now will get the rest he needs at times, said Smith, noting that "Tittle ran out of gas last year." This will be the first time the Giants have gone with only two QBs in about 10 years. That gives the Giants one extra player but wait a minute. This also will be the first year in many that they're operating without two specialists, as it were. Summerall's placekicking duties will be handled by Don Chandler, who had specialized in punting. "I guess we picked up two spots," Smith said. The Giants have been damaged considerably earlier in the training season, suffering four broken bones, including two on one kickoff. Out with "breaks" are promising rookies Bookie Bolin, Bob Bill and Lou Kirouac. Otherwise the squad is in good condition and judging by the victory over the Rams last weekend in good working order. The Giants figure to be in fine fettle when they battle the Packers in the Bishop's Charities game at City Stadium Monday night (Kickoff 8:00). Due for a good test, Smith believes, will be Jim Podoley, the former Redskin star, who has yet to blossom as a Giant. Also getting the big test will be Pesonen who will start at left corner on defense in place of Barnes. Giant repeat? "Our chances of repeating are as good this year as last year. People said we should not have won last year but we did. Tittle should be better. Gifford will help and we have enough young players. The big question is Alex Webster. Can we expect 900 yards out of him? Last year, he carried us and finished only behind Brown and Taylor. Our pass receiving is good with Gifford at flanker or left half and Jim Collier, a good looking rookie, behind Walton and Shofner. Our defense is a question mark and we may have to expect to score a little more this year as against last year. The secondary is strong but the question is, can the four front guys and linebackers contain the rushers. Huff is our only proven linebacker. Grier is having trouble getting his weight down. He came down to 300 from 320 but now it's a job getting him down to 285 or 290. We don't have depth on defense."...Slightly over 1,000 tickets for the big battle were left today, Ticket Chairman Gene Sladky said. Thus, the chances appear good that the game might be a sellout of 38,000-plus. The Catholic Diocese office will be open all day and until 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday for the sale of tickets. Most of the ticket are in the $3 bracket...The Packers featured offensive plays in Thursday's drills and all hands, including injured Ron Kostelnik and Ron Gassert, were in good working order. Willie Wood stayed after practice along with kickoff return men and practices his kickoffs under the watchful eye of Bootin' Bill Agajanian. Coach Vince Lombardi complimented Wood for several of his long kicks, some of which had a well-placed curve.
GIFFORD ANXIOUS FOR PACKER TEST
SEPT 1 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - Frank Gifford is anxious to play against the Packers, and Vince Lombardi. Since "Vinnie" departed the New York Giant scene and took over the Pack in January of 1959, the two clubs played six games. The Giants won the first two, the Packers the last four. But this is a story on Gifford, the Giants' great halfback who is making a comeback after a year's absence. Gifford actually has played only two games against the Lombardi Packers. It, of course, takes no stretch of the imagination to attach Gifford's significance to the Packer-Giant Bishop's Charities game in City Stadium Monday night. Lombardi, during his five-year term as the Giants' offensive backfield coach, fashioned Gifford as a great option back. Vince has accomplished same with Paul Hornung. Gifford was a big factor in the last preseason game Green Bay lost, a 14-0 battle in Bangor, Me., in 1959. Since that game the Packers won 17 straight preseason scraps. An injury knocked Gifford out of the Packer-Giant league game in New York in '59 but he played when the Bays beat the Giants in a non-leaguer in Jersey City in '60. Maybe the Giants missed Gifford in '61. They lost three to Green Bay. But '61 is history. Gifford's anxiousness over Monday night's game is based on two factors: (1) His success in the victory over the Rams and (2) the solidness of the Packers. Gifford has been bringing himself along carefully in his comeback, Giant Publicist Don Smith reported. His first action was in LA and he carried four times, caught one pass and threw two passes. "The Packer game will be a solid test for him and it should give a good indication of his value to the club," Smith pointed out. Gifford is being used as an option back and at flanker. He could give the Giants a tremendous lift as a receiver in line with pro football's latest flare - isolating a linebacker with a fast halfback. Gifford, himself, figures he made a mistake in layout out a year. He said in Fairfield, Conn., via the AP, Friday: "I didn't care too much for the way I quit. It wasn't a good way to go out and I made a mistake in quitting when I did." The Giant immortal has been working as hard as the rawest rookie because, as he explained: "I need the work. I know I didn't lost anything by being out a year and when I came to camp I was ready to play football. But I hurt my back in the second week of training and couldn't do much work for nearly two weeks. Why I didn't get my first real good contact workout until the Ram game. My timing still is off but not as bad as I thought it would be. Improvement comes from constant work and the more of that I get the better I'll be." Knocked out by a concussion late in the '60 season, Gifford said he never gave the injury a through during contact work. "There have been no after affects from the injury and I don't feel there ever will be. I've never been hurt seriously before and I'm not afraid of going for full steam. It's the only way to avoid getting hurt," Gifford said...Only 360 tickets remained today for Monday night's game, it was reported by Ticket Chairman Gene Sladky. Thus, the game is virtually a sellout of 38,669. The ticket office in the Catholic Diocese building on South Madison Street will be open until 9 o'clock tonight and Sunday night for the sale of tickets.
SELLOUT (38,669) TO SEE PACKER-GIANT CONTEST
SEPT 2 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - Here we go again. Only this time the turf is soft, it's a night game, sweet charity will benefit and there will be no frostbite. It's the Packers vs. the Giants at City Stadium in the second annual Bishop's Charities game Monday night - just 246 days after the monumental world championship clash between these two clubs in the same ball yard! The situation was slightly different then. The turf was this side of cementish the afternoon of last Dec. 31, the beneficiaries were the personal charges of the combatants, and the temperature was around 20, more or less. But what a glorious day. The score will never escape folks around Titletown. Thirty-seven (37) to zero (0)! A sellout crowd of 38,669 will witness this seventh Packer-Giant game and that's a record. No full house has ever seen the Packers play a non-league game in Green Bay. It will be the Pack's second straight sellout in their unique two-home setup. A packed house of 44,326 saw the Packers beat the Bears in the 13th annual Shrine Classic in Milwaukee last week. Thus the back to back charity games will draw a total of 82,995 fans. The Packers have a rousing winning
Packers coach Vince Lombardi clutches his No. 1 draft choice, Earl Gros, after the rookie scored from the 1-yard line in Green Bay's 35-21 exhibition victory over the Chicago Bears in the Midwest Shrine Game at County Stadium in Milwaukee on Aug. 25, 1962. (S. NIELS LAURITZEN/MILWAUKEE JOURNAL)
Green Bay quarterback Bart Starr can't escape the clutches of Chicago's Maury Youmans during the Midwest Shrine Game on Aug. 25, 1962, at Milwaukee's County Stadium. (S. NIELS LAURITZEN/MILWAUKEE JOURNAL)
streak going in the "grapefruit" circuit. They'll be seeking their 18th straight non-league victory - a skein that started in 1959 when Vince Lombardi took over the Packer reins after five years as NY backfield coach. The
last preseason game Green Bay lost was to the Giants in Bangor, Me., a 14-0 affair. The Bays followed with two wins, won the six non-leaguers in '60, five in '61 and four thus far in '62. The Lombardimen have battled the Giants six times. The New Yorkers won the first two, the Green Bays the last four. Barring a playoff meeting (that's an idea!), Monday's game will end Packer-Giant business for '62. Both teams are going into the fracas on the run. The Giants are fresh from beating the Rams and the Packers are springing forth from their best two quarters of the preseason. The Bays, behind 14-7 at halftime vs. the Bears, scored four touchdowns, looked good and pleased Lombardi in the second half. While they swept through their first three games, the Packers didn't excite their exacting coach. The man to watch, among the 80-some players, is Frank Gifford, the Giants' great halfback who is making a comeback after laying out a year. Gifford apparently had some of his stuff in the Ram game and figures to see plenty of action here. This poses a problem for the Packer defense which is "new" to Gifford. The Packer offense, under Bart Starr, faces its toughest test this early season from the well-organized Giant defenders. In the enemy unit will be cornerbacker Dick Pesonen, the ex-Packer who replaced injured Erich Barnes. The Packers may have to get along without two of their defensive linemen - Ron Kostelnik, shoulder injury, and Ron Gassert, leg. The Giants were pretty well banged up earlier in the training season, losing four
players via bone breaks. Seven members of the Eastern Division champions, coached by Allie Sherman, are missing. The list is topped by Charley Conerly and Kyle Rote. Y.A. Tittle has taken over the QB'ing while Gifford may do a lot of Rote's flanking. Kickoff is set for 8 o'clock.
