Category: All-America Football Conference (1946-1949)

American Football Leagues Era AAA Champions 1926-1949

All-America Football Conference Logo [Reference: 1]
All-America Football Conference Logo [Reference: 1]

American Football Leagues Champions

YearLeagueRegionWinnersPWLT
1926AFL IE/MPhiladelphia Quakers9720
1934AFL IIS/MSt. Louis / Kansas City Blues8701
1936AFL IIIE/M/WBoston Shamrocks11830
1937AFL IIIE/M/WLos Angeles Bulldogs8800
1938AFL IVS/M/WEast Chicago Indians6510
1939AFL IVS/M/WLos Angeles Bulldogs8710
1940AFL VE/MColumbus Bullies10811
1941AFL VE/MColumbus Bullies8512
1944AFL VIWHollywood Rangers111100
1946AAFCE/M/S/WCleveland Browns151320
1947AAFCE/M/S/WCleveland Browns151311
1948AAFCE/M/S/WCleveland Browns151500
1949AAFCE/M/S/WCleveland Browns141211
American Football Leagues Champions 1926-1949 [Ref: 1-12]

AAFC Championship Games

YearWinnersRunners-Up
1946Cleveland Browns14New York Yankees9
1947Cleveland BrownsWNew York YankeesL
1948Cleveland Browns49Buffalo Bills7
1949Cleveland Browns21San Francisco 49ers7
All-America Football Conference Championship Games [Ref: 12]

Pacific Coast League Champions

YearLeagueRegionTeamPWLT
1927CWLW/M/ELos Angeles Buccaneers5320
1928CWLW/M/ENew York Yankees6321
1940PCFLWLos Angeles Bulldogs10721
1941PCFLWHollywood Bears8800
1942PCFLWSan Diego Bombers5410
1943PCFLWSan Diego Bombers10730
1944PCFLWSan Diego Bombers9900
1945PCFLWHollywood Bears11821
1946PCFLWLos Angeles Bulldogs131021
1947PCFLWHawaiian Warriors9720
1948PCFLWHawaiian Warriors6510
Pacific Coast Pro Football League Champions 1927-1948 [Ref: 4; 12-13]

Pacific Coast Championship

DateHome TeamAway Team
PCFL v AFL
1944Hollywood Rangers (AFL)42San Diego Bombers (PCFL)7
1944San Diego Bombers (PCFL)10Hollywood Rangers (AFL)21
PCFL North v PCFL South
1946Los Angeles Bulldogs38Tacoma Indians7
Pacific Coast Championship Games 1944 [Ref: 12-13]

Report

From 1926 to 1949 there were numerous Leagues which styled themselves as Major League Rivals to the National Football League. Most of these Leagues called themselves the “American Football League” and were based in two or three regions of the USA. Only the All-American Football Conference of 1946 to 1949 was countrywide with teams in the East, MidWest, South and West.

What is most notable about these Leagues from the point of view of NFL fans is that the Los Angeles Rams (then based in Cleveland), Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers all started in one of these Leagues before joining the NFL. The NFl (or AFL of the 1960ss which merged with the NFL) reused some of the team names (Baltimore Colts, Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals).

Winners of these Leagues were: Philadelphia Quakers (1926), St. Louis / Kansas City Blues (1934), Boston Shamrocks (1936), Los Angeles Bulldogs (1937, 1939), East Chicago Indians (1938), Columbus Bullies (1940-1941), Hollywood Rangers (1944) and Cleveland Browns (1946-1949).

There was also a AAA League on the West Coast of America during the 1940s, booming because of the amount of soldiers stationed there during WWII. Winners of this League were: Los Angeles Bulldogs (1940. 1946), Hollywood Bears (1941, 1945), San Diego Bombers (1942-1944), Hawaiian Warriors (1947, 1948).

The first attempt at taking advantage of West Coast appetite for American Football was the California Winter League of 1927 to 1928 when NFL and AFL teams toured the Pacific Coast arranging matches against teams in California, with League Champions being Los Angeles Buccaneers (1927) and New York Yankees (1928).

References

Websites

[1] Pro Football Hall of Fame (2005) American Football League Standings (1926) [Internet] Available from: http://www.profootballhof.com/news/american-football-league-standings-1926/ [Accessed 5 June 2017]

[2] The Growth of a Game (2015) The Complete List of European NFL Players [Internet] Available from: https://www.growthofagame.com/2015/03/the-complete-list-of-european-nfl-players/ [Accessed 11 October 2019]

[3] Pro Football Archives (2019) |Con O’Brien [Internet] Available from:https://www.profootballarchives.com/playero/obri00400.html [Accessed 5 June 2017]

[4] Bob Gill (2009) Seasons in the Sun – The California winter league of 1927 and ’28 The Coffin Corner Volume 31,No. 1, Pro Football Researchers Association (2009)[Internet] Available from: http://www.profootballresearchers.org/coffin-corner00’s/CC-31-1.pdf [Accessed 20 October 2019]

[5] Bob Gill, The Coffin Corner, Pro Football Researchers Association (1991) Tigers Roar in Tennessee [Internet] Available from: http://www.profootballresearchers.org/archives/Website_Files/Coffin_Corner/13-03-425.pdf [Accessed 9 October 2018]

[6] Pro Football Hall of Fame (2005) American Football League Standings (1936-37) [Internet] Available from: http://www.profootballhof.com/news/american-football-league-standings-1936-37/ [Accessed 5 June 2017]

[7] Bob Gill, The Coffin Corner, Pro Football Researchers Association (1989) Back Before Bengalmania – Cincinnati’s First Brush with the Big Time – [Internet] Available from: http://profootballresearchers.com/archives/Website_Files/Coffin_Corner/11-05-379.pdf [Accessed 9 October 2018]

[8] Pro Football Archives (2019) 1938 | American Football League [Internet] Available from: https://www.profootballarchives.com/1938.html [Accessed 12 October 2019]

[9] Pro Football Archives (2019) 1939 | American Football League [Internet] Available from: https://www.profootballarchives.com/1939.html [Accessed 12 October 2019]

[10] Pro Football Hall of Fame (2005) American Football League (1940-1941) [Internet] Available from: http://www.profootballhof.com/news/american-football-league-1940-1941/ [Accessed 5 June 2017]

[11] Pro Football Hall of Fame (2005) All-America Football Conference (AAFC) Standings (1946-1949) [Internet] Available from: http://www.profootballhof.com/news/all-america-football-conference-aafc-standings-1946-1949/ [Accessed 5 June 2017]

[12] PCPFL: 1940-45 – Bob Gill, The Coffin Corner, Pro Football Researchers Association (1982) Pacific Coast Pro Football League [Internet] Available from: 2011-07-26 at the Wayback Machine. – https://web.archive.org/web/20110726192703/http://www.profootballresearchers.org/Coffin_Corner/04-07-104.pdf [Accessed 19 January 2018]

[13] The End of the PCPFL – Bob Gill, The Coffin Corner, Pro Football Researchers Association (1982) The End of the PCPFL [Internet] Available from: http://profootballresearchers.com/archives/Website_Files/Coffin_Corner/05-04-135.pdf [Accessed 9 October 2018]

Images

[14] Wikipedia (2018) All-America Football Conference Logo [Internet] Available from: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/11/All-America_Football_Conference_%28logo%29.png [Accessed 8 October 2018]

Acknowledgements

Thanks to John Wills, Jean-Paul O’Flynn, John Kane, John Cummins, John Morahan & John Doody

About this document

Researched, compiled and written by Enda Mulcahy for the

World Gridiron Archive

Last Updated: 6 July 2020

(c) Copyright Enda Mulcahy and World Gridiron Archive 2020

You may quote this document in part provided that proper acknowledgement is given to the authors. All Rights Resereved.

All-America Football Conference 1949

All-America_Football_Conference_logo

 PWLTPFPAPct
*Cleveland Browns12912339171.900
*San Francisco 49ers12930416227.750
*Brooklyn-New York Yankees12840196206.667
*Buffalo Bills12552236256.500
Chicago Hornets12480179268.333
Los Angeles Dons12480253322.333
Baltimore Colts121110172341.083
All-America Football Conference Final Standings 1949 [Ref: 3]

Playoffs

DateHome Team Away Team 
 Playoffs   
 Cleveland Browns31Buffalo Bills21
 San Francisco 49ers17Brooklyn-New York Yankees7
 Championship Game   
 Cleveland Browns21San Francisco 49ers7
 Shamrock Bowl All-Star Game Rice Stadium, Houston 
17.12.1949All-Stars12Cleveland Browns7
All-America Football Conference Playoffs & All-Star Game 1949 [Ref: 2]

Regular Season Results

DateHome Team Away Team 
 Week 1   
26.08.1949Chicago Hornets17Buffalo Bills14
28.08.1949San Francisco 49ers31Baltimore Colts17
 Week 2   
02.09.1949Los Angeles Dons49Baltimore Colts17
04.09.1949San Francisco 49ers42Chicago Hornets7
05.09.1949Buffalo Bills28Cleveland Browns28
 Week 3   
09.09.1949Los Angeles Dons21Chicago Hornets23
11.09.1949Cleveland Browns21Baltimore Colts0
11.09.1949Buffalo Bills14Brooklyn-New York Yankees17
 Week 4   
16.09.1949Chicago Hornets35Baltimore Colts7
18.09.1949Cleveland Browns14Brooklyn-New York Yankees3
18.09.1949San Francisco 49ers42Los Angeles Dons14
 Week 5   
22.09.1949Brooklyn-New York Yankees10Los Angeles Dons7
25.09.1949Baltimore Colts20Cleveland Browns28
25.09.1949Buffalo Bills28San Francisco 49ers17
 Week 6   
30.09.1949Chicago Hornets24San francisco 49ers42
02.10.1949Cleveland Browns42Los Angeles Dons7
02.10.1949Buffalo Bills28Baltimore Colts35
 Week 7   
07.10.1949Chicago Hornets24Brooklyn-New York Yankees38
09.10.1949San Francisco 49ers56Cleveland Browns28
09.10.1949Los Angeles Dons42Buffalo Bills28
 Week 8   
14.10.1949Los Angeles Dons14Cleveland Browns61
16.10.1949San Francisco 49ers51Buffalo Bills7
16.10.1949Baltimore Colts21Brooklyn-New York Yankees24
 Week 9   
23.10.1949Brooklyn-New York Yankees24San Francisco 49ers3
23.10.1949Buffalo Bills17Los Angeles Dons14
23.10.1949Baltimore Colts7Chicago Hornets17
 Week 10   
28.10.1949Chicago Hornets14Los Angeles Dons24
30.10.1949Cleveland Browns30San Francisco 49ers28
30.10.1949Brooklyn-New York Yankees21Baltimore Colts24
 Week 11   
06.11.1949Cleveland Browns30Chicago Hornets2
06.11.1949Brooklyn-New York Yankees14Buffalo Bills17
06.11.1949Baltimore Colts10San Francisco 49ers28
 Week 12   
13.11.1949Cleveland Browns7Buffalo Bills7
13.11.1949Los Angeles Dons24San Francisco 49ers41
13.11.1949Brooklyn-New York Yankees14Chicago Hornets10
 Week 13   
20.11.1949Brooklyn-New York Yankees0Cleveland Browns31
20.11.1949Buffalo Bills10Chicago Hornets0
20.11.1949Baltimore Colts10Los Angeles Dons21
 Week 14   
24.11.1949Chicago Hornets6Cleveland Browns14
24.11.1949Los Angeles Dons16Brooklyn-New York Yankees17
27.11.1949San Francisco 49ers35Brooklyn-New York Yankees14
27.11.1949Baltimore Colts14Buffalo Bills38
All-America Football Conference Regular Season Results 1949 [Ref: 2]

Championship Game

Sunday, December 11, 1949, Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio. Att: 22, 550

San Francisco 49ers 7 Cleveland Browns 21 – The Cleveland Browns won their fourth AAFC Championship in-a-row, and the last ever Championship Game of the AAFC, beating the San Francisco 49ers 21-7 on the back of three Runs by E. Jones, Motley and D. Jones, with Salata receiving a pass for a touchdown from Albert for San Francisco’s only score

At Cleveland Municipal Stadium Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Total
San Francisco 49ers 0 0 0 0 7
Cleveland Browns 7 0 7 7 21
Scorers Score
1st Quarter  
Cle – E. Jones 2 Run (Groza Kick) 0-7
2nd Quarter  
No Scoring  
3rd Quarter  
Cle – Motley 63 Run (Groza Kick) 0-14
4th Quarter  
SF – Salata 23 Pass from Albert (Vetrano Kick) 7-14
Cle – D. Jones 4 Run (Groza Kick) 7-21

Shamrock Bowl All-Star Game

Saturday, December 17, 1949, Rice Stadium, Houston, Texas, Att: 12,000

AAFC All-Stars 12 Cleveland Browns 7 – The Shamrock Bowl All-Star Game was the last ever game played by the All-America Football Conference, as the league merged with the National Football League after the season. It was organised as a Charity Event by Glenn McCarthy, who had tried to purchase a franchise in the league after the season, and before it merged with the NFL. It was the only All-Star Game played by the AAFC, and was a Charity Event in aid of the Hally Hall Home for the Aged, the Damon Runyon Cancer Fund, and the National Kids Day Foundation, and is also notable for being one of the first racially-integrated sports events in Houston. The AAFC All-Stars won the game 12-7 with two touchdowns either side of a Cleveland Browns one. Mutryn ran in the first, and Dub Jones replied for Cleveland with a pass from Graham. Baldwin won the game for the All-Stars with a 23 yard reception from Albert.

At Rice Stadium, Houston Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Total
AAFC All-Stars 6 6 0 0 12
Cleveland Browns 0 7 0 0 7
Scorers Score
1st Quarter  
AAFC – Mutryn 2 Run (Albert Missed Kick) 6-0
2nd Quarter  
Cle – Dub Jones 40 Pass from Graham (Groza Kick) 6-7
AAFC – Baldwin 23 Pass from Albert (Albert Missed Kick) 12-7
3rd Quarter  
No Scoring 12-7
3rd Quarter  
No Scoring 12-7

Shamrock-Bowl-AAFC-1949-poster

The All-American football Conference of 1946-1949 was a successful rival to the NFL, so much so, that the two leagues agreed to merge in 1950, although in essence it was a takeover of the three most successful AAFC clubs by the NFL – San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns & Baltimore Colts.

The League was won by the Cleveland Browns all four seasons – in 1946 they defeated New York Yankees 14-9, and in 1948 defeated the Buffalo Bills in the Championship game 49-7 before beating the San Francisco 49ers in the 1949 Championship Game 21-7

Of particular note for Irish American Football fans, is the last ever game, the Shamrock Bowl Charity All-Star Game, the only one played by the AAFC. It was organised by Glenn McCarthy, who had tried to purchase the Cleveland Browns and move them to Houston after the 1949 season, and before it merger with the NFL in 1950. It was played in aid of three charities, and was also notable for the fact it was one of the first ever racially integrated sports events ever played in Houston.

Glenn McCarthy was a Houston Oil millionaire who opened the Shamrock Hotel in Houston on St. Patrick’s Day 1949. He was several generations removed from his Irish ancestors from Co. Cork, and was one of the richest men in America, and probably the richest in Texas. He was known as  “King of the wildcatters”, a term applied to the early Irish in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, in reference to people who find oil in places not proven to have oil [Ref: 2]

Glenn-McCarthy-AAFC-Shamrock-Bowl-1949

Oilman Glenn McCarthy, left [Ref: 7]

References

Websites

[1] Pro Football Hall of Fame (2005) All-America Football Conference (AAFC) Standings (1946-1949) [Internet] Available from: http://www.profootballhof.com/news/all-america-football-conference-aafc-standings-1946-1949/ [Accessed 5 June 2017]

[2] McHugh (2019) “The Magnificent Shamrock Hotel” Ireland’s Own [Internet] Available from: https://www.irelandsown.ie/the-magnificent-shamrock-hotel/ [Accessed 12 March 2020]

Bibliography

[3] Crippen, Kenneth R. & Reaser, Matt, Eds. (2018) “The All-America Football Conference”. Part 6: Linescores. 1949. pg. 134-146. Published by McFarland & Co, Jefferson, North Carolina.

[4] Crippen, Kenneth R. & Reaser, Matt, Eds. (2018) “The All-America Football Conference”. Part 5: Conference Statistics. 1949. pg. 70. Published by McFarland & Co, Jefferson, North Carolina.

Images

[5] Wikipedia (2018) All-America Football Conference Logo [Internet] Available from: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/11/All-America_Football_Conference_%28logo%29.png [Accessed 8 October 2018]

[6] Houston Chronicle (2020) Shamrock Bowl 1949 Programme [Internet] Available from: https://s.hdnux.com/photos/04/36/52/1174165/3/920×920.jpg [Accessed 12 March 2020]

[7] Houston Chronicle (2020) Oilman Glenn McCarthy, left [Internet] Available from: https://s.hdnux.com/photos/04/36/52/1174166/3/375×250.jpg [Accessed 12 March 2020]

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Eoin O’Fearghaill

About this document

Researched, compiled and written by Enda Mulcahy for the

Eirball | Irish North American & World Sports Archive

Last Updated: 12 March 2020

(c) Copyright Enda Mulcahy and World Gridiron Archive 2020

You may quote this document in part provided that proper acknowledgement is given to the authors. All Rights Reserved.