Founded | 1932 |
---|---|
Folded | 1932 |
Based in | St. Louis, Missouri, United States |
League | Independent (1932) |
Team history | St. Louis Veterans (1932) |
Team colors | Unknown |
Head coaches | Garland Grange (1932) |
General managers | Bud Yates (1932) |
Home field(s) | Public Schools Stadium |
The St. Louis Veterans were a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri in 1932. The team was founded by Bud Yates, the general manager of the St. Louis Gunners, who would play in the National Football League in 1934. In 1932, Yates figured that since one professional football team could make a good showing in St. Louis, he would add another. The team was sponsored by a group representing disabled American veterans from World War I. Garland Grange, the younger brother of Red Grange was named the team's head coach. Meanwhile, Joe Lintzenich, a teammate of Garland's from the Chicago Bears, was hired as his assistant. Yates then signed several players from the Gunners, the Portsmouth Spartans and Memphis Tigers to his roster.
The Veterans folded after playing in only 5 games and posting a 2–2–1 record. Yates returned to the St. Louis Gunners, while Garland Grange headed to coach the Memphis Tigers.
The Providence Steam Rollers were a professional American football team based in Providence, Rhode Island in the National Football League (NFL) from 1925 to 1931. Providence was the first New England team to win an NFL championship. The Steam Roller won the league's championship in 1928, which is the latest NFL championship win by a defunct team to date. Most of their home games were played at the Cycledrome, a 10,000-seat stadium that was built as a velodrome for bicycle races.
The St. Louis Gunners were an independent professional football team based in St. Louis, Missouri, that played the last three games of the 1934 National Football League season, replacing the Cincinnati Reds on the league schedule after the Reds' league membership was suspended. They won their first game against the Pittsburgh Pirates 6–0, and lost the last two to the Detroit Lions (40–7) and the Green Bay Packers (21–14). Six of the Reds players joined the team for the last two games. The team was headquartered at the St. Louis National Guard Armory, which accounts for its nickname the 'Gunners'.
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The Massillon Tigers were an early professional football team from Massillon, Ohio. Playing in the "Ohio League", the team was a rival to the pre-National Football League version of the Canton Bulldogs. The Tigers won Ohio League championships in 1903, 1904, 1905, and 1906, then merged to become "All-Massillons" to win another title in 1907. The team returned as the Tigers in 1915 but, with the reemergence of the Bulldogs, only won one more Ohio League title. Pro football was popularized in Ohio when the amateur Massillon Tigers hired four Pittsburgh pros to play in the season-ending game against Akron. At the same time, pro football declined in the Pittsburgh area, and the emphasis on the pro game moved west from Pennsylvania to Ohio.
Lorenzo Thomas Ribble, Jr. was a professional football player in the National Football League for the Portsmouth Spartans, Chicago Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates. He also played in the second American Football League for the Pittsburgh Americans. He also played for the independent St. Louis Gunners in 1932 and the Memphis Tigers in 1933. The Gunners did not join the NFL until 1934.
George Cardinal "Babe" Lyon was a professional football player in the National Football League (NFL) and the second American Football League (AFL). Over the span of his career, Babe played for the New York Giants, Portsmouth Spartans, Cleveland Indians, Chicago Bears, Brooklyn Dodgers, and St. Louis Gunners of the NFL. He played again in 1936 for the Rochester Tigers of the AFL.
Roy Marlon Baker was a professional American football player in the National Football League and the first American Football League. Baker started his career at powerhouse Long Beach Polytechnic High School then continued the pipeline to USC. Over the span of his career, Baker played for the Chicago Cardinals, New York Yankees, Green Bay Packers, Staten Island Stapletons of the NFL. Before that played again in 1926 for the Yankees of the AFL. After his NFL career ended he played for the St. Louis Gunners in 1931 and was their coach in 1932. Baker won an NFL Championship in 1929 with the Green Bay Packers.
Charles Francis "Chile" Walsh was an American football player, coach, and executive. He played college football at the University of Notre Dame from 1925 to 1927 and served as the head football coach at Saint Louis University from 1930 to 1933, compiling record of 22–9–2. Walsh was a head coach in the National Football League for the St. Louis Gunners in 1934, tallying a mark of 1–2. He was also an assistant coach for the Cleveland Rams in 1942 and was named the team's head coach in 1943, however the team suspended operations that season due to manning shortages brought on by World War II.
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