Boston Yanks

Last updated

Boston Yanks
BostonYanks48.gif
Founded1944
Folded1952
Based in Boston, Massachusetts
League National Football League
Divisionold Eastern Division
Team historyBoston Yanks (1944, 1946–1948)
The Yanks (1945)
New York Bulldogs (1949)
New York Yanks (1950–1951)
Dallas Texans (1952)
Team colorsKelly green, gold, white
   
Head coaches Herb Kopf (1944–1946)
Maurice J. "Clipper" Smith (1947–1948)
Owner(s) Ted Collins, (1900–1964)
Home field(s) Fenway Park (Boston)
Braves Field [a few regular season games] (Boston)

The Boston Yanks were a National Football League team based in Boston, Massachusetts, that played from 1944 to 1948. The team played its home games at Fenway Park. Any games that conflicted with the Boston Red Sox baseball schedule in the American League were held at Braves Field of the cross-town National League team, the Boston Braves. Team owner Ted Collins, who managed singer and television show host Kate Smith (1907–1986) for thirty years, picked the name Yanks because he originally wanted to run a team that played at New York City's old Yankee Stadium. The Yanks managed only a 2–8 record during their first regular season.

Contents

Because of a shortage of players caused by World War II, the Yanks were temporarily merged with the erratic founding APFA member Dayton Triangles' franchise, then known as the Brooklyn Tigers, for the 1945 season, and styled as just the Yanks with no home city named. The merged team played four home games in Boston and one in New York and finished with a 3–6–1 record.

When Brooklyn Tigers owner Dan Topping announced his intention to join the newly established rival professional football league, the All-America Football Conference (AAFC), in 1946, his NFL franchise, which was a founding APFA member that he had moved from Dayton, Ohio in 1929, was revoked and all of its players were assigned to the Yanks, with the original Triangles legacy being carried on by this group. After three continuous losing seasons, Collins finally was allowed to move to New York City. But instead of an official relocation, he asked the league to officially fold his Boston franchise and give him a new franchise, for a Federal tax write-off. The League granted his request, and Collins named his new team the New York Bulldogs. However, like many of this franchise's moves, the NFL considers them to have folded, while the players and assets simply moved, ultimately keeping the Dayton Triangles' legacy alive as the last remaining Ohio League member. [1] Despite the franchise's assets moving to a new city and carrying on the team's legacy, the Boston Yanks are the only officially defunct NFL team ever to have the first overall NFL draft pick. They had it twice, in 1944 and 1946, selecting quarterbacks from Notre Dame, Angelo Bertelli and Frank Dancewicz, both Massachusetts natives.

First round draft selections

Guard Fritz Barzilauskas Fritz Barzilauskas.jpg
Guard Fritz Barzilauskas
Boston Yanks first-round draft picks
YearPlayer namePositionCollege
1944 Angelo Bertelli BackNotre Dame
1945 Eddie Prokop BackGeorgia Tech
1946 Frank Dancewicz BackNotre Dame
1947 Fritz Barzilauskas GuardYale
1948 Vaughn Mancha CenterAlabama

Pro Football Hall of Fame

Boston Yanks Hall of Famers
Players
No.NamePositionTenureInducted
Clarence "Ace" Parker QB, HB 19451972

Season-by-season

YearWLTFinishCoach
19442804th East Herb Kopf
19453613rd East
19462815th East
19474713rd East Clipper Smith
19483905th East
Totals14383

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dallas Texans (NFL)</span> Team of the National Football League (NFL) for one season, 1952

The Dallas Texans played in the National Football League (NFL) for one season in 1952. They posted a record of 1–11.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dayton Triangles</span> American football team in Dayton, Ohio, USA

The Dayton Triangles were an original franchise of the American Professional Football Association in 1920. The Triangles were based in Dayton, Ohio, and took their nickname from their home field, Triangle Park, which was located at the confluence of the Great Miami and Stillwater Rivers in north Dayton. They were the longest-lasting traveling team in the NFL (1920–1929), and the last such "road team" until the Dallas Texans in 1952, who, coincidentally, descended from the Dayton franchise.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock Island Independents</span> American football team in Rock Island, Illinois

The Rock Island Independents were a professional American football team, based in Rock Island, Illinois, from 1907 to 1926. The Independents were a founding National Football League franchise. They hosted what has been retrospectively designated the first National Football League game on September 26, 1920 at Douglas Park. The Independents were founded in 1907 by Demetrius Clements as an independent football club. Hence, the team was named the "Independents."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brooklyn Dodgers (NFL)</span> American football team in the National Football League (1930–1943)

The Brooklyn Dodgers were an American football team that played in the National Football League from 1930 to 1943, and in 1944 as the Brooklyn Tigers. The team played its home games at Ebbets Field of the baseball National League's team, the Brooklyn Dodgers. In 1945, because of financial difficulties and the increasing scarcity of major league–level players because of the war-time defense requirements at the height of World War II, the team was merged with the Boston Yanks and were known as the Yanks for that season.

The New York Giants were a professional American football team with the American Professional Football Association whose only season played was in 1921. The team has also been referred to as the Brooklyn Giants and Brickley's Brooklyn Giants. The Brickley's Giants were the first of 17 professional football teams to represent New York City at one time or another. The team was founded in 1919 by Charles Brickley, who received All-American honors while at Harvard. Brickley's Giants played two games in their only season, losing to the Buffalo All-Americans, 55–0, and the Cleveland Tigers, 17–0. It was the second-shortest-lived franchise in APFA/NFL history, behind only another former New York APFA team, the Tonawanda Kardex, who played only one game in the same 1921 season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York Yanks</span> National Football League team

The New York Yanks were an American football team that played in the National Football League under that name in the 1950 and 1951 seasons.

The 1945 NFL season was the 26th regular season of the National Football League. The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Chicago Cardinals resumed their traditional operations.

The 1949 NFL season was the 30th regular season of the National Football League. Prior to the season, Boston Yanks owner Ted Collins asked the league to fold his team due to financial woes, and give him a new one in New York City. This new team would be called the New York Bulldogs. The franchise, which has never missed a season in some form, carried on the legacy of the final Ohio League member Dayton Triangles, and its players and assets were moved to New York but not specifically folded. As a result of the move, professional football would not return to Boston until the Patriots began play in 1960.

The 1952 NFL season was the 33rd regular season of the National Football League. Prior to the season, the legacy of the Dayton Triangles, the final remaining Ohio League member and the franchise then known as the New York Yanks owner Ted Collins sold his team back to the NFL. A few days later, a new team was then awarded to an ownership group in Dallas, Texas, after it purchased the assets of the Yanks.

Throughout the years, a number of teams in the National Football League (NFL) have either moved or merged.

The American Football League (AFL) was a professional American football league that operated in 1936 and 1937. The AFL operated in direct competition with the more established National Football League (NFL) throughout its existence. While the American media generally ignored its operation, this second AFL was the first "home" of the Cleveland Rams, which joined the National Football League after one year in the AFL.

The 1936 AFL season is the first season of the second American Football League, the formation of which was announced by Harry March, former personnel director of the NFL's New York Giants, on December 15, 1935. Fifteen cities bid for charter franchises; on April 11, 1936, franchises were awarded to eight cities: Boston, Cleveland, Jersey City, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Providence, and Syracuse. By mid-summer, Jersey City, Philadelphia, and Providence withdrew; soon afterwards, Rochester was given a franchise, only to have it relocated to Brooklyn, despite the lack of availability of a home stadium at the time.

The Syracuse Braves were a professional American football team that competed in the second American Football League in 1936 and 1937. Coached by Don Irwin and Red Badgro, the Braves played in Municipal Stadium, which had a capacity of only about 10,000 people. The team was not a strong draw as it lost its first five games, prompting a search for a new home, including Providence, Rhode Island, before settling upon a move to Rochester.

The 1951 New York Yanks season was their second as the Yanks, and their final season before the franchise was sold and moved to Dallas. The team failed to improve on their previous season's output of 7–5, winning only one game. They played eight of their twelve games on the road, including seven of the first eight. The sole victory came at Green Bay in early December. The final game against the neighboring Giants drew less than 6,700, played on an icy field with game time temperature of 17 °F (−8 °C).

The 1950 New York Yanks season was their first as the Yanks.

The 1944 Brooklyn Tigers season was their 15th and final season in the league before merging with the Boston Yanks. The team failed to improve on their previous season's output of 2–8, losing all ten games. They failed to qualify for the playoffs for the 13th consecutive season.

The Ohio League was an informal and loose association of American football clubs active between 1902 and 1919 that competed for the Ohio Independent Championship (OIC). As the name implied, its teams were mostly based in Ohio. It is the direct predecessor to the modern National Football League (NFL).

This timeline of the National Football League (NFL) tracks the history of each of the league's 32 current franchises from the early days of the league, through its merger with the American Football League (AFL). The history of franchises that began as independent teams, or as members of the Ohio League, New York Pro Football League, and other defunct leagues are shown as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baltimore Colts</span> Professional American football team in Baltimore, Maryland, from 1953 to 1983

The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983, when owner Robert Irsay moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breeding and racing. It was the second incarnation of the Baltimore Colts, the first having played for three years in the All-America Football Conference and one in the National Football League (NFL). This Baltimore Colts played their home games at Memorial Stadium.

References

  1. HOW TO GET FROM DAYTON TO INDIANAPOLIS BY WAY OF BROOKLYN, BOSTON, NEW YORK, DALLAS, HERSHEY AND BALTIMORE By Bob Carroll, THE COFFIN CORNER: Vol. 17, No. 5 (1995), Originally published in Ragtyme Sports