Gridiron America Radio

Although Warren Moon was overlooked time and again throughout his career, his perseverance led to an unusually long and extremely successful stint as a quarterback in the NFL. In addition to having to fight against the perception that he didn't have what it takes to lead an NFL team, he also had to fight against prejudice in a league that had few black quarterbacks. After being passed over by the NFL, Moon went to Canada and led his Edmonton Eskimos to five Grey Cups before being the subject of a bidding war among NFL teams. He would play professional football for 23 years and become the first quarterback to pass for over 60,000 yards in his career. Moon was the first 40-year-old to throw five touchdowns in a game and pass for 400 yards. He is also the only player in both the American and Canadian football halls of fame. 

When a person talks of dynasty in football, usually the thoughts go to the Pittsburgh Steelers of the seventies, the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers of the nineties or the modern-day New England Patriots or even Alabama Crimson Tide or Clemson Tigers.  However, in Canada, football dynasty talk invariably leads to the Canadian Football League’s Edmonton Eskimos of the late seventies and early eighties.  In the United States, the City of Pittsburgh claims the moniker of “City of Champions.”  Between the Eskimos and the Edmonton Oilers of the NHL, that claim may rightfully belong to Edmonton.  This mini documentary takes a look back at one of the greatest football teams in sports history.

The 51st Grey Cup was played on November 30, 1963, before 36,545 fans at Empire Stadium in Vancouver.

Centered largely on the 30 years after his Hall of Fame coaching career, this documentary explores football icon John Madden’s extraordinary impact on America’s most popular sport, the indelible mark he made on broadcast television and how he revolutionized the video game industry.

Maybe the most important decision Fran Tarkenton ever made was in 1957, when as a high school senior leading Athens High School to the Georgia state championship, he went with his heart and chose to go to the University of Georgia over Georgia Tech and Auburn. The rest is football history. "Scramblin' Fran" tells the story of the quarterback's unlikely rise at Georgia, highlighted by a memorable SEC title in 1959. The film traces his steps toward a long, successful pro career that saw him go from an unconventional, trailblazing "scrambler" with the Vikings to veteran savior with the Giants, to an icon in Minnesota who, in his second stint with the team, led them to three Super Bowls. Now a successful entrepreneur, Tarkenton will proudly retrace his steps - from his beginnings in Georgia all the way to a return visit to Athens for "G-Day" in 2018 - in this documentary about a football legend.

A replay from August 2021, in which Scott and Greg are joined by fellow Sports History Network member, Dana Auguster, of the Historically Speaking Sports podcast to talk about the important role African Americans have played in Canada, both on the field, as well as in the front office. Beginning with Robert "Stonewall" Jackson and continuing to the present with Clarence "Pinball" Clemons, the three talk about their contributions and look back at the greatest players many Americans may never have heard of or seen play.

Fritz  Pollard grew up in Rogers Park, Illinois, a largely white suburb of  Chicago. The seventh of eight children, young Fritz experienced racism  first hand and learned from his family how to pick his battles and  subdue his emotions in order to achieve his goals in a predominantly  white world. A three-sport athlete at Lane Tech High, Pollard had  notions of attending Dartmouth to follow in the footsteps of his older  brother Leslie. But fate intervened. During a stopover in Providence in  January 1913, Fritz had his first view of the Van Wickle gates sparkling  in the sun; his career at Brown had begun. During the 1915 and 1916 Brown football seasons, Pollard achieved  legendary status, compiling “firsts” as frequently as he gained first  downs. The first black to play in the Rose Bowl (1916), Fritz was also  named to Walter Camp’s All America Team, and was the first African  American in Camp’s backfield. Nicknamed “the human torpedo,” Pollard had  almost single-handedly defeated Yale and Harvard (Brown’s first win  over the Crimson) in 1916. The Bruins were the first college team to  defeat both Ivy powerhouses in the same season. For his exploits at  Brown, Pollard was elected to the National College Football Hall of Fame  in 1954 — the first African American ever chosen. As a professional player, Pollard continued to garner “firsts” in  spite of the overt racism of the period. He was among the first  African-Americans in the APFL and NFL leagues and, along with Jim  Thorpe, was the major gate attraction. A Black man playing football in a  predominantly white environment was a novelty in the 1920s. Fritz  Pollard was the first African American to play on a championship team  (1920), as well as the first Black quarterback (1923) and coach (1919). Pollard’s efforts on behalf of African American athletes were  Herculean. He organized Black teams such as the Chicago Black Hawks and  the Brown Bombers in order to promote integrated competition in  professional football. A true renaissance man, Pollard broke barriers of every sort — in  business and the entertainment industry, as well as in sports. At  various times, he ran a newspaper, an investment advisory firm, and a  coal company. His outgoing, engaging personality smoothed many a pathway  in the business and professional worlds, and even led to some dabbling  in politics.

The 50th Grey Cup between Hamilton and Winnipeg, also known as the Fog Bowl, was played at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto on December 1, 1962 before 32,655 fans. It remains the only Grey Cup game ever suspended during play.

Complete game broadcast from 1974 World Football League game between the Philadelphia Bell and the Chicago Fire.

The 49th Grey Cup between Hamilton and Winnipeg was played on December 2, 1961, before 32,651 fans at CNE Stadium in Toronto. This was the first Grey Cup to go into overtime.

Upton Bell was the owner of the long defunct Charlotte Hornets of the World Football League, a short-lived league that played one full season in 1974 and half of the 1975 season. But, man, it was an exciting time!  This story has an unlikely cast of characters, from a world-renowned TV mogul to a world-class con man, a cantankerous sports announcer, an immortal pro golfer, and hey, what story would be complete without a world famous kidnapping victim? The Charlotte Hornets football team was also a financial nightmare! But Upton Bell wouldn't change one minute of it!

In their first podcast of 2022 Scott and Greg sit down and talk about Scott's impressions about the new USFL and the news conference he attended in Birmingham for the hub city in season one of the fledgling league. After which, Scott and Greg talk with PFRA and CFL historian Ryan Christiansen to discuss his newly published book Border Boys, about the men who brought Winnipeg their first Grey Cup championship. Available in both the United States and Canada, the book details the history of Canadian football prior to the official start of the CFL when rugby unions governed the sport and how Canadian football evolved and was influenced by American innovations. With an in-depth discussion of how football on the continent evolved, Ryan introduces readers to the American and Canadian matchups that predated the NFL/CFL exhibitions of the 50s and 60s. Further, the book details the football legacy and traditions of North Dakota State University, Concordia College, Minnesota State University Moorhead, and University of North Dakota, and the contribution of the "Swede Belt's" Robert Fritz, Fritz Hanson, Bud Marquardt and Herb Peschel to the total Canadian/American team effort that was the 1935 Grey Cup champion Winnipeg Winnipegs of the Manitoba Rugby Football Union.

The 48th Grey Cup between Ottawa and Edmonton was played on November 26, 1960, before 38,102 fans at Empire Stadium in Vancouver.

Madden's passion and excitement for the game was infectious. His legacy  will live forever. He helped teach generations about the game of  football through all of the media he was involved in. A humble spirit, a  man who didn't care about looks, a man who didn't judge a book by its  cover. As a coach, he allowed his players the freedom to be themselves, be it to sit on their helmets or grow out their hair if they wanted. He made  his players realize their inner potential when he coached for the Raiders. He didn't care about wearing ties. He was a man's man. He was the type of guy you could sit down and have a beer with.

The 47th Grey Cup game between Hamilton and Winnipeg was played on November 28, 1959, before 33,133 fans at CNE Stadium in Toronto.