NFL and NCAA Football in 1936

The Great Depression had a grip on America. We were three years away from the start of the second World War. Franklin D. Roosevelt was re-elected to a second term as U.S President. Margaret Mitchell's novel Gone With The Wind was published. Life Magazine is published for the first time.

In sports, the New York Yankees played in their very first World Series without the iconic Babe Ruth. Joe DiMaggio played in his first as they beat the New York Giants in six games. Baseball also held its first ever Hall of Fame ballot that year as Ruth, Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson, and Walter Johnson are the inaugural members in 1936.

Boxing had witnessed an upset as Joe Louis had been knocked out in the 12th round by German fighter Max Schmeling in New York while losing his heavyweight title. Louis would later regain his title, but the fight forever transcended the sport as well as the world.

However, the 1936 Summer Olympics took place as American Jesse Owens won four gold medals in Berlin much to the chagrin of Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany. The African-American star forever became a household name for his excellent, stellar performance.

American football had struggled along in 1936 as many schools and professional teams were affected economically by the Great Depression. Despite this, it was a year in which the sport on both levels would change the future forever. Many popular figures in football emerged or later became names we all know in our society.

In early 1936, the first NFL Draft had taken place at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Philadelphia. It was NFL Commissioner and then-Philadelphia Eagles co-founder Bert Bell that proposed the idea for this amateur draft in 1935. Because of his concern of the league to go under if teams weren't given an even chance to go after amateur players, he had the idea to draft players in reverse order of how NFL teams finished the season before with the team with the worst record picking first. Downtown Athletic Club trophy winner Jay Berwanger was the first selection by the Philadelphia Eagles, who had the league's worst record in 1935 at 2-9. Nine rounds took place with nine teams taking part for a total of 81 players selected. This was an idea that would help save the league and provide competitive balance, too.

As was the case in the early days of the NFL, franchises struggled financially to stay in the league and in business. Sometimes, teams folded during the season without completing their schedules. Since the league began play in 1920, teams played a different amount of scheduled games for various reasons which did have an impact on determining league champions. But 1936 was different.

Though the NFL didn't add any franchises, they didn't lose any which marked the first time since the league began that no franchise was added or lost in a season. However, one of them may have gone out of business if not for relocation that would take place a year later.

The Green Bay Packers won the NFL West division to earn a spot in the title game against the East division champion Boston Redskins. The East division winner won the right to host the title game, but Redskins owner George Preston Marshall had other ideas. Because he recognized the poor attendances he drew at his games despite being a good team, he wanted to move the title game to a neutral site. Seeing that the Polo Grounds had done well with drawing fans previously, he wanted the game there. The Packers still won the NFL Championship by beating the Redskins 21-6 in front of over 29,000 fans. Because of poor attendance and financial trouble, Marshall moved the Redskins to Washington the following year. Today, they are one of the most valuable franchises in all of sports.

Because of a canceled game due to weather between the Redskins and Eagles in 1935, they played one less game than all other teams. So in 1936, all teams played the same amount of games which finally eliminated the imbalanced amount of them played by franchises. Prior to the NFL Championship Game being instituted, it was very common to see a drastic difference in the amount of games played that had a profund effect on the final standings. The title game had decided a true champion and a same amount of games gave everyone the same chance to challenge for a division title or better.

The forward pass had seriously impacted the sport on both collegiate and professional levels especially during the 1920s. It was needed to offset the number of serious injuries and deaths that had taken place on the field in previous years before. Before 1936, players were allowed to cross the line of scrimmage to throw a forward pass. It was then decided that anyone who attempted a forward pass beyond the line of scrimmage would receive a five yard penalty from the spot of the foul for crossing. The illegal forward pass penalty was born.

As was the case in the NFL's early existence, other leagues were formed to compete and overtake them. A second American Football League was formed in 1936. Though it would last only two seasons, it did provide two significant moments.

The Los Angeles Bulldogs expressed interest in playing in the NFL, but joined the AFL instead. They became the first professional team to play on the West Coast in 1936, and were also the first pro club to go undefeated in a season to win the league's last championship in 1937. That feat wouldn't be accomplished again until the 1972 Miami Dolphins came along. Another successful AFL would come along and eventually merge with the NFL.

Meanwhile in college football, the Associated Press writer's poll had decided to name their national champion. Their first poll consisting of 35 writers in October had voted the Minnesota Golden Gophers No. 1 as they received 32 first place votes. The AP released the top 20 teams that week, and the final one has been publicly accepted as the national champion since. However, the final poll concluded at the end of November before the bowl games took place. Since 1968, the final poll has been taken after all games have been played.

On the college gridiron in 1936, the Golden Gophers were set to go for their third consecutive national championship. Head coach Bernie Bierman and his Minnesota team had lost to Northwestern during mid-season, but they only allowed three of their eight opponents to score on them. Despite the loss, Minnesota ended the season at the top spot in the final AP poll. Minnesota won the first ever AP national title.

1936 was also the season in which Fordham's Seven Blocks of Granite became the most well-known though the nickname had been used before. Leo Paquin, Johnny Druze, Alex Wojciechowicz, Ed Franco, Al Barbartsky, Natty Pierce, and undersized 185 lb guard named Vince Lombardi comprised the group. They lost their only game in the season finale to New York University 7-6 which prevented them from going to the Rose Bowl as they were the No. 3 team on the AP poll going into the game.

In 1935, the Downtown Athletic Club trophy was presented for the first time to Chicago's Jay Berwanger. John Heisman, the director of the Downtown Athletic Club, died in October of 1936. Originally, the award was to be given to the best player east of the Mississippi River as was the case in 1935. But two months after the death of Heisman, the award was renamed the Heisman Trophy in his honor. Furthermore, the best player voted upon in the nation would receive the award. Yale's Larry Kelley was named the Heisman Trophy winner for 1936 as the first winner under the newly named award.

In Texas, oil executive J. Curtis Sanford had agreed to single-handedly finance the first ever Cotton Bowl Classic in Dallas in 1936 for New Year's Day. The first game featured the Texas Christian University(TCU) Horned Frogs playing against Marquette. TCU quarterback Sammy Baugh won the game's MVP award as the Horned Frogs beat Marquette 16-6. The game lost money, but is still played every year as one of the most popular bowl games.

Some football sports figures from 1936:

John Heisman: Heisman had an outstanding coaching career winning 187 games in over 30 years for eight different schools. He was the Athletic Director of the Downtown Athletic Club before his death in October of 1936. Over two months later after his death, the Downtown Athletic Club changed its best player award to the Heisman Trophy which is now the most prestigious individual award in American sports.

Sammy Baugh: TCU's star quarterback led his team to a No. 16 ranking before they won the first ever Cotton Bowl Classic, and finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting. He was drafted with the sixth overall pick in the 1937 NFL Draft by the Redskins. "Slingin'" Sammy would play for 16 seasons in Washington winning two NFL Championships in 1937 and 1942. He also excelled as a punter. He became one of the charter members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963 and is still widely regarded as one of the game's greatest players.

Vince Lombardi: He was one of Fordham's Seven Blocks of Granite in 1936. He later went on to become Offensive Coordinator for the New York Giants before taking over as head coach for the Packers in 1959. He won five NFL Championships(including two Super Bowls) as head coach. The Super Bowl trophy is named in his honor, and he's widely regarded as the greatest coach in NFL history.

Paul "Bear" Bryant: Bryant's playing days at Alabama ended in 1935, and he was drafted with the 31st overall pick in the 4th round of the 1936 NFL Draft by the Brooklyn Dodgers. He enlisted in the Navy for World War II before taking a head coaching job at Maryland. He later coached at Kentucky and Texas A&M before taking over as head coach for Alabama in 1958. He won six national titles as Alabama head coach before retiring in 1982. He's considered by many to be the greatest coach in college football history.

Bernie Bierman: Minnesota's head coach won his third national in a row in 1936. After his team finished below .500 with a 3-4-1 record in 1939, Minnesota would win two more consecutive national titles in 1940-41 by going 8-0 during both seasons. The Golden Gophers haven't been nearly as successful since he left the program after 1941 though they won the national title in 1960. Minnesota is the last program to win three consecutive national titles in college football.

Charles "Bud" Wilkinson: He was part of all three national championship teams at Minnesota between 1934-36 playing guard, quarterback, and end. He would be selected by the Green Bay Packers with the 29th overall pick in the 3rd round of the 1937 NFL Draft. Later, he took the head coaching position at Oklahoma where he won three national championships and had a record 47-game winning streak between 1953-57. He is the only person in college football history to win at least three national titles as a player and as coach.

Curly Lambeau: The Packers head coach won his fourth NFL Championship in 1936, but this was the year that he won his first post-season game beating the Redskins in that final game. He would later win two more NFL Championships in 1939 and 1944 giving him a total of six which is tied for the most ever with George Halas of the Chicago Bears. He was also a charter member of the 1963 Pro Football Hall of Fame class.

Don Hutson: The second-year star receiver who once was a teammate of Bear Bryant at Alabama, was the NFL's first dominant receiver in the 1930s. He scored the first points in the 1936 NFL Championship Game on a 48-yard touchdown reception as he won his first of three league titles. He retired in 1945 and still holds many receiving records that exist to this day. He was yet another charter member of the 1963 Pro Football Hall of Fame class.

Though no one would see the immediate effects of many of the changes in 1936, it was a year of change that transcended the American version of football forever. From the first NFL Draft to the naming of the first AP national champion, 1936 had plenty of players and coaching icons were plentiful that went on to become permanent names that we all know in our society.

Sources:
1936
College Football Hall of Fame
James Howell Historical Scores
1936 College Football season
The Cotton Bowl 1937
1936 NFL season
1936 NFL Draft
1937 NFL Draft
Los Angeles Bulldogs article
ESPN College Football Almanac