Tales from the American Football League
Preserving the legacy of the AFL
One of the things that I like to do with this site is to feature the many different and creative ways that AFL fans celebrate and recognize the old league. We have talked to several collectors, historians, and a photograph restorer, but I believe this is the first time that we are connecting with an AFL-related [...]
I was looking around the internet the other day, searching for information on the Chiefs postcards that I recently wrote about, when I came across a site called Vintage Everyday. The site features article on all sorts of historic topics, and is something in which readers can easily lose themselves for hours. The particular article [...]
I purchased a postcard the other day. No, it didn’t come from one of those ubiquitous carousel display racks, but rather from eBay. It is a beautiful color postcard of the Kansas City Chiefs running back, Bert Coan running downfield. In the backfield Len Dawson watches Coan’s progress, as does downed Chargers lineman, George Gross, [...]
Much has been said about what led to the ultimate success of the AFL. Wealthy owners, television contracts, signing important players, and a flashy style of offensive football have all been proffered as important reasons why the AFL succeeded in its quest for pro football equality, when so many other leagues – before and after – [...]
We have spent several posts over the last year touting the research and writing of Finding Frank, a wonderful new book about former AFL star, Frank Buncom. As many of you know, the book was the culmination of a promise made to Buncom’s memory by Chargers ball boy-turned-author, Buzz Ponce, some 40+ years ago. It [...]
Last week AFL icon, Joe Namath, celebrated his 70th birthday. As the old saying goes, where has the time gone? In honor of Namath’s big day, Athletes Quarterly ran a great interview with the former New York Jets legend. Namath talks about his early years, going to play football at Alabama, his time with the [...]
Last week I stumbled across an interesting eBay auction, the title of which caught me eye immediately – “AFL OILERS VS BUFFALO BILLS OCT SIXTY EIGHT AS SEEN IN PRO FOOTBALL HOF RARE.” I opened the auction page, and found a slight item description, and a couple of photos, one of which showed a small [...]
Marty Schottenheimer has made a name for himself as a no-nonsense, tough-minded football coach. With his patented brand of Martyball, Schottenheimer became known for taking moribund professional teams and building them up to the brink of greatness. He did it nearly everywhere he went, in Cleveland, Kansas City, Washington and with the San Diego Chargers. Prior [...]
I read an interesting couple of articles on The Bleacher Report the other day. Phillip Schawillie, a featured columnist, took a look through the history of the New York Jets franchise and made his case for the 25 Greatest Players in New York Jets’ History. Schawillie took into account a player’s longitivity and statistics, while [...]
Jim Saccomano began working for the Denver Broncos in 1978, and was in charge of the organization’s media relations through 2009, when he became vice president of corporate communications. With more than 35 years service to an original AFL franchise, the man is a wealth of team history. Jim Saccomano writes a blog on the Denver Broncos [...]
