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1958 Playoffs: Division Semi-Finals

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East Division Semi-Final: Washington Federals @ Philadelphia Rattlesnakes Philadelphia would be hosting its first postseason game in over 20 years as they welcomed its biggest competition in the Washington Federals. It was a mild December evening, perfect for a game that could determine which way momentum swings in the East for the next few years to come. The Federals needed to go through the playoffs the hard way if they wanted to reclaim a title. The Rattlesnakes represent a new wave of teams ready to take down the current teams on top and change how things are played in the AFL. Q1 The Rattlesnakes would receive the opening kickoff after Washington won the coin toss. They immediately got off to a great start, as RB Mickey Greene opened the game with a 23 yard rush that got the home crowd roaring. Philly would not be able to improve upon that first play as they went three and out on the next set of downs. Washington’s first chance would be about equally as exciting, getting a first d...
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1958 Season

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  East Division The East in recent years has become the most competitive division in all of professional football, and 1958 was no exception. New York’s miraculous run to the championship seemed like it would be a one-and-done deal if they had not acquired arguably one of the best receivers in the league: Joey Staniskovski. With him added to the offensive arsenal, and the promotion of Newark RB Jon Dawson as a bruising option in the backfield, the Lions offense was a tough one to stop. They also found a diamond in the rough in the draft, as fifth round selection DL John Lee Hines out of Prairie View State made an immediate impact on the line and locked himself into a Rookie of the Year award, becoming just the second player not drafted in the first round to win said award. The Lions were out to prove that last year was no fluke and wanted to make another deep run for potentially their first AFL title. That desire came true, as they were undefeated through the first half of the year...
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1958 Season Preview

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    1 - Cincinnati Rivermen 1957 Record: 10-2 (1st West) 1957 Result: Won Championship Highlighted Players: DL Fergus Prenderghast (99) & OL Milton McCovery (54)  Last year could not have gone any more perfect than it went for the Rivs. They gambled on the prime of DL Fergus Prenderghast and just by winning a title last year it has more than paid off. With how well last season went, Cincinnati’s main strategy is just to get everything back together to get back to the title game and repeat. RB Perry Ferguson was going to retire after the championship, but he was convinced to stick around for another year to win once more. TE Floyd Rankin and S Virgil Romano were given small extensions to stay in Cincinnati for another run. They have shown to have some of the best talent in the league, and now see themselves in the driver’s seat to win back-to-back championships. In years’ past, winning a title may have been a slightly easier task, but the West division has now become i...
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1958 AFL Draft

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  Round 1 1 - Cleveland - RB Bo Golden - St. Louis State - Kingsfan11 2 - Chicago - OL Mitch Hunt - Armitage - idm 3 - Tri-Cities - WR Sonny Delvecchio - Brooklyn College - Kingsfan11 4 - Buffalo - OL Jerry Colangelo - Vermont - idm 5 - Pittsburgh - DB Rex Leavitt - Deseret - DireBear 6 - Philadelphia - S David Jefferson - Virginia Commonwealth - idm 7 - Boston - DL Hugo Cumberdale - Indiana - Jayhawk 8 - Tri-Cities (from STL) - DL Lou Spanos - University of Cleveland - DireBear 9 - Washington - OL Alan Varnas - Chicago Christian - DireBear 10 - Detroit - DL Herman Escalante - ULA - DireBear 11 - Cleveland (from NY) - QB Cassius Sterling - Wyoming State - Darknes 12 - Cincinnati - S Will Heckel - Ohio - Kingsfan11 In prior year’s drafts, the first overall pick seemed like it was a fairly obvious choice for the team selecting. This year appears to be different. Cleveland had two gaping holes at skill positions that they needed to fill, needing a top halfback with Max Panders retirin...
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1958 Draft Preview

AACA Top 20: 1) Genesee (NY) - 10-0 [Independent] 2) Louisiana - 9-1 [SoCon] 3) Mississippi Tech - 9-1 [SoCon] 4) Texas - 9-1 [AATU] 5) Georgia - 9-1 [SoCon] 6) Wisconsin State - 7-2 [Big Western] 7) Southwestern Christian - 8-2 [AATU] 8) Washington State - 9-1 [PAC] 9) Arkansas State - 8-2 [Independent] 10) Alabama State - 7-1-2 [SoCon] 11) Pickens Tech - 8-2 [AAC] 12) Pennsylvania - 8-2 [ECC] 13) Illinois - 5-3-1 [Big Western] 14) ULA - 8-2 [PAC] 15) Oklahoma - 7-3 [MRVC/Big 8] 16) Wyoming State - 9-1 [Frontier] 17) Missouri State - 6-4 [MRVC/Big 8] 18) Florida State - 5-4-1 [AAC] 19) Pittsburgh State - 6-4 [Independent] 20) McTyeire (TN) - 7-3 [Magnolia] AACA Bowls: Rose Bowl (Los Angeles, CA) - (12) Penn 44 -6 (8) Washington State Palm Bowl (Miami, FL) - (5) Georgia 14 -0 (11) Pickens Tech Magnolia Bowl (Houston, TX) - (1) Genesee 23 -14 (15) Oklahoma Columbian Bowl (Chicago, IL) -  (6) Wisconsin State 7 -0 (9) Arkansas State Gold Bowl (San Francisco, CA) - (14) ULA 20 -7 Arizo...
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1957-58 Offseason

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Retirements OL Bill Armstrong - Evansville, IN College: Rogers Clark (IN) Teams: Chicago Hogs (1948-1957) AFL Championships: 3 (1951, 1952, 1954) All-AFL: 4 (1951, 1952, 1953, 1954) All-Star: 4 (1951, 1952, 1953, 1954) Armstrong will be looked back upon as part of how offensive linemen changed from the beginnings of the sport to how it is today. A standout player for the Rogers Clark Badgers, he was much larger than many of the players that would have played at the position in the past. His burly stature pretty much stopped any defender in his tracks, and the Hogs thought they could use him to stop defenders from their cross-town rival. The Stars defensive line could seemingly get through any blocker, and the Hogs were willing to throw anything at the wall to see what stuck. Armstrong was fitting to his name, almost single-handedly stopping the lankier Stars defensive linemen, and the rest of the league took notice of how to make an offensive line. Armstrong was a cornerstone of the ...
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