1953 Playoffs

 

East Division Play-Off: Buffalo Hammers @ Pittsburgh Shamrocks

 

A thin layer of snow had blanketed Oakland Field before its first ever postseason game, and Shamrocks fans showed up in droves to potentially see their team playing for a championship for the first time in nearly a decade. It’s a rematch of last year’s play-off, but both teams are in significantly different positions than they were last year. 

Q1

For any fans wanting a rematch of last years’ playoff game between these two, they would be deprived of a high-scoring game. The defenses clicked in almost immediately, with Buffalo making Pittsburgh punt on a three and out, and the Shamrocks held the Hammers to only a single first down conversion before they punted the ball back over. Pittsburgh RB Marion Waters struggled to get the ball moving for the Shamrocks, only putting up 19 yards on the ground by the time the first quarter was over. Buffalo had similar issues on offense, as QB Don Melton threw a costly interception to DB Jerry Pruitt, who finally got some momentum rolling for the Shamrocks as the first quarter ended.

BUF 0, PIT 0

Q2

Waters finally got a head of steam on their first possession of the second quarter, darting around the Hammers defense for 41 yards, but was taken down at the 3 by DB Joe Merritt. Waters would get into the endzone only a few plays later, and the Shamrocks had taken the lead against the Hammers for the first time all season. Buffalo also got their gears turning following the Pittsburgh touchdown, as Melton found WR Ben Farrell on the sideline for a 21 yard catch to set them up in scoring range for the first time all game. The Shamrocks defense would stand strong, stopping RB Calvin Townsend from picking up the first down, forcing the Hammers to only three points on a field goal. Buffalo would get another chance at scoring almost immediately, as QB Clarence Stanley would get the ball tipped at the line by DL Ray Payne, where it fell down into the arms of LB Oliver Shoemaker. Buffalo would get further into scoring territory than their previous drive, but Townsend was once again stopped short of the endzone, resulting in another field goal by the Hammers. Pittsburgh would attempt to get one last score in before the half was over, but couldn’t get within scoring range and only had a 1 point lead with Buffalo ready to take back the lead in the second half

BUF 6, PIT 7

Q3

Buffalo would get the ball rolling when they came out of the locker room, with QB Don Melton finding WR Bernard Clarke wide open after DB Neil Harrington got tripped up at the line, and Clarke nearly made it all the way before getting knocked out of bounds by DB Jerry Pruitt. The play would go in vain, as the Pittsburgh front seven held strong for three straight plays, forcing Buffalo to kick a field goal to take the lead for the first time all game. The Shamrocks would have some offensive struggles this quarter, as RB Marion Waters failed to rush for more than 4 yards all quarter, and QB Clarence Stanley struggled to find his receivers, punting the ball away three times, with two of those drives three-and-outs. Buffalo would get a drive going in between Pittsburgh’s struggles, though it went about as well as it had previously, getting just into scoring range before allowing K Guy Moran to kick his fourth field goal of the day and extend their lead to 5. 

BUF 12, PIT 7

Q4

The Shamrocks’ first attempt at any form of offense was quickly put out by the Hammers, stuffing them at the line on a crucial 4th and 1 in their own territory. This might have spelled doom for Pittsburgh, but their defense bailed them out on the ensuing drive. On third down, QB Don Melton looked to TE Dan Finley over the middle, but the ball was intercepted by LB Barry Moore, who took the ball back 70 yards for a touchdown. Buffalo’s winning hopes would not get any better after that, with QB Don Melton taking a massive hit from DL Archie Webber, which would hamper his throwing arm for the rest of the game. With the Hammers offense stalling out, all the Shamrocks had to do was coast to win the game. After winding down the clock, Pittsburgh would earn the right to play in the championship, and potentially win their first ever. 

West Division Play-Off: Washington Federals @ Chicago Hogs

 

 

Union Stadium was as loud as it ever was on a snowy Thanksgiving night, with the typically raucous Hogs fans joined by Washington fans, who were equally as ready to have a successful team in town. It had been snowing in the Windy City all day, and Union Stadium was covered in a layer of snow before the game. Both teams are coming in red hot, and their playstyles would melt any snow left unplowed on the field. Washington HC Irving Berry is not a stranger to Chicago, clinching a playoff berth for the Federals in just his first season as a head coach after being the Hogs’ DC for the past 10 years. 

Q1

Washington would get off to a great start, as QB Johnnie Sellers would feed the ball to WR Darius Sanderson on back-to-back-to-back plays to quickly get downfield.  Sanderson immediately made an impact, as he barely had to jump over DB Douglas Cross to make the third catch, sending the visiting crowd into a frenzy as he galloped for 40 yards before getting taken down by S Jeffery Irwin. RB Rip Rooney would run it up the gut a few plays later to give the Federals the first points of the game. Chicago made quick work in retaliation, with rookie sensation RB Billy Gould tearing through the young Washington defense to get right back in scoring range. QB Alfred Walton would attempt to throw to WR Nicholas Kramer on two straight plays, but was outplayed by DB Johnathan Moon on both, swatting the ball away on both pass attempts. After a failed rushing attempt by Gould, K Freddie Donnelly would kick the ball through the uprights for a field goal. Donnely’s ensuing kickoff would pin the Federals against their own endzone. Washington only managed to get out of the shadow of their endzone before being forced to punt, but the punt was blocked and recovered by DL Eric Forbes, allowing the Hogs to be just 10 yards away from the endzone. Gould would take it to the outside just two plays later to put Chicago on top. Washington would begin a grueling drive against the Hogs as the seconds wound down in the first quarter.

WAS 7, CHI 10

Q2

QB Johnnie Sellers would get past the stalwart Hogs defense in the same way he opened the quarter, by finding WR Darius Sanderson once again in a one-on-one, and used his height to receive the ball before getting pushed out of bounds after the catch for 31 yards. This momentum shifted in the Federals’ favor, as Sellers found WR Joseph Atkins for the touchdown just a few plays later to retake the lead. Washington’s momentum quickly died out after that drive, and so did Chicago’s, as neither could score throughout a majority of the second quarter. The Hogs would get some momentum with around 5 minutes left in the half. After getting the ball on their own 13 yard line, RB Billy Gould would show off his speed on first down, darting past the Federals defenders and it looked like he would go all the way for 6. He began to lose some steam, and was chased down by S Josh von Bank, who stopped him at the 1 yard line. Gould would not be back on the field the next play, as he limped to the sidelines after awkwardly landing on his left leg. The Hogs were down to their third string running back, RB Joseph Parker due to the season-ending injury to their primary starter Brian Bruce in week 3, at least until the end of the half. Parker was unable to penetrate past the surprisingly stout Washington defense, and Chicago kicked another three points to cut the lead to a single point by halftime. 

WAS 14, CHI 13 

Q3

Billy Gould’s injury worried Hogs fans entering the second half, but their woes were put to rest once news came out that he would only be out for the third quarter. Gould had only sprained his ankle, but it was serious enough that he was told to rest for an extra quarter to get back into the game. The Hogs would have to suffice without Gould for at least one quarter, and RB Joseph Parker would not have the same skills as Gould to get them places offensively. That was made clear on the Hogs’ first drive of the quarter, as Parker could not gain more than 3 yards on rushing attempts and Chicago punted the ball to Washington. Both teams traded punts after that, but then Washington finally started to put something together and began to march downfield. Sellers would trade between targeting Atkins and Sanderson and handing the ball off to Rooney on short yardage situations, which efficiently shred through the Hogs defense on their way to the endzone. Sellers would find Sanderson on a 3 yard slant for the touchdown to make it a two possession game. Chicago’s offense would not get going, as they once again punted the ball away to Washington. The Federals’ momentum would stop on this drive, as a handoff to RB Rip Rooney was stuffed just past the line of scrimmage by LB Arthur Conley, who stripped the ball out of the young players’ hands. Players dove into the ensuing scrum to try and gain possession of the ball, and it was rookie LB Killian Graves who would end up giving the ball back to Chicago within scoring range. The Hogs were desperately needing Gould at this point, as QB Alfred Walton was uncharacteristically missing his receivers and RB Joseph Parker was not filling the same role as Gould and struggled to get space to rush. Chicago would go three and out, but did score a field goal on the leg of K Freddie Donnelly to put the game back within a single possession. With their mistake fresh in their minds, the Federals began a drive once more as time ran out in the third

WAS 21, CHI 16

Q4

Washington would once again put on a clinic against the Hogs’ defense, effortlessly weaving through defenders to find yardage in places where many teams wouldn’t be able to. Sellers would hit Atkins for a 21 yard gain over the middle on a crucial third down, and then find Sanderson going up the sidelines one play later for another big gain to set themselves up in scoring range. After another Sanderson jump ball that almost got in for a touchdown, RB Rip Rooney plowed his way up the middle for his second TD of the day to put the game out of reach. It would be out of reach if not for Chicago RB Billy Gould’s return on the next drive for the Hogs. Union Stadium erupted in applause when Gould strutted back onto the field, and he immediately made an impact, taking a handoff to the outside for a massive 35 yard gain to reinvigorate the offense. The Hogs kept feeding the ball to Gould after that play, and he eventually got into the endzone after 7 straight plays of him getting the ball. This chewed up more time than the Hogs would have wanted to, leaving just 3 minutes left on the clock. The ball went back to the Federals, who only took a minute off before punting the ball back to the Hogs. Chicago kept handing the ball off to Gould to try and get an explosive play out of him, but it was too little and too late. With just 12 seconds on the clock and the ball at midfield, Gould took a handoff to the outside trying to get out of bounds for one last play, but in his state of exhaustion got pummeled by DB Johnathan Moon and fumbled the ball away. S Josh von Bank came out with the ball, celebrating over Gould laying on the ground in a state of shock and exhaustion. Washington had upset the mighty Hogs and clinched their way into their first-ever championship appearance in franchise history, and their first chance at a title since their days in Columbus. The image of the Washington defense celebrating their win over the Hogs with Gould laying in the foreground would become one of the most iconic images of the young league, and would spread like wildfire across the nation long after the clock hit zero.

WAS 28, CHI 23