American Football League - Fictional History

  Union Stadium was a major upgrade in capacity compared to the championship held at LeClaire Field last year. It had nearly double the capacity, allowing more tickets to be sold compared to last year and more fans to show up. The stadium was primarily packed with local Chicago fans, but Rivermen supporters did manage to show up, managing to make about a 65-35 split between the two teams. The weather was slightly better, with temperatures reaching 36°F with mild winds and light rain at kickoff. Both teams were eager to capitalize on the championship this year, with Chicago looking to cap off a dominating year, while Cincinnati was trying to make something out of a seemingly lost season by upsetting the top team in the league. Q1 The Cincinnati Rivermen elected to take the opening kickoff to try and take the Hogs by surprise. Chicago wasn’t caught off guard though, forcing the Rivs to go three and out. Chicago didn’t have any better luck, with the rain messing the field up just enou...

  After the first season which was practically dominated by two teams, the 1951 season was a bit closer. It wasn’t particularly close for the Hogs, as they were out on a revenge tour after losing to the Hawks in the championship game and the week 1 Labor Day game. After that loss, they rattled off 9 straight wins to firmly sit atop the standings and another chance at winning a title. Everything clicked for the team this year, with QB Alfred Walton leading the league’s best scoring offense with weapons like WR Nicholas Kramer and TE Glenn Chambers on the passing attack, while RB’s Johnnie Hendrix and rookie Brian Bruce split carries on the ground. Walton’s commanding presence on the only efficient offense all year won him both the MVP and Offensive Player of the Year. The Hogs’ defense really stepped up this year, not allowing more than 20 points to any team this year, besides their 21-17 week 1 loss to Tri-Cities. Rookie DL Eric Forbes was one the main reasons why the defense was a...

  Although there wasn’t much player movement between teams, a lot of the older players on each of the teams retired after the grueling schedule put too much stress on their bodies and couldn’t deal with playing at this level. Some teams that had younger pieces, like Chicago, Detroit, and Tri-Cities, weren’t affected by the mass exodus of players, but Cleveland and Columbus were hit hard, with nearly half of their team leaving after the 1950 season and both scrambling to sign new players to take their place. Luckily for all the teams, there were plenty of players to go around, with 60 players declaring for the AFL straight out of college and a few more experienced players from the other leagues across the country. The biggest of the names coming out of college would be DL Eric Forbes out of Michigan University, with some proclaiming he might be one of the best defensive linemen ever if he develops properly. Pretty much every team reached out to sign a potential contract with him, bu...

  Following a successful first season for the AFL, the owners of the 6 teams met together in late February to conduct their first official meetings to kick off the 1951 season. Donovan Hasenkamp addressed the media after the meeting concluded.  COLUMBUS IN DIRE STRAITS As if having a poor season wasn’t the worst of the Buckeyes’ worries, the University of Ohio, where the Buckeyes play their home games, were looking to opt out of their agreement with Columbus if they couldn’t turn a profit this year. Buckeye Stadium has been notoriously empty, and owner Randolf Durant has been growing disinterested in the team over the past few seasons. Hasenkamp assured that the Buckeyes would remain in the league until then, and would look at other options to avoid the team folding if that was the option. For now, UOhio’s contract with the Buckeyes lasts until the 1954 season, and if the Buckeyes don’t significantly increase attendance numbers by next season, the university may look into term...