Tweet   This episode we fire up the DeLorean and head back to explore the life and career of Joe Carr, the Father of Professional Football.  He was the NFL President from 1921 - 1939 and was considered one of the most influential people in bringing legitimacy to the league.  Due to his contributions to the league, Joe Carr was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 1963.  So strap on your seat belt, and let’s get ready to take this baby up to 88mph.
 
Connect with the show:
Visit the show notes for this episode
Visit me on the web - my about page
Contact the show
Follow me on Twitter
Subscribe on YouTube
 
Click below for the transcript.  I have included affiliate links to Amazon throughout the transcript to complement the episode.  If you purchase through these links it will support the show at no extra cost to you.
Read Full Transcript The Father of Professional Football’s Early Life
As we step off our DeLorean this episode in Columbus, OH. The date is October 23, 1879, the day our hero was born. Our hero is Joseph Francis Carr, and he would become The Father of Professional Football. Joe Carr would accomplish this through his 19 years as the President of the NFL (from 1921 – 1939). An article from Pro Football Researchers said he only had 5 years of formal education, at St. Dominic’s Elementary School. At the age of 13, he went to work for a local machine shop to support the family. He would work as a machinist for the Panhandle Division of the Pennsylvania Railroad and he would also be a sportswriter for the Columbus Newspaper. Throughout his tenure, he was involved in founding the famous Panhandle White Sox in 1900. He would also revive the Columbus Panhandle football team, which was made up of mostly railroad employees. His team would have the famous Nesser Brothers. The Nesser brothers were a famous group of brothers that all played for the same professional football team. For the majority of the time, 5 of the 11 starters on the team were Nesser’s. The 6th brother would end up joining the team in 1910, making the majority of the starters made up of Nesser’s. Fred, Frank, Phil, John, Ted, and Al were the brothers. In 1921, Ted’s son joined the team to form what would be believed as the only father/son combo on the same team in professional football. Carr would end up having many opportunities in the future throughout his Presidency of the NFL to make many changes.
The First Season of the APFA
The first season of the American Professional Football Association would ultimately be successful, although there were many things that needed to be changed before it would turn into the NFL we know today. Apparently, after the September 17, 1920 meeting, it was said to be a requirement for a $100 membership fee. However, it was rumored nobody ever paid. Scheduling was also left to the teams, with really no rules for what teams they could play against or how many games they had to play. The original teams came from 4 states. From Ohio were the Akron Pros, Canton Bulldogs, Cleveland Indians, and Dayton Triangles. The Hammond Pros and Muncie Flyers were from Indiana. New York had the Rochester Jefferson’s and the Rock Island Independents hailed from Illinois. There would be 4 more teams that would join throughout the season. These teams were the Buffalo All-Americans, Chicago Tigers, Columbus Panthers, and Detroit Heralds. On September 26, 1920, the first game featuring an APFA team would occur. At Rock Island’s Douglas Park in front of 800 people, the Rock Island Independents defeated the St. Paul Ideals 48-0. This was against a non-APFA team. The first game featuring 2 APFA teams happened on October 3, 1920. Some have pointed to the game of Dayton Triangles versus Columbus Panhandles, which would result in Dayton winning 14-0. It was said the game between the Muncie Flyers and Rock Island Independents also occurred the same day, but the Dayton game would be considered the first game due to a ma