John McNally (football player)
| John McNally | |
|---|---|
|
Positions: HB / TB , BB , Head Coach |
Jersey numbers: 14, 20, 24, 26, 55 |
| born November 27, 1903 in New Richmond , Wisconsin | |
| died on November 28, 1985 in Palm Springs California | |
| Career information | |
| Active : 1925 - 1941 | |
| College : St. Johns University | |
| Teams | |
|
as a player
as a trainer
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| Career statistics | |
| TD through run | 5 |
| TD by pass catch | 36 |
| Games | 136 |
| Stats at NFL.com | |
| Stats at pro-football-reference.com | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
|
| Pro Football Hall of Fame | |
John "Johnny" Victor McNally (born November 27, 1903 in New Richmond , Wisconsin , USA ; † November 28, 1985 in Palm Springs , California ), nickname : Blood , Johnny Blood or Vagabond Halfback was an American football player Player in the National Football League (NFL).
Player career
McNally graduated from high school at the age of 14 and joined the University of Notre Dame on short notice , but left it again when he was only used as a tackle and not as a halfback as desired . He therefore attended the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University and operated there in addition to football other sports.
In 1924, McNally rode a motorcycle with a friend to a semi-professional football team trial in Minneapolis . Although he had a year left to graduate from college, he wanted to join a professional team - which would inevitably have resulted in expulsion from his college football team. On the way, the two drove past a cinema where the film Blood and Sand (German: King of the Toreros ) with Rudolph Valentino was showing. Without further ado, he nicknamed himself Blood and his friend the nickname Sand .
In 1925, the fast McNally joined the Milwaukee Badgers , who lost all of their six games in the NFL. In 1926 he became a teammate of Ernie Nevers with the Duluth Eskimos . The team from Duluth had to stop playing after a bad season in 1927 due to financial difficulties. After a playing year with the Pottsville Maroons , McNally moved in 1929 to the Green Bay Packers trained by Curly Lambeau . The team from Green Bay was able to win the NFL championship in its first year with 12 wins out of 13 games. In 1930 the Packers committed Arnie Herber and the next title was won, followed by a third title in 1931. In 1931, McNally scored 84 points that season. His required 14 touchdowns were league best.
Lambeau gave McNally to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1934 , after an unsuccessful year there, McNally rejoined the Packers in 1935 and was able to catch 25 passes that year, which was a team record at the time. In 1936 he won the championship again. In the NFL Championship Game , the Boston Redskins were defeated 21: 6. In 1937 and 1938 two more, albeit unsuccessful, years with the Pirates followed. In both years he was also the team's head coach . After McNally ended his playing career in 1938, he resigned from his coaching position in 1939 to train a second-rate football team. In 1941 McNally returned briefly to professional football. He played a game for the Buffalo Tigers , a team in the American Football League, which had only existed for two years. From 1950 to 1952, McNally coached his old college football team .
Honors
McNally was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963. He is a member of the NFL 1930s All-Decade Team and the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame . He was voted All Pro four times . In 2003 the Packers named a ballroom in Lambeau Field after him.
Off the field
McNally was also known for his exuberant off-field behavior. So after a championship game he ran over the roofs of a moving train to talk to the engine driver in the driver's cab. For this action he was incited by his teammate LaVern Dilweg . He got his nickname Vagabond Halfback because, after he had missed the train, he stopped it without further ado by placing his car across the rails to stop the train with his fellow players. McNally was still in his car at the time, so he could easily have been run over.
During World War II , McNalls served as a cryptographer in the US Army . At the age of 42, after the end of the war, he completed his business degree at his former college. The character of Dodge Connolly from the film Leatherheads , which is played by George Clooney , is modeled on John McNally.
McNally is buried in the Immaculate Conception Cemetery in New Richmond.
Web links
- John McNally with the Green Bay Packers
- John McNally at the Pittsburg Steelers
- McNally's biography (PDF; 32 kB)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Statistics of the Packers 1929
- ↑ Statistics of the Packers 1930
- ↑ Statistics of the Packers 1931
- ↑ Statistics from the Packers 1936
- ^ Homepage of Lambeau Field Lambeau Field
- ^ History of the Film I Leatherheads
- ↑ History of the film II ( Memento of the original from June 4, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ McNally's Tomb
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | McNally, John |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | McNally, John Victor; McNally, Johnny; Johnny Blood; Blood, Vagabond Halfback |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American football coach and player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 27, 1903 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | New Richmond , Wisconsin |
| DATE OF DEATH | November 28, 1985 |
| Place of death | Palm Springs , California |