SB Nation User Blog: george cronin

For those of you who watched the replay of ,

george cronin — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 17:42:46 -0000

"the Greatest Game Ever Played," (thanks for alerting us, 57), what struck you most ? For me, it was the wizardry Johnny U displayed on play action--real deception, almost putting the ball in the RBs' stomachs before pulling it back. Modern day QBs make no more than make a token extension of the ball toward the RB. The only possible exception was Steve Beurlein(SP?) Maybe it doesn't matter because the gesture of extending the ball suffices to freeze the D just enough? Why not do it U's way and freeze Ds a split second longer? Maybe coaches don't want to to risk fumbles?

I know most of you are tired of discussing what

george cronin — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 00:37:28 -0000

goes on inside Plax's head, but I just came across some quotes from/about Joe Don Looney, (a #1 Giants pick traded in his first training camp who lasted eight years in the NFL because a series of head coaches thought they could get him to conform and play to his universally acknowledged awesome potential.) When I read them, I thought of Plax and thought I thought they might interest you.

From:

"The only value in football is fun. When you play for money, it loses its value."

"If the end zone is where happiness is, I'd be living there."

"It's not what you think of me that counts. It's what I think of you."

About.

"He has curtains in his mind." (From his father or an uncle.)

You can't speak to the ocean to a frog inside a whale. He spent his life inside a whale. (Same source.)

"He never had both shoelaces tied." (Sam Huff.)

Excellent article on "The Root"

george cronin — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 18:32:42 -0000

re loss of Plax and why the Giants are the best team in the NFL. I recommend it to all, but, since I'm pretty much computer illiterate, can't post it for you. Maybe someone else will read it like it and post it. Okay, I need another 30 words to post.

Basically the article states that depth trumps star power. a roster of B+ players is better than a team with some stars and a ragtag bunch of scrubs. The writer states that the strategy used by the Giants in the same as that pursued by, the Titans, the Steelers, N.E.

Last night Dallas used two RBs in the lineup

george cronin — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 12:07:29 -0000

at the same time. They ran a scissors play and Jones scampered for more than sixty yards. A while back, Ed advocated for the Giants (with their wealth of good RBs) to put in two of them at the same time occasionally. I think it's a good idea. How about the rest of you? How about something more extreme-- two RBs, two TEs plus Hedgecock? With the backs we have, would it be hard for opponents to stop the run? Would it wear out defenses and set them up for the long ball?

Sherman Coach of the Year in '61

george cronin — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 02:00:23 -0000

In 1960, after a devastating hit by Chuck Bednarik that left him hospitalized with a deep concussion and unconscious for a few days, Frank Gifford retired. Even without his biggest offensive star, Allie Sherman's first year as a coach was a huge success.

With YA at QB (Sherman gave him a free hand in the huddle), Del Shofner to stretch the field, Kyle Rote running crossing routes, Joe Walton at TE (via a trade with the Redskins), and glue-fingered Alex Webster catching screens, the Giants became a glitzy aerial circus. They finished with a 10-3-1 record, good enough for the Eastern Division crown.

The Green Bay squad they met in the NFL championship game had been turned into division winners in two short years, losing the title contest to the Eagles in '60 (17-13.) Using his personal relationship with JFK, Lombardi wangled a leave from the Army for Hornung so he could play in the '61 championship game.

Besides Hornung, the Pack fielded 10 other future HOFers.

Thanks to Hornung and Jim Taylor, they led the league in rushing (using the famous Green Bay sweep.) Outside of John Henry Johnson, Taylor was perhaps the most crazed RB in league history, habitually changing direction to deliberately ram into and over would-be tacklers.

The game was far rougher at that time. Players could tackle and spear with the helmet, grab the face mask, horse collar, and check receivers at the line of scrimmage. RBs like Taylor and Johnson (and later, Csonka) were adept at throwing forearm smashes at defenders. (A Sam Huff helmet's in the HOF displaying a dent, the result of a collision with Taylor.)

The Giants had the league's stingiest defense, led the league in interceptions and included seven future HOFers on the roster.

In the first quarter, two miscues, both involving Kyle Rote, gave a hint of what kind of a day it would be: wide open, he dropped a sure TD pass, and Bobby Gaiters (Giff's replacement) overthrew him all alone in the end zone.
Rote was a marvelous athlete, a All-American triple threat back in college, who tore up his knee in his first training camp and the other knee two years later. This was years before arthroscopic surgery. To repair knees they opened them up, did the repairs, and closed them, creating big "zippers" in the flesh. Speed gone, he never played RB for the Giants but had a great career as a receiver, going to the Pro Bowl a couple of times, I believe. He had an uncanny knack to get into the clear (as did Giff.)

Early in the 2nd quarter, Hornung ran for a TD, putting the Pack up, 7-0. QB Starr followed with two TD srikes and Hornung (who scored 19 points in the game) closed out the half with an FG. Going into the dressing room, the Giants trailed, 24-0. I'll spare you the rest of the gory details leading to a final score of 37-0

Hornung won the game MVP

Sherman was honored as Coach-of-the-Year.

1959-1960

george cronin — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 11:28:23 -0000

[EDITOR'S NOTE: George Cronin, one of the senior members of Big Blue View Nation, has been entertaining us throughout the off-season with stories of yesteryear. His posts appear each Saturday.]

Before the 1959 season, Vince Lombardi departed for Green Bay with the blessings of the Maras, who thought it was a loan and expected to get Vinny back after Howell retired.

The Giants ended the season with a 10-2 record. For the third time in four seasons, Charlie Conerly (who entered the league as a 27-year-old rookie after service in the Pacific with the-Marines during WWII) quarterbacked the team to a championship game. He received the MVP that year.

They met the 9-3 Colts again. Today, people remember the Colts primarily for their explosive offense, but their defense was just as awesome. They led the league in interceptions with 40, almost twice as many as the runner-up Bears (with 22.) The fierce rush of two Hall Of Fame linemen (Marchetti and Donovan) helped the secondary and Big Daddy Lipscomb was no slouch, either.

The game was blacked out in the NYC Metropolitan area, so had I to trek to Hartford, CT to watch it.

In the first quarter, Unitas hit Lenny Moore with a bomb to put Baltimore up, 7-0. Summerall brought the Giants closer with an FG. He kicked another in the 2nd, and at the half the Giants trailed, 7-6.

The G-Men went ahead in the third on another Summerall FG. Things fell apart in the fourth when Unitas ran for a TD and threw for another. The Colts scored again on a Johnny Sample interception (my most vivid --and disappointing-- memory of that game.) Conerly's pass for a TD was too little too late, and the Giants lost the championship game to the Colts for the second year in a row, 31-16.

After the game, Landry was hired to coach the expansion Cowboys, and Howell, citing burnout, tried to retire. After the Maras failed to induce Lombardi to return, they peruaded Jim Lee to stick around for one more year.

In '60, age and injury forced Conerly to the bench. George Shaw (the guy Unitas replaced in Baltimore) took over as QB. Big Blue went 6-4-2, Howell retired and Allie Sherman became the coach.

Allie had been the QB at Brooklyn College (like Joe Paterno). He played five seasons of pro ball with the Eagles as a QB and DB (the Steagles in '43), led the league in yards per passing attempt in' 46 (8 yards on 17 tosses) and the Eagles to the championship game in '47.

He coached as an assistant with the Giants from '49-53, then became a head coach in the CFL before returning to the Giants as a scout in '57 and later as an assistant again. As a player he went 5-foot-8 and weighed 168. Can you imagine a guy like that playing pro ball today?

On Sherman's insistence, the Giants acquired YA Tittle (a 13-year vet unloaded by the 49ers to make way for John Brodie) for Lou Cordileone, an All-American offensive lineman and the Giants' first-round draft pick out of Clemson. (Born in my home town, I remember Lou as an unstoppable FB and awesome defensive player at St. Michael's in Union City, NJ.)

They also traded for Del Shofner of the Rams, thus paving the way for perhaps the most famous QB-WR combo in Big Blue's history.

CRONIN'S CORNER: The Greatest Football Game Ever Played

george cronin — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 13:19:00 -0000

[EDITOR'S NOTE: George Cronin, one of the senior members of Big Blue View Nation, has been entertaining us throughout the off-season with stories of yesteryear. His columns appear here each Saturday.]

The 1958 championship matched the superb Giants' defense against the Colts' # 1 offense, led by Johnny Unitas, who called all his own plays.

I mentioned in the last installment that he was a rookie who took over when George Shaw went down.

I didn't mention that the first pass he threw in the pros was intercepted and that on the next two possessions he fumbled. Nevertheless, he impressed his teammates because he didn't lose a smidgen of his confidence (some would say cockiness.)

Worthy of mention also, to give a better idea of the quality of the Colts' roster is that Gino Marchetti was hailed as "the greatest defensive end of all time" in the 1999 Sporting News vote, and that Jim Parker was the first full time defensive lineman voted into the Hall Of Fame.

The Giants took an early lead on a Pat Summerall FG. The Colts came back with two scores (made possible by Frank Gifford fumbles) and led at the half, 14-3.

In the third quarter, the Giants made an heroic stand at their own 1-yard line, turning back the Colts four times.

Taking over at the five, the Giants began to move, helped by a Kyle Rote catch, which he lugged to the Colts 28. Hit hard, he coughed up the ball, but Webster grabbed it and took it to the one.

The Giants punched the ball in and cut the lead to four points. When they got the ball back, Charlie Conerly connected on three passes for 78 yards, the last a 15-yard strike to Giff in the end zone.

With 1:56 left, the Giants led 17-14.

The Colts last chance came with the ball on their own 14. Considering their inability to get into the end zone when they had a first down on the Giants 1, I was sure the Giants had the game in the bag, particularly when the Colts gained nothing on their first two downs. However, on third down, Unitas completed an 11-yard pass to Moore.

His next completion demonstrated why Unitas to Berry is considered perhaps the most storied combination in football history. They worked after practice all the time, rehearsing their plays over and over, coming up with ways to deal with game situations.

According to Berry, one play they worked up and used only once covered a situation should an LB walk up on Berry on a play that called for him to run a square-in. They decided Berry should fake outside, hoping to get bumped, and then slant underneath.

On 2nd and 10, with no time outs left, the teams lined up and a Giants' linebacker moved up on Berry. He and Unitas glanced at each other, both knowing it was time for the play they had worked on in practice.

Unitas hit him for a 25-yard gain to midfield. On the next play, he connected with him for 15; the next, 22. With seven seconds left, the Colts sent the game into OT with a field goal.

The Giants received and went three and out. The Colts got the ball at the 20. Unitas drove them 80 yards in 13 plays, with fullback Alan Ameche pounding in from the 1 for a Baltimore victory.

During the game, Unitas hit Berry 12 times for 178 yards.

With the value of practice between QB and receiver so clear from football history, why don't Plax and Shock work with Eli in training camp?

Cronin's Corner: ' 56 Championship game (Second Sneakers Game)

george cronin — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 12:01:38 -0000

[EDITOR'S NOTE: George Cronin is one of the senior members of Big Blue View Nation. He has been entertaining us with memories of the old days on Saturdays throughout the off-season.]

The first Sneakers Game was the 1934 championship. The Bears were heavy favorites, having won 13 in a row and gone undefeated in 33 games. The Giants came in with 8-5 record.

During the pre-game warm-ups, Steve Owen noticed that in the sleet storm the players were slipping and sliding all over frozen field. He dispatched the equipment manager to Manhattan College to get sneakers.

At the end of the half, the Giants were down, 10-3. After the half, the Bears kicked a FG to take a 10-point lead near the end of the third quarter when the equipment manager arrived with the sneakers.

In the fourth quarter, the Giants, able to cut back, ran all over the Bears, scored 4 TDs and won, 30-13.

In 1954, Tom Landry installed the 4-3. It didn't realy begin to jell until the '56 season was underway. What made it click was the addition of three new arrivals to join Rosey Grier on the line--Robustelli (from LA), Katcavage (a rookie). and "Little Mo" Modzelewski (from the Steelers), and another rookie, LB Sam Huff.

The field was as bad in '56 as it had been in '34, and the same teams squared off (both wearing sneaks.)

Earlier in the year they had played a 17-17 tie, so a tight game was expected. Gene Filipski ran back the opening kickoff 53 yards and a rout was on.

The half ended with the Giants up 34-7, and the game ended with a final score of 47-7, earning the Giants their first championship since 1938.

A highlight of the game was the Giants bottling up of the Bears All-Pro RB, Rick Casares. Huff was used as a spy, going wherever Casares went.

The same strategy was used many times in the future vs. Cleveland's Jim Brown.

Cronin's Corner: 1950 Eastern Division championship game

george cronin — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 12:03:01 -0000

[EDITOR'S NOTE: George Cronin is one of the senior members of Big Blue View Nation. He will be sharing memories of yesteryear on Saturdays throughout the offseason.]

The Cleveland Browns of the All American Football Conference won the conference championship every year of the league's existence ('46-49.) Their overall record during the life of the league was 47-4-3. In 1948, they went 15-0. Many consider that team the best football team of all time.

In 1950, the AAFL and NFL merged. The NFL absorbed the 49ers, Colts and Browns. The best players from the other AAFL teams were distributed to NFL teams. The Giants got two Hall of Famers, Arnie Weinmeister and Tom Landry.

No AAFL stats were kept, so it's difficult for those who didn't see them play to get a full appreciation for Hall of Famers on the Browns 1950 squad like QB Otto Graham, FB Marion Motley and WR Dante Lavelli.

In addition to these players, the team included three other Hall of Famers, center Frank Gatski, G Bill Willis and Lou Groza, kicker and offensive tackle. (He didn't kick soccer style, but his kickoffs invariably wound up behind the other squad's goal line.)

I don't believe any other team has placed six guys who played in the same years in the HOF. Graham, Motley and Groza also made the 2000 Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Football Players of All Time.

In their first year in the NFL, the Browns played the Giants three times.

The Giants won their first game vs. the Browns, 17-3 and shut them out in the second, 6-0. Both battles featured the kind of brutal defensive struggles that came to categorize contests between the teams.

The Giants roster, not quite as star-studded as Cleveland's, included two Hall of Famers, Emlen Tunnel and Arnie Weinmeister, an All-Pro DB, Otto Ole Schnellbacher (who also played pro basketball), two good RBs in Choo-Choo Roberts (who held the Giants single game running record until Blabber beat it in '05), and Eddie Price. The legendary Charlie Conerly QB'ed and made All-Pro that year (as did Roberts.)

Although they mastered the Browns during the year, the Giants lost to the Chicago Cardinals featuring Hall of Fame RB Charley Trippi and to Pittsburgh, whose lineup included HOF T Ernie Stautner. The season ended with the Giants and Browns tied for first at the top of the Eastern Conference with identical 10-2 records, necessitating a playoff to decide which team would represent the East in the NFL championship game.

Having already beaten them twice, the Giants were favored to win again. The Browns scored a FG in the first quarter and held the lead into the fourth, when Choo-Choo broke into the clear and headed for a TD, only to be dragged down from behind inside the 10 after 47 yards by Bill Willis, a middle guard (the precursor to MLB). Our best RB, a speedster caught from BEHIND! The Giants settled for a FG to tie the score.

Later in the fourth, Willis(again!) tackled Conerly in the end zone for a safety. Still later, Groza kicked a field goal and the game ended with the Browns on top, 8-3.

The Browns went on to win the NFL championship by beating the Los Angeles Rams (who were the Cleveland Rams from '37-'45) in a squeaker, 30-28.

For the six years '50-'55, the Browns won the Eastern Conference title 5 times and the NFL championship three times.

1946 championship game -- and a kid's broken heart

george cronin — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 13:58:48 -0000

[EDITOR'S NOTE: George Cronin, one of the elder statesmen here at Big Blue View Nation, will be entertaining us during the off-season with stories of the Giants of yesteryear. His stories will appear on Saturdays.]

Hours before the 1946 championship game with the four-times-in-the-forties champion "Monsters of the Midway" Bears, a story broke that quarterback Frankie Filchock and Melre Hapes, the fullback, had been approached by gamblers and offered bribes to throw the game.

The Mayor and Police Commissioner met with Tim Mara in the Mayor's office and summoned the players. Hapes admitted being approached, Frankie didn't. Bert Bell, the NFL Commissioner, suspended Mapes, but let Frankie play.

Frankie was met by boos when he took the field at the Polo Grounds, which drove a dagger into my heart.

Frankie played 50 minutes. Early in the game, he suffered a broken nose.

Sid Luckman, who never ran, bootlegged and ran 19 yards to a TD.

The Bears later kicked a field goal to win 27-14, a heartbreaking loss for a 13-year-old who, once Frankie was allowed to play, was sure his hero would lead the team to a win. After all, they'd shut out the Bears 14-0 earlier in the year. The final score matched the betting line, so those who took or gave points broke even.

On the day the would-be briber was convicted, the Commissioner suspended Mapes and Frankie, despite the presiding Judge's statement that Frankie wasn't an accomplice, but an unfortunate victim of circumstances.

Bell's thinking was that not reporting a bribe offer was as bad as taking one (Mapes testified he told Frankie about the offer.)

When asked about his plans after his suspension, Frankie said he had none, that he'd never imagined he'd be out of football and still wanted to play.

And play he did, in Canada, where he was a great attraction. In 1950, the suspension was lifted when Bell was bombarded by testimonials and entreaties, including the NYC Mayor and DA. The Giants, saying they were emphasizing youth, didn't sign him.

Frankie never spoke to a Mara after that. He played for Montreal in 1950 and, when the Canadian season finished, went to Baltimore (the NFL was still playing.) The Colts folded after the season ended and Frankie never played in the NFL again.

He returned to Canada as a player-coach until 1953 and then became a full-time coach. During his career, he played or coached pro ball in 12 cities (including a brief stint with the Denver Broncos) 6 leagues and 2 countries.

It's a sad and tragic tale, and I'll go to my grave believing Frankie got screwed. Not as badly as Babe Dahlgren, maybe, but pretty bad.