1950 NFL Championship The Way it Was

[Applause] [Music] first and ten to twenty to fifty seconds remain Graham passing the Bumgardner Ken rocks Kennedy's out there he's got it again 45 seconds left here's our grand trying to set up a field goal [Applause] less than 30 seconds remaining grounds on the 16 yard line Tommy James kneeling on a 16 the wind is blowing its goal and center James putting it down girls have boots it it's up in the air it's heading towards it all balls 20 seconds well the thrilling 1950 NFL championship is a theme of our show this week on the way it was [Music] hi I'm Kurt Goudy welcome to our series of American sports classics today we're going to relive one of the great sporting events of all time the 1950 NFL championship game between the Cleveland Browns and the Los Angeles Rams the team leader a quarterback hall-of-famer automatic Otto Graham and all-pro in who caught more passes for more yardage than anyone in NFL championship play Donny Lavelle II an all-pro tackle the greatest place kicker in NFL history also a Hall of Famer Lou the tow Groza and now for the National Conference champs the Los Angeles Rams all-pro n whose broken field runs at the University of Wisconsin and in the pro game earned him the title Crazylegs he's a Hall of Famer - Elroy Hirsch the greatest all-around athlete in the history of West Point a Heisman Trophy winner mister outside Glen Davis and the Rams great triple threat quarterback another Hall of Famer Bob water-filled and the sportscaster who called the play-by-play for this great game to the nation on both radio and television the voice of the Cleveland Browns Bob Neal both radio and television Rikard we had a limited kind of network and I think the fact that I had had Paul Brown become the Godfather of my oldest son didn't hurt I would think not the true the Paul Brown used to make you carry a playbook around with you as the announcer for all right the first year we went to training camp at Bowling Green I had to go to the class sessions I had to keep playbook I had to stay in as the players did he rang a fire bell at 10 o'clock and the lights were out for everybody including the broadcaster the writers and that was the way it was all right let's go to 1950 and you set the scene for this championship game and tell us the way it was well at the end of the regular season and they're both conferences ended in the tie but in the American Conference playoff the Browns beat the New York Giants eight to three eight two three I remember that Briella defense and thanks to a last-minute field goal by the same Lou Groza in the National Conference the Rams have beaten the Bears 24 14 on Bob water fields superb passing and Glen Davis is great running so it was that the Browns and the Rams met to face each other for the National Football League titles of the National Football Conference we'll have Tom fears dick Huffman Jack Finley arch to to toe Stephenson and Ryan Hart on the line Elroy Hurst playing right in water field at quarterback Glen Davis had left half vitamin T Smith and dick Horner for the Browns max speedy Crozier weld and humble and nape given alternating at one guard Frank Gatzke at center Lynn Euston Lou Rimkus Donnie LaValley Otto Graham Rex Baumgartner dub Jones and Marion motley a confrontation of the Rams and the Cleveland Browns on a field that's slippery to say the least the captains out there visiting with referee Ron gives getting set up a cold day 27 degrees and the Browns hoping that they can prove to their fans that when they took over the football scene in Cleveland the Rams moved to Los Angeles that it was no mistake the Browns will be kicking it off and here comes Lou Groza gets the boot away it's a good one standing way back in the five-yard line is number 77 vitamin-d Smith and here he comes coming back on to the 10 he's on his way moving out there in hot pursuit with watch vitamin T Smith carries them all out to the 18 yard line first and ten number seven Bob water-filled back to pass looking gets it off and it's in the air Glen Davis down along the sidelines takes in under 45 [Applause] Davis is going to go [Applause] taking the lead six to nothing how do i her holding water field boots Browns is somewhat concerned this is the devastating Rams team but here comes Otto Graham number 60 passing on the side Doug Jones along the sideline first down in the Cleveland 42 second down Graham passing over them and looking and hooks with Davila Valley down he brought down the 47 yard line third down and five here's Otto Graham with good protection Lin use from the top with a good block motley with a good block but Graham's gonna have to run keeping the ball running off to this side takes another throat [Applause] Rams 31-yard line as he moves in [Applause] [Music] one yard line here's hologram good protection again looking for dub Jones there's the number streaking for the end zone [Applause] with six points 7/7 the Rams take the kick when water filled in three plays moves the Rams 58 yards to the Browns 22 here is water filled to Tom fear is good for five yards second and five on the 18 yard line water field back now looking for tom fears gonna hand it off to Vitamin Smith line and Smith moving around left in gets a good block that's Jack Finley number 58 clearing a path he cuts back in he's down to the 15 to the outside of the 10 down to the 5 he might go in and pounds on the two first engulfment to his horner stop no he's loose [Music] [Applause] his water filled with Hertz holding boots [Applause] just before the first quarter and now back to action the brown with the balls in the 37 there's Graham throwing for speedy interference call and it's the Browns ball first and ten of the 50 Otto Graham running to his ride trying to get around gets a few yards down to the 43 and that's as far as Otto's going to go second down and three Otto Graham number 60 fading back again looking for finds max baby number 58 speaking of the cats good block by Lou Groza [Applause] 26 yard line so it's first and ten for the Browns of the 26 here's Otto Graham getting set up Rams with a terrific rise Otto's going to be thrown for a loss back nine yards it's at the 35 here's honor Graham second than 19 Graham looking for La Valle cutting across none is going to go in and he scores [Applause] going after touchdown high pass from center here Tommy James running off to his right Tommy looking and there's Tony Adamle in the end zone throws it in there how do we scouted know he dropped it and the scores the Rams 14 the Browns 13 6 water-filled looking throwing the number 40 Elroy Hurst on the 42 yard line Crazy Legs showing why they call him that is [Applause] on the Cleveland 30-yard line Browns defense been stingy all year now critical play third down water field running on his own the Browns are going to stop in just shy of a first down it's down on the 16 yard field goal attempt now by the Rams Hersh holding water field boating wind blowing the balls up in the air it is going to be no good off to the side and the first half comes to an end Rams 14 Browns 13 well that's the end of the half and Bob water-filled you and Glenn Davis hooked up for a record 82 yard pass play did you know if you received Bob you were going to do this play well we had some pretty good keys on the brown pass defense and Deborah King on the way the fullback blocked and we sort of thought we'd just go right off the bat and of course with Glen's great speed and fine hands he ran right by the linebacker nice way to start a game Glenn Curt shoemaker put the linebacker who missed that coverage wasn't there next year next year weren't those sophisticated bones right while we're talking to you a lot of people know that you were a triple threat tailback at Northwestern an all-american basketball player I don't think too many people know that you played professional basketball I played one year and played felt like George blanik fuzzy Levein red Holzman Chuck honors Bob Davies basketball sure I'd have to inject here that when we went our first training camp Lou and I that Otto use this basketball championship money to bring the only car to our training that's right there's a true out of the Paul Brown out of your basketball ability decided to make you a quarterback well I'm sure it helped me an awful lot because I hadn't had much training at it but the moves are very very similar the spinning and so forth and a basketball player does so I'm sure that helped very much I want to say one thing on this program they talked about a score the better football players the better quarterbacks this type of thing I don't think you can ever say anyone men is the best because a lot depends upon who you play with other words that no quarterback throws the ball very well if he's lying flat on his back fellows in front of the block you have to get pedals like dal Roy and Dante to get open and Glen but I personally think that Bob water-filled was all around quarterback never saw because how many quarterbacks kick field goals as well as Lou Groza partners as well as Horace Gilliam Carla zone plays threw the ball in other words he did he did everything and quite honestly I think he's probably the best all-around quarterback to ever played the game and glad you say played safety on defend that's right yeah come on Hudson his first year man for me thank you very much that's quite a I came off the boat knew your heart from overseas missable stadium for the second half the Rams receive they don't move the ball and they punt to the Browns 23 first and ten on the Browns 23 Otto Graham pitching to Marion motley the big 245 5-4 by coming to this side gets a good block [Applause] second and five here's Auto gram-gram looking out and Horace Gilliam sets the rounds up in good shape about the Rams 44 second and five into 39 autograph looking now spaetzle belly there's Donny's Lou Groza in with Tommy James holding ball is set down it's voted the top here it's good and it's [Music] quickly marks the brown 17 first and 10 Nick Horner picks up 80 yards for Cleveland 9 on 3rd down the foot to go here's dick Horner running over the middle again faced with a third down and four to go on the touchdown here's dick Horner on the famed slide toss series there's the ball pitched out toys [Applause] corner of all six successive times lines up again he's going to carry it for the seventh time right up the middle [Applause] and the land [Applause] [Music] trying to come right back in this game the fans on their feet rounds ball first and ten their own 20 marion motley the old bread-and-butter kid come to this sideline murrs himself now being hemmed in by the Rams [Applause] being covered levels of all [Applause] - touchdown [Music] [Applause] taking the lead 27 to 21 appeal makes of 28 [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] forty-seven and that Browns now faced with an insurmountable task Otto Graham Tornillo belly pushed out of bounds on his own third down on the 46 Otto Graham be encouraged by his teammates third down the 46 out of four good for three more yards but a first down the drive continuing to move going back to the 40 trying to get all the way he's run very well running off there's left we hid him stopped as he gets to the 32 after seven yard loss his gram looking again number 19 the cat thirty-four Otto Graham looking trying to spot his receive it is Lavallee [Applause] new championship record catching his 11th pass of the ballgame first down Browns in the Rams 26 gram running around the left side [Applause] the 19 yard line second and three through nineteen here the Browns moving down there Mary and Monte on the bread-and-butter trap down with a 14-yard Graham the Browns trying to come back in this game here's out of looking there's rich Bumgarner old man himself he's builded touchdown [Applause] [Music] important vote there's Tommy James it's voted seven on their own 30 water-filled looking for some running room trying to find when Davis Davis going outside Davis trying to pick up some climbing into 24 it's harder now trying to go for a first down dick corner big man Thompson the linebacker hits a number 36 and stops him short of the first down it's fourth down here's water field humming hi booming kick flip floors back there waiting for the rivet they used to call him racing after picks it up cliff Lewis who was a quarterback wearing number 62 he's going to be brought down in the 16 and we have eight minutes left to play the Rams lead by one two incomplete passes now Graham goes back to past third and ten then Tom Jones incomplete fourth and ten poorest Gilliam with the back in punt formation young Bigfoot gets it in there it's a high spiral drifting back his Glen Davis Davis pops the ball racing back for moving in on a pixel off and he's down straight outside runner [Applause] Bram's ball first and ten here's Bob water-filled number seven passing - Elroy hurt first taking the ball to the 25 [Applause] [Music] [Applause] five minutes left in the game Rams of the ball first and ten under 37 what Paul's bottle time exemption [Applause] six four and a half minutes in the 46 grams forty gets downloaded pretty [Applause] first and ten Cleveland Graham going back to pass runs up the middle Williams [Applause] well I do you had at one point lead you fumbled the ball away it would go to the bench anybody say anything to you I want to crawl into a hole but on the sidelines Paul bran actually put his arm on my shoulder and said don't worry aughts we're still gonna beat them in about that time I you know I thought the world had come to an end and Paul bran doesn't usually do this type of thing Bob on that drive but you went ahead 2120 you used Hornung seven times in a row why why were you running him that much well dick was a big strong boy and I think everybody expected Glenn to run the ball or so Elroy or fares or somebody like that so I just stayed with him he was running very well so why not stay with a good thing we keep hearing the name of Bob Neil describing this game Lavallee Lavallee Lavallee where was Mac speedy this day Otto he was there but of course Dante always hotter louder mr. burrows Don girls and he said he's getting mad at don t because you go downfield Haller Otto Otto Otto I don't and I'll tell you quite honestly many many times you've been describing back there's a quarterback Bob Mills is very well run around back there and you're not sure where those receivers are well I never had any trouble finding Dante because he could Halas allowed you here in the next county somewhere but three minutes remaining to play the Cleveland fans is starting to file out of Municipal Stadium doesn't look too good that's it the Rams ball no it doesn't occurred it's the Rams ball first and ten on their own 24 I think it was and they were leading 28 27 time was starting to run out and we really had to go to bat let's see what happened Rams are unable to move the ball after three downs are forced to kick there's water field getting off a Boomer flips of all the clock is a very important issue now the flow is taking it heading from the sidelines trying to get out of bounds and he can and he's out of bounds in the 32 yard line one minute 45 seconds remaining first and ten from the 32 gram running to the right side [Applause] first and ten from the 46 a minute 30 seconds left autograph what's fun guy he's got and the Rams 39 stopping the clock again first and 10 to 39 grand the dungeon [Applause] [Music] first and ten on the twenty to fifty seconds remain I am passing the Bumgardner genrich's get it he's out there he's got it again 45 seconds left is somebody moving the ball less than 30 seconds remaining rounds on the 16 yard line Tommy James kneeling on a 16 the wind is blowing its goal Pass Center crows have boots it it's up in the air it's heading towards a goal post and it is good 20 seconds left really going while that may not be jammed with people that think Simon rail amounts the Browns leading by two less than 20 seconds remaining here's Groza with a kickoff [Applause] waiting way back on the [Applause] [Music] paym change back on his feet [Music] seven seconds left on the [Applause] time remaining seven seconds there's been back them back to pass looking for Linda along the side [Applause] one of the greatest games professional footballs well loo that oh you kicked a lot of important field goals in your career how would you rate this one well this is by far the top one Kurt you know we started the All American Conference and the NFL was the senior league and they used to tell us that we're in the minor leagues all the time so we had lot to prove and when it came down to the very end and we wanted by the basis of a field goal it really saved a lot of a lot of the pride that we had developed over the year and of course we thought we could play the big boys and I guess they sent me on Lew here okay when he first came in the league you know he had this big show this big hog he was the finest field goal kicker I'd ever seen you know and he was just a kid so to speak and very new in pro football memory had the tape they used to lay down the whole place down and he'd make this big show write the questions they were gonna fake it you know that did help but it's a big tape and Willie Wolken bless his soul is a big tackle we had just be with the Washington Redskins and now he was with Chicago Rockets on his way out after the service and Lou is lining up for this field goal and he's putting this tape down like this and Willie called a huddle immediately defensive huddle we all thought you know he's got a plan to block it and we all go in there and he says instead of trying to block it somebody go in and bend the tape that field goal good Glenn some of the Rams soccer field goal was no there was good it was a liner I'll say it's good what about that final play I think Pam Brockton had broken ribs didn't he when they brought him in and he threw the long bomb and y-intercept and you pushed him in the end zone or he ran in a no he was trying to get away see yeah I just 81 and what do you got to the end think I should have been a safety sir [Music] in Cleveland how could you get it I apply a fake golf with Glen Davis many many times you played golf really known as they got a consequence up with something like this on the that big brood over there Glen Davis was there an argument after the game that by the possible say that just through the tears an official possibly could have called that a safety will change the outcome the game of court made it tie game out of it it could have happened you keep referring to clear I think you're likely been very well in Los Angeles there was a safety 68 yards to go minute 45 left to play you're behind did you did you feel you could take the club in well our football club we always thought we could score we felt we had good material we thought we could do the things that we could do best and they of course has been pointed out here did a great job of blocking premier fellas like ran Molly and they allowed me the time before the football and I was like Dante would get open so he just stole the ball told curry and the sideline pass we knew they would be afraid to go for the six pointer so they would play a little bit loosely and I would too if I were them so consequently we had enough time to go down to the field we couldn't afford many mistakes mm-hmm we had enough time we had to run the sideline passes because we didn't have enough time much left and of course they gave it tours and we of course did it games over you signed off did you know that you had just done or the feeling that you may have just done probably one of the greatest games of all time I would wind up to do one of the greatest games of all time I think so Curt uh as you know that just the whole game just built up into this fantastic crescendo and when it was over I think everyone because it was Christmas Eve to begin with and the total realization of all the work these fellows have been doing for so many years and to go down there where you know where Paul Brown for example was standing on a chair and he didn't even know what the score was and he said what difference does it make we won the game Lou was kissing his kicking shoe and they were just it was like a high school group of kids who had just won the city championship and they were so delighted for each other a classic it sure was want to thank the Los Angeles Rams the Cleveland Browns and Bob Neal who called that famous game on radio and television and so on Christmas Eve 1952 superb evenly matched professional football teams itched their names and sports history Commissioner Burt Bell called it the greatest football game he had ever seen and for their efforts that day each of the champion Browns received one thousand one hundred thirteen dollars and sixteen cents and the losing Rams each earned six hundred eighty six dollars and forty four cents slave wages and that's the way it was when the Browns beat the Rams for the 1950 NFL championship [Music]

Channel: Comrade Dobler

Views: 28,781

Rating: 4.972414 out of 5

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Id: u9bRzJN09-g

Length: 27min 47sec (1667 seconds)

Published: Mon Dec 12 2016