The 1951 Los Angeles Rams: Profiles of the NFL's First West Coast Champions

by George Bozeka (Editor)

Overview

The 1951 Los Angeles Rams were one of the greatest teams in professional football history. Led by pioneer owner Daniel Reeves, head coach Joe Stydahar, and future Hall of Famers Bob Waterfield, Norm Van Brocklin, Elroy Hirsch, Tom Fears, and Andy Robustelli, the team won the NFL championship of that season. In doing this, they defeated the defending champion Cleveland Browns in a fantastic rematch of the 1950 title game. The Rams were the first team in a major professional sports league to relocate to the West Coast, forever changing the face of the NFL and professional sports in America. Fueled by an exciting and accomplished lineup of veteran star players and impactful rookies, the product of the Rams' innovative scouting system and their reintegration of the NFL in 1946, the Rams successfully married the NFL to the glamorous world of Hollywood. Delve into the story of the '51 Rams, the NFL's First West Coast Champions.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476644134
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	04/28/2022
Series:	Great Teams in Pro Football History
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	380
File size:	13 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Retired attorney George Bozeka is the president and assistant publications director of the Professional Football Researchers Association. He has written numerous articles in the association’s publication The Coffin Corner and was the recipient of the PFRA’s Bob Carroll Memorial Writing Award in 2011 and the Jack Clary Award in 2020. He lives in Akron, Ohio.
Retired attorney George Bozeka is the president and assistant publications director of the Professional Football Researchers Association. He has written numerous articles in the association's publication The Coffin Corner and was the recipient of the PFRA's Bob Carroll Memorial Writing Award in 2011 and the Jack Clary Award in 2020. He lives in Akron, Ohio.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments (George Bozeka)
Preface (George Bozeka)
Part 1: The City and the Organization
The City of Angels (George Bozeka)
History of Pro Football in Los Angeles (Joshua Milton Anderson)
Owner Daniel Reeves (George Bozeka)
Head Coach Joe Stydahar (Lee Elder)
Assistant Coaches (Ryan C. Christiansen, Bert Gambini,
Bryan Lutes and Joe Ziemba)
Building the 1951 Rams (Matthew Keddie)
The 1951 Draft (Bert Gambini)
Part 2: The 1951 Season
1951 Training Camp and Preseason (Mark L. Ford)
1951 Rams Offense—The Xs and Os (Lee Elder)
1951 Regular Season Game Summaries (Rupert Patrick,
Rich Shmelter and Neal Golden)
Rams/Browns Rivalry (Ed Gruver)
1951 NFL Championship Game (Rupert Patrick)
1951 Rams Statistics (Rupert Patrick)
1951 Rams Superlatives (Rupert Patrick)
Part 3: The Team
Bob Boyd (Bill Lambert)
Larry Brink (Patrick Gallivan)
Bobby Collier (Greg Selber)
Tom Dahms (Nicholas Ritzmann)
Dick Daugherty (Mark L. Ford)
Glenn Davis (Randy Snow)
Tom Fears (Rick Schabowski)
Jack Finlay (John Maxymuk)
Jack Halliday (Joshua Milton Anderson)
Norb Hecker (Greg D. Tranter)
Elroy Hirsch (Rick Schabowski)
Dick Hoerner (Greg D. Tranter)
Marvin Johnson (John Maxymuk)
Tommy Kalmanir (John Grasso)
Tom Keane (John Grasso)
Bill Lange (Richard C. Flowers II)
Woodley Lewis (Mark Fellin)
Leon McLaughlin (John Maxymuk)
Don Paul (Patrick Gallivan)
Joe Reid (Joshua Milton Anderson)
Herb Rich (Mark Fellin)
Andy Robustelli (John M. Vorperian)
Don Simensen (Mark L. Ford)
Vitamin Smith (Randy Snow)
Harry Thompson (Nicholas Ritzmann)
Charlie Toogood (Bill Lambert)
Deacon Dan Towler (Richard C. Flowers II)
Norm Van Brocklin (Bryan Lutes)
Bob Waterfield (George Bozeka)
Stan West (Jay Zahn)
Jerry Williams (Gary A. Sarnoff)
Jim Winkler (Greg Selber)
Tank Younger (Rich Shmelter)
Jack Zilly (Joe Ziemba)
Racial Integration and the Rams (Ryan C. Christiansen)
The NFL’s Fashion Pioneers (John M. Vorperian)
Part 4: The Stadium
Memorial Coliseum (Massimo Foglio)
Part 5: The Press
Bob Kelley (Joe Marren)
Bud Furillo and Sid Ziff (Joe Marren)
Bob Oates and Melvin Durslag (Joe Marren)
Paul B. Zimmerman, Dick Hyland and Frank Finch (Joe Marren)
About the Contributors
Index