Akron's Pro football History

[Zipsrifle]

While nosing around tonight, I stumbled across the Akron Professionals and the Akron Indians. I had heard that Akron used to have a pro football team, but didn't know much more till tonight. Football.com shows the Akron Pros as one of the first 10 teams in 1920 that evolved into what is now the NFL. They went 6-0-3 during their first season and finished first in the League. They outlasted teams from Cleveland, Detroit, New York, Cincinnati, Washington, Columbus, St. Louis and a bunch of others before they hung it up in 1926. Anyway, something to pass the time....

football.com

[Zipsrifle]

OK, well, nosing around some more and along with some other facts, found out that the Rubber Bowl originally had a 1/5 mile dirt track inside of it. It was used for Midget racing. The funny part of this, my wife couldn't figure out why people would want to come to the Rubber Bowl to see Midgets (as in little people) race.

Oh well, I should have expected this. When we first started going out she couldn't figure out why engineers had to study so much to drive a train! Got to love her!

[Z.I.P.]

Funny lady!

My frandfather, Arthur Sloat played on that 1920 Akron Pros NFL championship team. I didn't know until I saw him listed by name in the team photo at the Hall of Fame in Canton.

Here's another little known fact about Akron and the NFL: The first Dallas team in the NFL, I believe called the Texans, were forced by the NFL to move to Akron due to low attendance in Dallas. They played about 3 or 4 games in 1953 or 54 (?) at the Rubber Bowl before going out of business. We can say Akron had "America's Team".