TimesFour

On this date in….

by on Sep.17, 2009, under Commentary

1961: The Lombardi dynasty got off to a shaky start.

Before the largest crowd ever to see a pro football game in Wisconsin to that point — 44,307 at Milwaukee County Stadium — the Packers stumbled in their first steps to repeat as NFL Western Conference champions.

The Packers scored the first time they had the ball, moving 69 yards in eight plays in a drive that culminated with Jim Taylor’s 1-yard scoring dive. The key play in the drive was a 45-yard run by Taylor.

But near the end of the first quarter, the Lions showed some firepower of their own. After returning the ensuing kickoff to their own 48-yard line, the Lions were led by QB Earl Morrall on a quick 52-yard touchdown drive sparked by Morrall’s 42-yard pass to WR Gail Cogdill.

Midway through the second quarter, the Lions struck again, scoring on a 15-yard Nick Pietrosante run to make it14-7 Detroit. It was the former Notre Dame star’s second touchdown of the day.

The Pack fought back, but two drives were killed by interceptions, and all they could extract from the stingy Detroit defense was a pair of Paul Hornung field goals. The last of these pulled the Packers to within a point midway through the fourth quarter, but the Lions quickly drove into position for Jim Martin’s 44-yard clinching field goal.

The unquestioned star of the game for Green Bay was WR Max McGee, who caught seven passes for 127 yards. Between them, however, the rest of the Packer offense managed as many catches for only 46 yards.

The loss seemed disastrous for the Packers, since the Lions were expected to be their top challengers in the West. But the Packers didn’t lose again until week 9 and finished 11-3 — well in front of the 8-5-1 Lions — and went on to capture their first NFL championship in 17 years on Dec. 31.

Still, there were few conference rivals who gave the Lombardi-era Packers more trouble than the Lions. Detroit handed Green Bay its only loss of the 1962 season with a 26-14 Thanksgiving Day trouncing, and Lombardi’s final championship season, 1967, began with an unexpected 17-17 tie with the Lions.
Max McGee
Sept. 17, 1961
County Stadium, Milwaukee

                   1          2          3          4          F
Lions              7          7          0          3          17
Packers            7          3          0          3          13

GB: Jim Taylor 1 run (Paul Hornung kick)
DT: Nick Pietrosante 1 run (Jim Martin kick)
DT: Pietrosante 15 run (Martin)
GB: Hornung 15 FG
GB: Hornung 26 FG
DT: Martin 44 FG

Trivia: Paul Hornung and Detroit’s Alex Karras were suspended in 1963 for betting on NFL games. The investigation was precipitated by a call to commissioner Pete Rozelle’s office from an NFL coach. Who tipped off Rozelle? The answer will appear in the Comments section tomorrow.


One response to “On this date in….”

  1. Citizen Dan says:

    Chicago Bears coach George Halas blew the whistle on Hornung and Karras.

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