Glory Days I n the early days of professional football many of the best teams weren’t part of the NFL Instead they were based in small cities where they were the only game in town for sports fans The Portsmouth Spartans were just such a team They played in southern Ohio near the borders of Kentucky and West Virginia The Spartans were very good so good in fact that they were invited to join the NFL in 1930 The Spartans nearly won the league championship in 1931 and 1932 They were one of the NFL’s toughest teams Coach Potsy Clark once decided he would use the same 11 players for all 60 minutes of a game against the Green Bay Packers The Spartans won 19 0 The Packers had been the NFL champions the year before Portsmouth had a running attack that was almost unstoppable Linemen Ox Emerson and George Christensen opened up holes for 6
running backs Dutch Clark Glenn Presnell and Ace Gutowsky Unfortunately for the people of Portsmouth the Great Depression hit their city hard In 1934 when fans could no longer afford to support the team the Spartans moved to Detroit Michigan and became the Lions A year later they won the NFL championship The Lions built a dangerous offense during the 1930s and 1940s Their stars included Ernie Caddel Byron Whizzer White Frank Sinkwich and Bill Dudley However it was not until the 1950s when the team’s defense became dominant that the Lions returned to the top of the NFL Detroit played for the NFL championship four times during the decade and won the title three times The defense starred Joe Schmidt Les Bingaman Jim David Yale Lary and Jack Christiansen The Lions of this era often looked to quarterback Bobby Layne for leadership As long as there was time on the clock his teammates believed he could guide them to victory Layne got help from dynamic players such as Doak Walker Cloyce Box Hopalong Cassady Bob Hoernschemeyer Leon Hart and Lou Creekmur LEFT Ernie Caddel ABOVE Bobby Layne 7
stars In the 1960s and 1970s the Lions put many good players on the field Their defensive included Alex Karras Roger Brown Wayne Walker Mike Lucci Lem Barney and Dick LeBeau Their top offensive players were Gail Cogdill Nick Pietrosante Greg Landry Charlie Sanders Mel Farr Dexter Bussey and Steve Owens However during these two decades the Lions were never serious contenders for a championship By the 1980s the Lions relied on the talents of an extraordinary running back named Billy Sims He topped the National Football Conference NFC in touchdowns twice In 1983 Sims helped the Lions win their first division crown in 26 years Detroit fans welcomed a new star when the Lions drafted Barry Sanders in 1989 Sanders was one of the fastest and most elusive runners in NFL history He gained more than 1,000 yards 10 seasons in a row With help from Herman Moore Mel Gray LEFT Barry Sanders ABOVE Herman Moore 9
